FCL could do with bigger free float

FRASERS Centrepoint Limited's (FCL) recent full-year results announcement provided some insights into the group's growth and transformation into a defensive real estate and hospitality group with an increased share of its assets and earnings from recurring-income businesses.

This will help to buffer the group from the ups and downs of property development cycles in the various markets where it operates and provide more stable earnings.

Moreover, overseas markets, including Australia, China and Europe, account for a bigger share of assets and earnings now compared with five years ago - reducing over-reliance on the limited Singapore market.

The group's total asset size grew from S$10.4 billion in FY2012 to S$27 billion in FY2017. What's more important, though, is that 55 per cent of the latest asset-size figure is outside Sin…