Ayala Land-sponsored AREIT Inc., the first Philippine real estate investment trust, posted a 44 percent jump in first-half net income, excluding the net fair value change in investment properties, to P2.9 billion.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the firm said it posted total revenues of P4.2 billion and Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) of P3.0 billion, 43 percent and 45 percent higher year-on-year, respectively.
AREIT said its overall occupancy remained high at 96 percent, better than the industry average.
The firm said its stellar performance in the first half was driven by its acquisitions, such as the One Ayala Avenue East and West Office Towers, Glorietta 1 and 2 Mall, and Office buildings at Ayala Center Makati, MarQuee Mall in Pampanga, and the Seda Hotel in Lio, El Nido.
AREIT’s Assets under Management (AUM) stand at P88.6 billion, and it owns a diversified mix of offices, malls, hotels, and industrial land.
“AREIT is set to quadruple its AUM this year from the time we listed in 2020 -- a fitting milestone as we celebrate our fourth anniversary since we listed in 2020 at the height of the pandemic,” said AREIT President and CEO Carol T. Mills.
She added that “On account of the portfolio’s solid track record and significant addition of prime flagship assets, revenues soared 467 percent from P907 million to P4.2 billion, dividends doubled from P0.28 to P0.56 per share, and Total Shareholder Return (TSR) to date reached the highest among Philippine REITs at 74 percent since the IPO.”
During its Board of Directors meeting on July 12, 2024, AREIT declared cash dividends of P0.56 per outstanding common share for the second quarter of 2024. The dividends were paid on August 11, 2024, to shareholders on record as of July 26, 2024.
The Company’s AUM this year is anticipated to grow to P117 billion upon regulatory approval of the asset-for-share swap with its sponsor, Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), and its subsidiaries and related companies for P28.6 billion worth of prime assets.
This is composed of the new Ayala Triangle Gardens Tower Two Office Building, Greenbelt 3 and 5, Holiday Inn in Ayala Center Makati and Seda Ayala Center Cebu, and the 276-hectare land in Zambales for solar power plant operations.