Parkway Life REIT (PLife REIT) achieved a 15.2 percent year-on-year increase in gross revenue to S$21.5 million for the first quarter ending 31 March, on the back of higher rent from its Singapore properties and revenue contributions from new nursing homes in Japan purchased last year.
PLife REIT’s distribution per unit (DPU) rose to 2.36 cents per unit for Q1, from 2.07 cents over the same period last year, while annualised DPU is 9.44 cents per unit for the first quarter, up from 8.28 cents for 1Q10.
Distributable income in the first quarter also grew 14.4 percent to S$14.3 million, while earnings per unit were registered at 2.45 cents, an increase from 2.01 cents last year.
Due to the REIT’s enlarged portfolio, property expenses for the first quarter climbed 22.8 percent to S$1.77 million, while net property income increased 14.6 percent to S$19.72 million.
Meanwhile, despite the REIT’s bigger portfolio, finance costs dropped 11.1 percent to S$2.27 million due to interest cost savings from re-pricing and refinancing exercises.
“The regional healthcare industry remains robust due to the persistent rise in demand for better quality private healthcare, driven in no small part by growing affluence, fast-ageing populations and increasing social acceptance of nursing homes,” said Yong Yean Chau, Chief Executive Officer of REIT manager at Parkway Trust Management.
“PLife REIT’s enlarged portfolio of healthcare assets places us in a good position to capture the demand of the resilient and growing healthcare industry in the Asia Pacific.”
PLife REIT owns 33 properties in Asia Pacific, including three hospitals in Singapore and 30 healthcare and healthcare-related assets in Japan. As of 31 March, the size of the company’s portfolio stands at S$1.3 billion.
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