By now, many of you would have seen the numerous news articles and commentary pieces on CapitaLand’s $11 billion acquisition of Temasek’s subsidiary, Ascendas-Singbridge. This combined entity creates Asia’s largest diversified real estate group and a global top 10 real estate investment manager, with over $116 billion of assets under management (AUM), including logistics/business parks, industrial, lodging, commercial, retail and residential spaces, in more than 180 cities across 32 countries. CapitaLand Share Price CapitaLand’s share price is currently $3.30, up about 7.5% since the start of the year. In contrast, the broader market, the Straits Times Index (STI) is only up about 5.1% since the start of the year. Source: StockFacts In addition, here’s what the brokerage housesâ€

The Singapore earnings season moves into a higher gear with four blue chips pencilled in for results. In October, CapitaLand Mall Trust (SGX: C38U) defied sceptics by announcing a 5% increase in third-quarter distributions. The mall operator reported an improvement in gross revenues, net property income and tenant sales per square foot. However, shopper traffic was down. CapitaLand Commercial Trust (SGX: C61U) also had good news for unit holders in October. The office landlord announced a near 9% rise in third-quarter distributions per unit on the back of better gross revenues and net property income. CCT said committed occupancy across its Singapore portfolio was 99.1%. Third-quarter results proved to be a curates’ egg at Keppel Corporation (SGX: BN4). On the positive side, its Offsh

The blue-chip shares of the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) all pay a dividend, with an average dividend yield of 3.6%. However, some of the index stocks have way higher dividend yields. Here, let’s look at the top five blue-chip shares that have the best dividend yields (data as of 17 January 2019). Blue-chip #1 Coming in first is Hutchison Port Holdings Trust (SGX: NS8U) with a distribution yield of 9.6%. In its most recent earnings update, the trust posted a net profit of HK$239.5 million, down 11.4% as compared to a year back. The high yield should not fool investors because of late, the trust’s distributions have been falling. For the last twelve months, total distribution has dropped to 19.62 Hong Kong cents from 26.10 cents in the prior period. Hutchison Port Holdings Trust 

In this article, we continue to highlight some of CIMB’s top alpha picks for the New Year. For investors who are seeking to outperform the market, here are four large cap stocks that CIMB thinks will fit your investment goal in 2019. Investors Takeaway: Kick Off 2019 With These 4 Alpha Large Caps By CIMB CapitaLand According to CIMB, CapitaLand managed to put in a strong performance in 2018, achieving a 9M18 return-on-equity (ROE) of 6.9 percent. This puts it well on track to hit its annual ROE eight percent target and positions CapitaLand for a strong year in 2019. Heading into 2019, CIMB notes that strong capital deployment following the divestment of $4 billion of assets and $6.1 billion of new investments announced to-date should continue to drive forward ROE expansion. In 2019, Ca

When 2 large businesses are combined, it does not mean it would become a giant stock. Capitaland + Ascendas-Singbridge of Temasek are merged into the 9th largest global property investment company (Asian largest), 51% shares is under control of Temasek.   Before merging, Capitaland has been a slower growth giant stock due to its large size. An investor may not need to consider large parent company. Instead, its subsidiary company with much smaller size could be more profitable, eg. Capitamall Trust (SGX: C38U) of Capitaland and Ascendas Reit (SGX: A17U) are stronger REIT / property giant stocks than its parent company stock.   A giant is not defined by its size of business, but by its internal strength of strong fundamental. An investor could have the best of 2 worlds investin

Christmas is over. We didn’t have chestnuts roasting on an open fire and we didn’t have Frosty the Snowman, either – it’s much too warm for that in Singapore. But Santa Claus did come to town. And in the case of, us, dividend investors, it could almost be Christmas every day. When it comes to income investing, it can sometimes feel like Christmas every month of the year. But the reliability of the income stream can depend on whether we have been naughty or nice, which in the case of dividend investors is whether we have been successful with our stock selections. Since starting a column in The Business Times some 12 months ago, I have looked at a myriad of sectors. They range from pedestrian Real Estate Investment Trusts to high-flying airlines… …. But they all have one thin

