Mapletree Investments full-year net profit up 10.3% at S$2.16b

MAPLETREE Investments posted record net profit of S$2.16 billion for the year ended March 31, 2019, up 10.3 per cent from the previous year, the real estate group announced on Thursday.

Revenue was up 23.6 per cent to S$3.95 billion, while recurring profit after tax and minority interests (Patmi) was up 11.5 per cent to S$770.8 million.

Mapletree Group chief executive officer Hiew Yoon Khong said that earnings were boosted by new income streams from investments in new sectors and markets; organic growth of same store assets; divestments by private funds; and asset revaluation gains.

Return on equity (ROE) was 15.3 per cent, down slightly from the previous year's 15.7 per cent. But return on invested equity improved to 10.4 per cent, from 8.7 per cent the year before.

The latest results mark the end of Mapletree Investment's second five-year plan, with ROE averaging 12.8 per cent over the last five financial years. Shareholder funds grew by S$6.3 billion over five years, reaching S$14.6 billion as at March 31, 2019.

Said Mr Hiew: "The last Five-Year Plan saw Mapletree broadening its presence in key growth markets such as Australia, Europe and the US, and into new sectors such as lodging (student accommodation, multi-family assets and serviced apartments) and data centres."

In the latest financial year, assets under management grew 20.3 per cent to S$55.7 billion, up from S$46.3 billion, underpinned by deeper penetration into markets such as Australia, the United States and Europe.

FY 2018/19 marked the group's first forays into the logistics market in Europe and the US, with the acquisition of an income-producing portfolio of logistics assets from three separate vendors.

The group also added to its student housing portfolio with the acquisition of a 224-bed property in Norwich, UK in November 2018. That portfolio now comprises 48 assets with nearly 21,000 beds across 33 cities in the UK, the US and Canada.

In March 2019, Mapletree also syndicated the MUSEL Private Trust, a private fund with S$5.6 billion that is the group's first logistics-focused fund in the US and Europe, with 262 logistics assets.