Most investors in the market are familiar with the name Mapletree. After all, it is the sponsor of four different REITs that are listed on SGX with strong firepower. In the past 12 months, the Mapletree Group of REITs have been one of the more active S-REITs with acquisitions worth $3.1 billion made in Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Japan and the US. We dive into the Mapletree brand to see what makes its REITs so unique in the S-REIT space. Investors Takeaway: Dissecting The Mapletree Brand REITs Mapletree Logistics Trust Mapletree Logistics Trust has been on an acquisition spree. It added $1.8 billion worth of new assets over the past 12 months. Moving forward, there are still plenty of inorganic growth opportunities for Mapletree Logistics Trust in China, Hong Kong, Japan and Australia.

According to DBS, statistically, October has a higher tendency to be positive whenever the STI declines in the months of August and September. So far, the current valuation of Singapore’s market is also very reasonable with the STI hovering around 3200 region. As such, there should be adequate cushion against the possibility of earnings cuts in the upcoming results season. To ride out the month of October, DBS recommends three investment strategies. Investors Takeaway: 3 Investment Strategies To Ride On October’s Momentum Palm Oil Stocks Enter Seasonal ‘Sweet Spot’ Historically, the price of crude palm oil (CPO) tend to peak in the month of March. It then bottoms out before mid-October followed by 2-3 months of price recovery. The October-December seasonal rise coincides with

One of the exercises in the recent workshop I ran was a simulation exercise to close off Day 1.Workshop participants are invited to form groups to imagine leaving Singapore for greener pastures. As part of the exercise, each group of students will elect a target country. Students will then try to dig out economic data on the target country, make broad estimates on how much it would cost to live in that country and estimate how large a Singapore portfolio should be to generate passive income required to retire there. They will subjectively assess which part of the market cycle the country is in and then they will do some research on what kind of instruments in SGX will allow some proxy bets on that economy. Finally, they will also have to defend an asset allocation in the target economy sho

As the earnings visibility for FY19 fades, CIMB thinks that investors should temper expectations. One recommended strategy is to load up some stocks with earnings certainty or which trade at deep discounts. In addition to a risk-off environment given the volatile macro outlook amid US-China trade tensions, CIMB thinks investors should also start preparing by tactically rotating into these yield stocks. Investors Takeaway: 5 Stocks To Rotate Into In This Risk-Off Environment Ascendas REIT With positive rental reversions of 10.5 percent in 1Q19 and contributions from new acquisitions and redevelopment activities, Ascendas REIT’s (AREIT) operating metrics have been improving. Meanwhile, AREIT has ventured into the UK with the purchase of 12 logistics properties and management has guided to

In the current risk-off environment, we continue to highlight four defensive yield plays that safe haven seekers should invest in. Investors Takeaway: Seek Safe Haven With These 4 Defensive Dividend Plays Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust With the addition of the Japanese assets to its portfolio in 1Q19, OCBC believes that Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust has built a better portfolio mix. OCBC thinks that Japanese properties complement its other assets, given its longer weighted average lease expiry and lower borrowing costs in Japan on moderate growth prospects. This provides increased stability to Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust’s unitholders. Post-acquisition, distribution per unit for Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust grew at a smaller magnitude of 1.6 percent

Following our article on 5 REITs becoming appealing again, we turn our focus to other S-REITs that are poised to benefit from their overseas play. Investors Takeaway: 4 Overseas REITs That Investors Should Focus On CapitaLand Retail China Trust Following the divestment of CapitaMall Anzhen, CapitaLand Retail China Trust has replaced it with a much younger asset – Rock Square – in the first-tier city of Guangzhou. Although the initial yield is lower, DBS believes that the asset has greater growth potential. It is also an indication of CapitaLand Retail China Trust embarking on a growth path as it shifts its focus from stability from master leases to growth generated from more actively managed assets. Now that CapitaLand Retail China Trust has a recapitalised balance sheet, the time i

1. SPH Reit  --  10th Jul 20182. SPH  --  11th Jul 20183. Kep Reit  --  16th Jul 20184. Soilbuild REIT  --  16th Jul 20185. Kep DC Reit  --  17th Jul 20186. Kep Infra Trust  --  17th Jul 20187. Kep-KBS US Reit  --  17th Jul 20188. First Reit  --  17th Jul 20189. Kep T&T  --  18th Jul 201810. Capitaland Comm Trust  --  19th Jul 201811. Kep Corp  --  19th Jul 201812. SATS  --  19th Jul 201813. SIA Engg  --  19th Jul 201814. CapitaMall Trust  --  20th Jul 201815. Semb Mar  --  20th Jul 201816. Mapletreelog Trust  --  23rd Jul 201817. MapletreeInd Trust  --  24th Jul 201818. Ascott REIT  --  24th Jul 201819. Fras

Benjamin Graham, author of the “The Intelligent Investor” and mentor to legendary investor Warren Buffett, was a keen believer of investing in securities with a low price-to-book ratio. The price-to-book ratio or PB ratio is a comparison between how much one is paying for the security and its net asset value. In theory, buying a stock that trade at a discount to its book value is like buying a $1 coin for less than a dollar. Investors would be able to reap a return when the market realises the discrepancy and raises the share price to its fair value. This method of valuation is especially useful for real estate investment trusts (REITs) or companies with largely tangible assets on its books. With that, here are two REITs with steady distributions that are trading below their book value

Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust (SGX: RW0U) recently released its earnings update for the April to June quarter. The trust, which changed its name from Mapletree Greater China Commercial Trust in May due to acquisitions of six properties in Japan, has a portfolio of nine assets in China and Japan. In addition to its recently acquired properties in Japan, the trust has three other assets, namely, Festival Walk (retail mall in Hong Kong), Gateway Plaza (office building in Beijing) and Sandhill Plaza (business park in Shanghai). Here are 12 highlights from its earnings update: 1. Gross revenue climbed 6.2% year-on-year to S$94.4 million. Net property income, likewise, increased 6.7% to S$76.8 million. NPI margin improved three basis points to 81.3%. 2. Distributable income rose 9.3% t

First published in Business Times on 1 August, 2018 By Mak Yuen Teen and Chew Yi Hong Last year, we launched the Governance Index for Trusts (GIFT), the first-ever published governance index in Singapore that is specifically developed for listed real estate investment trusts (Reits) and business trusts (BTs) in Singapore. GIFT assesses both governance and business risk factors. We assessed 43 trusts. This year, we covered 44 trusts, comprising six that are constituted as stapled securities (SS), nine pure business trusts and 33 Reits. We excluded four newly-listed trusts that have not yet published an annual report at the cut-off date. Some changes were made to the index, including the addition of a small number of new demerit criteria, and replacing volatility of returns with a criterion

SINGAPORE, 31 July 2018 – Keppel DC REIT has retained the top ranking for the second edition of the governance ranking specifically designed for Singapore-listed real estate investment trusts (REIT) and business trusts (BT), joined at the top by CapitaLand Commercial Trust which has moved up from number 8 in last year’s ranking. Two other trusts made significant gains to enter the top 5, with Mapletree Commercial Trust moving from 15 to 4 to joint third position with Mapletree Greater China Commercial Trust (since renamed to Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust), which made the biggest leap from number 26. Just half a point separated the top 4 trusts, making this GIFT ranking very competitive. Meanwhile, Frasers Logistics & Industrial Trust, which is ranked for the first time,

On 25 May 2018, Mapletree Greater China Commercial Trust was renamed Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust following the completion of the acquisition of six freehold office properties located in Japan. Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust (MNACT) now owns nine retail and office properties located in Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo, Chiba, and Yokohama. As of 31 March 2018, its portfolio was valued at $6.3 billion. We’ve been to the REIT’s annual meetings previously in 2015, 2016, and 2017. This year, I wanted to know more about the management’s rationale in investing beyond Greater China into Japan, and to evaluate the REIT’s performance over the past year. Here are eight things I learned from the 2018 Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust AGM: 1. Gross revenue grew 1.3% year

The global stock market is growing concerned about the pace of rising interest rates on the stock market. In particular, the REIT share prices have been battered. Should you still be investing in REITs at this point in time? According to DBS, the answer is a resounding yes. DBS thinks that there are four REITs you should own even as the Fed raises interest rate. Investors Takeaway: 4 REITs You Should Own Even As Fed Raises Interest Rate Frasers Logistics & Industrial Trust Source: DBS Frasers Logistics & Industrial Trust has been making significant acquisitions in Germany and the Netherlands recently. The industrial properties are mainly modern logistics facilities located within major logistics clusters in Germany and the Netherlands, which cater to core distribution needs of b

There are around 40 real estate investment trusts (REITs) and stapled trusts in Singapore currently. As highlighted here, the REITs and six stapled trusts had an average distribution yield of 6.7%, as of 6 July 2018. The figure is an average, so some REITs will have an above-average yield while others will be below-average. A REIT’s distribution yield can be affected by a number of factors; one such factor is the sub-segment in which the REIT operates in. With that in mind, let’s look at the various sub-segments a REIT or stapled trust operate in, as categorised by the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS). Retail This sub-segment holds real estate used for retail activities such as shopping centres, something that most investors would be familiar with. To know if a certai

Recent fears over interest rate hikes and challenges in the Singapore property market have lead to subdued returns for REITs over the last 12-month period. On average, the 40 REITs and stapled trusts listed in Singapore returned a measly 2.6%. That said, six of these trusts, even in the challenging environment and impending interest rate hikes, had total returns of more than 10%. Here are the top three performers in this sector. Keppel DC REIT (SGX:AJBU) is the first on the list with a 12-month return of 14.1%. Listed in 2014, it is the first pure play data centre REIT listed in Asia. Its portfolio currently consists of 15 data centres located in ten cities across eight countries in the Asia Pacific and Europe. This includes three in Australia, one in Germany, two in Ireland, one in Italy,

Real estate investment trusts (REITs) and stapled trusts are investment vehicles that invest in a portfolio of income-producing real estates. Besides its requirement to distribute at least 90% of distributable income, REITs also enjoy tax benefits that other property stocks do not. As such, unitholders enjoy stable and consistent distributions each year. Many of the REITs also offer distribution reinvestment schemes, allowing unitholders to easily reinvest their distributions. This has made REITs and stapled trusts one of the most popular investment vehicles in Singapore. The popularity of REITs and stapled trusts in Singapore has led more of them to choose to list here. There are now 34 REITs and six stapled trusts in Singapore, giving investors here a multitude of options. Here are five

Is Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust Worth Investing In? Mapletree Greater China Commercial Trust has a yield of close to 7%, is it worth investing in? The post Is Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust Worth Investing In? appeared first on Value Invest Asia.

REITs have traditionally been a mainstay in Singaporeans’ investment portfolio. However, with interest rates now rising, interest in REITs seem to have waned. However, DBS thinks that there are four good reasons why you should be investing in REITs at this point in time. S-REITs Aren’t Bonds, So Stop Pricing Them As One Investors and the market have been taking a cautious stance towards REITs due to rising interest rates and expensive valuations over the last five years. However, DBS opines that both investors and the market have been misreading drivers of REIT prices. After all, REITs are not straight out bonds and the impact of rising interest rates is mitigated by an expected upturn in rent rates. DBS notes that investors are incorrectly perceiving S-REITs as a straight forward bond