CapitaLand Limited (SGX: C31) has set its sights to be the largest real estate investment manager in Asia. This morning, CapitaLand revealed that it has entered into a deal with Temasek, one of the Singapore government’s investment arms, to fully acquire Ascendas Pte Ltd and Singbridge Pte Ltd. The duo, which are collectively known as Ascendas-Singbridge, are subsidiaries of Temasek. The deal is valued at S$11 billion and is subject to approval by CapitaLand’s shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) to be convened later this year. If approved, CapitaLand would become Asia’s largest diversified real estate group. More on Ascendas-Singbridge Ascendas-Singbridge is a leading provider of business space solutions in Singapore. The Ascendas arm owns business space, industr

With life expectancy in Singapore increasing, many people are expected to spend more time in retirement. While higher life expectancy is certainly a good thing, it could turn into a financial burden if we do not manage our finances wisely. Hence, it is important that retirees put their money to good use. The ideal investment for retirees should: Be resilient to economic downturns  Have predictable and stable dividends Have relatively high yields Through my research, I have found two real estate investment trusts (REITs) in Singapore that I believe fit the bill. Mapletree Commercial Trust (SGX: N2IU) Since listing in 2012, Mapletree Commercial Trust has been one of the most consistent REITs in Singapore, increasing its distributions to unitholders each year. Even last year, when many R

In today’s connected markets, macro events in one market can have rippling impact on the world. For example, the trade war spat between the two largest economies in the world has created uncertainty over global economic growth in 2019. The stock market was starting to find its footing until the unthinkable trade war took place. According to CIMB, here are some things investors should be looking out for in the market that would determine the market outlook in 2019. Trade War Is Here To Stay For investors who are looking for a cease fire to the trade war to re-lift market spirits, you might have to wait further. CIMB notes that the trade war spatter is likely to continue in 2019 and is not going to cease fire anytime soon (despite recent optimism of a deal). While it is clear that business

In this article, we continue to highlight another investment theme that DBS recommends for investors in 2019: Yield plays with growth potential. Investors Takeaway: 5 Yield Plays With Growth Potential By DBS ComfortDelGro Corporation The greatest concern about investing in ComfortDelgro Corporation (ComfortDelgro) is the impending full entry of Go-Jek. Go-Jek’s entry will create increased competition from the private hire cars on ComfortDelgro’s core business. However, DBS is confident that competition is unlikely to heighten back to the times when Grab and Uber were both competing in the space. Heading into 2019, DBS is forecasting positive year-on-year growth for ComfortDelgro, which may be surprising to some investors. DBS notes that ComfortDelgro has been showing positives signs of

There are many ways to find investment insights. Some useful ways are to screen for stocks or to look at a list of stocks near their 52-week lows to sieve out potential bargains. Studying what institutional investors have been buying or selling is another avenue. Institutional investors are typically large investment organisations, such as hedge funds, mutual funds, unit trust companies, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies and so on. These investors tend to possess vastly greater resources than individual investors like you and me when researching stocks. Hence, it may be useful to keep a close eye on what they are doing, as a way to generate ideas. In this article, I will look at three Singapore REITs that have seen the highest net disposal in dollar value by institutional investo

According to a recent report by the Singapore Exchange, the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) posted a 6.5% decline in total return (which consists of capital gains and dividends) in 2018. The real estate investment trusts (REITs) that belong to the index, however, did much better for the year. Let’s find out how each of the REITs performed in 2018. CapitaLand Mall Trust (SGX: C38U) The best performer in 2018 among the REIT-trio was CapitaLand Mall Trust, with a total return of 12.7%. CapitaLand Mall Trust is a retail REIT that owns 15 shopping malls in Singapore, including Tampines Mall, Junction 8, and Plaza Singapura. For the REIT’s third quarter of 2018, gross revenue inched up by 0.7% year-on-year to S$170.5 million while net property income (NPI) increased by 1.1% to S$122.7 milli

Welcome to a brand-new week, everyone. Here are three things about the local stock market that you might be interested in today. 1. The Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) climbed 43.6 points, or 1.4%, to end the day at 3,102.8. Of the 30 index components, 22 finished in the green, with Venture Corporation Ltd (SGX: V03) leading the pack. The electronics manufacturing service provider’s shares rose 5.3% to S$14.40 each. Meanwhile, the biggest loser of the index was Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd (SGX: D01), which fell 1% to US$9.01. Three other blue-chips finished Monday in the red, with the remaining four ending the day unchanged. 2. CapitaLand Limited (SGX: C31) is acquiring a prime office building in Shanghai, China. In an announcement before the stock market opened today, CapitaL

