Metro Group deepens presence in UK, Australia with acquisitions totalling S$204.7m
Wong Pei Ting
METRO Holdings announced on Monday (Oct 3) the acquisition of a retail property in Australia and four student accommodations in the United Kingdom to deepen its presence across its key markets.
The Australian property is a freehold neighbourhood retail centre called Shepparton Marketplace in Victoria, and it was bought by Metro Holdings with its joint venture (JV) partner, Sim Lian Group of Companies, for A$91 million (S$85.7 million).
The UK properties, which are also freehold, were bought for about £74.4 million (about S$119 million). They are:
- Iron Bridge Studios in Exeter, which is an eight-minute walk away from the Exeter College and a 19-minute walk away from the St Luke’s campus of the University of Exeter;
- St Giles Studio in Durham, which is a six-minute walk from College of St Hild and St Bede, and a seven-minute walk from the School of Education;
- Gallery Apartments in Glasgow, which is a five-minute walk from Glasgow Caledonian University and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and a 10-minute walk from the University of Strathclyde;
- 73-77 Penrhyn Road in Kingston, which is adjacent to the main campus of the Kingston University.
Releasing the information in a bourse filing, the mainboard-listed property investment and development group said that the legal completion of the UK properties’ acquisition, through its student accommodation fund, Paideia Capital UK Trust, took place on May 31.
The trust is 30 per cent owned by Sun Capital Assets, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company, with the remaining 70 per cent held by Lee Kim Tah Holdings, Aurum Investments, and a third party. Aurum is a direct wholly-owned subsidiary of Woh Hup Holdings.
Metro’s group chief executive officer Yip Hoong Mun remarked that the four acquisitions’ completion “during this volatile period” is testament to the capability of its joint venture partners.
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Together with its two existing UK properties – Red Queen in Warwick and Dean Street Works in Bristol – Metro said its total student accommodation portfolio is now valued at £130.0 million.
Metro also noted that these properties achieved a high committed average occupancy rate of 99.2 per cent as at Jun 30.
Meanwhile, Metro said that the legal completion on the acquisition of Shepparton, through Sim Lian-Metro Capital, took place on Sep 30. Metro owns 30 per cent equity stake in the JV.
The addition will bring its Australian portfolio to a total of 17 properties, comprising four office buildings and 13 retail centres spanning four states – New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia. Their total appraised value is A$1.2 billion, and occupancy is high as well, at 95.1 per cent, with Shepparton’s occupancy at 97.3 per cent, it pointed out.
Metro shares closed down 1.5 per cent at S$0.665 before the announcement on Monday.
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