AREIT Inc., the real estate investment trust of the Ayala Group, said Friday first-quarter net income rose 27 percent year-on-year to P1.01 billion as revenue got a strong boost from the acquisition of Cebu properties and stable operations.
By law, REITs are required to declare at least 90 percent of their taxable income as dividends to shareholders.
AREIT, the first of its kind in the Philippines, said total revenue increased 25 percent year-on-year to P1.48 billion while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization was up 24 percent to P1.04 billion.
It said average occupancy rate in its various properties stood at 97 percent in the first quarter.
At its annual meeting held on April 26, shareholders of AREIT approved its third property-for-share swap with sponsor, Ayala Land, Inc. The transaction involves the exchange of flagship offices and malls of Ayala Land with an aggregate value of P22.48 billion for 607.6 million AREIT primary common shares.
The deal triples the value of AREIT’s assets under management to P87 billion and increase its gross leasable are five-fold to 863,000 square meters.
AREIT declared total dividends in 2022 of P1.98 per share, 12 percent higher than P1.77 a share in 2021.