According to a recent report released by the Singapore Exchange, 32 companies bought back 97 million shares or units for a total amount of S$78 million in December 2018. For the full year, the total share buybacks amounted to S$1.5 billion. The top ten companies with the most significant share buyback amounts in December were United Overseas Bank Ltd (SGX: U11), Keppel REIT (SGX: K71U), Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited (SGX: O39), Stamford Land Corporation Ltd (SGX: H07), Venture Corporation Ltd (SGX: V03), SingHaiyi Group Ltd (SGX: 5H0), SATS Ltd (SGX: S58), Singapore Post Limited (SGX: S08), Tuan Sing Holdings Limited (SGX: T24), and Sembcorp Industries Limited (SGX: U96). Keppel REIT’s manager has been regularly buying back the REIT’s units since July 2018. As I noted

2018 has certainly not been kind to stock investors. Higher interest rates, uncertainty over US-China trade relations, global events like Brexit negotiations and unstable emerging market currencies have each contributed to the stock market’s decline. Real estate investments trusts (REITs) have also not been spared, with many REITs trading below 10% or more from their peaks. However, market downturns can be great for long-term investors. It gives us the opportunity to buy securities at bargain prices and REITs, in particular, are offering much higher yields at the moment. With that in mind, I did a little research and found two REITs that are trading well below their peaks and could make great investments during this market downturn. A healthy REIT First Real Estate Investment Trust (SGX:

The Straits Times Index (STI) is made up of the 30 strongest and most liquid stocks listed in Singapore. Comprising close to 80% of the entire market value in Singapore, the returns that the stocks on the STI provides is essentially the market returns or benchmark returns. For investors who are new or prefer taking a hands-off approach, being able to invest in the STI can be the most practical way to invest. This is primarily because it offers several advantages such as diversifying our investment portfolio with just one investment as well as receiving the market returns without requiring much knowledge or spending time monitoring and adjusting our portfolios. Currently, there are two listed STI exchange traded funds (ETFs) – the SPDR STI ETF and the Nikko AM Singapore STI ETF – that w

Listed in March 2006, Frasers Commercial Trust (FCOT) owns a portfolio of office buildings and business park properties located in Singapore, Australia, and the UK. As at 30 September 2018, FCOT has six properties in its portfolio with a total appraised value of S$2.1 billion. In this article, I’ll revisit its fundamentals, give an update on its latest financial results, and discuss its plans for growth in the future. I’ll also assess its current valuation with a handful of valuation metrics. Here are 13 things to know about Frasers Commercial Trust before you invest. Property results 1. Gross revenue at China Square Central fell 11.2% year-on-year to S$23.3 million. This is due to a fall in occupancy rate to 79.8% from 94.4% a year ago due to renovation works for its retail

The revised cooling measures implemented in the middle of 2018 has finally pushed Q418 sales to a dip since Q217. It was only slightly down by 0.1% quarter on quarter and most of the decline was mainly due to landed sales so in all essence the demand for private property is still pretty buoyant.With the introduction of the new cooling measures, which coincides along with the increase in tandem in interest rates, it brings the share price of City Development down from the 52 week high of $13.6 to the last closing price of $8.08.That is a very sharp decline and if you are an investor who buys at the peak and it can get very painful to see your portfolio colored in a patriotic sea of red. But is there value now in the company after such a steep decline? Cooling Measures In This DecadeFor

2018 was a challenging year for Singapore investors. The Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI), Singapore’s stock market barometer, was down by 9.8% in 2018. Despite the market decline for the year, there are a number of stocks that delivered positive returns in 2018. In this series of articles, I will look back into the year and identify six of the index’s biggest winners, as well as six of the largest losers. In this article, I will be covering the winners from the fourth to sixth position. The sixth best performer In sixth place is Wilmar International Limited (SGX: F34). For those who are new to the company, Wilmar is an agricultural company that operates through four main segments: Tropical Oils, Oilseeds and Grains, Sugar, and Others. In 2018, Wilmar’s shares improved marginally by

The Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI), Singapore’s key stock market barometer, has had a rough 2018, falling 9.1% from the start of this year until the end of November. But some blue-chips performed better than the rest. In particular, real estate investment trusts (REITs) as a group, showed their resilience amid the current market decline. There are three REITs in Singapore’s STI and here are how they performed (data as of 30 November 2018, unless otherwise stated). Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) (SGX: A17U) is the first blue-chip REIT with a market capitalization of around S$8 billion. As of 30th September 2018, the REIT owned 98 properties in Singapore, 35 properties in Australia and 12 properties in the United Kingdom with a total asset value of S$10.8 billion. T