Sunway REIT achieves IPO forecast payout

Sunway Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) managed to achieve the initial public offering (IPO) forecast distribution per unit of 6.7 sen per unit on an annualised basis.

Total comprehensive income was RM553.7 million comprising net realised income of RM167.3 million and unrealised income of RM386.4 million mainly arising from fair value gain on portfolio of assets.

"Such achievement was due to the strong performance of the initial portfolio of eight assets which generated net realised income of RM172.1 million ahead of forecast by 3.2 per cent," said chief executive officer of Sunway REIT Management Sdn Bhd, Datuk Jeffrey Ng, in a statement.

Ng said the Sunway REIT’s portfolio also managed to achieve double digit rental reversion over the next three years, driven mainly by Sunway Pyramid Shopping Mall with rental reversion of 16.3 per cent, with 1.11 million square foot of Net Lettable Area renewed.

Sunway REIT is currently the largest Real Estate Investment Trust in Malaysia. It was listed on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd on July 8, 2010.

Sunway REIT has a market capitalisation of RM2.98 billion and its total assets stood at RM4.45 billion as at June 30, 2011.

According to Sunway REIT, institutional investors who purchased the units at the IPO price of 90 sen would have gained a total return of 29.3 per cent of which 6.0 per cent would come from dividend yield and the balance from capital appreciation of the unit price.

Investors of Sunway REIT can expect to receive their fourth quarterly payment of 1.62 sen per unit on Sept 21, 2011, said the company.

The Manager of Sunway REIT also said it will continue its policy of paying out 100 per cent of its distributable income on quarterly basis for financial year 2012.

On prospects ahead, the company expects the market to be volatile in the short term due to global uncertainties but believed the Malaysian Government’s Economic Transformation Plan will help drive domestic consumption.

Sunway REIT closed the session today at RM1.07.

By Bernama