Stocks to watch: CDL, Keppel Infra Trust, ESR-Logos Reit, OUE C-Reit, Straits Trading

THE following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Tuesday (Jan 31):

City Developments Limited (CDL) : The property player said on Monday that it is in talks for the proposed acquisition of the St Katharine Docks development in London. The acquisition is said to be about £400 million (S$650.9 million) and CDL has “signed an exclusivity for due diligence together with a non-binding heads of terms”. CDL shares rose 0.1 per cent or S$0.01 to close at S$8.24 on Monday.

Keppel Infrastructure Trust (KIT) : Its manager on Monday posted a distribution per unit (DPU) of S$0.0191 for the second half ended December 2022. This was down 0.5 per cent from S$0.0192 in the year-ago period. The lower DPU came even as KIT’s distributable income rose 47.4 per cent to S$134.9 million, from S$91.6 million. Units of KIT rose 0.9 per cent or S$0.005 to S$0.57 on Monday.

ESR-Logos Reit : Its DPU rose 7.5 per cent to S$0.0154 for its second half ended Dec 31, 2022, compared with S$0.01433 a year ago. Its manager also reported year-on-year growth in gross revenue and net property income, which were mainly attributed to contributions from Ara Logos Logistics Trust after the merger in April 2022. Units of ESR-Logos Reit closed flat at S$0.380 on Monday before the results were released.

OUE Commercial Real Estate Investment Trust (OUE C-Reit) : Its manager on Monday reported a 24.1 per cent year-on-year decline in DPU to S$0.0104 for the second half ended December 2022, compared with from S$0.013 from a year ago. However, its revenue and net property income grew 8 per cent to S$125.7 million and 8.6 per cent to S$103.3 million, respectively, largely driven by lower rental rebates, partially offset by higher property expenses. OUE C-Reits units closed unchanged at S$0.37 on Monday, before the earnings announcement.

The Straits Trading Company : The group has announced it will issue S$370 million worth of secured exchangeable bonds maturing on Feb 13, 2028. The bonds carry an interest of 3.25 per cent, the mainboard-listed firm said on Tuesday. Shares of Straits Trading closed at S$2.40 on Monday, down 0.8 per cent or S$0.02, before the announcement.

Cromwell European Real Estate Investment Trust (Cromwell E-Reit) : Its manager reported on Tuesday a total portfolio valuation of 2.5 billion euros (S$3.5 billion) as at Dec 31, 2022, a 1.6 per cent decline from its June valuation last year. Its aggregate leverage is expected to be below 40 per cent, and net asset value about 2.4 euros per unit. Cromwell European Reit units closed at 1.65 euros, up 0.6 per cent or 0.01 euro before the announcement.

Metro : The mainboard-listed property player is jointly acquiring J’Forte Building together with Boustead Projects and an independent institutional third party for S$98.8 million. The property is located at 26 Tai Seng Street and is done via the Boustead Industrial Fund. This acquisition marks the fund’s first in the open market. Shares for Metro closed flat at S$0.63 on Monday, before the announcement.

EC World Real Estate Investment Trust (EC World Reit) : Its manager announced on Monday an extension to the long-stop date for the proposed divestment of two Chinese logistics assets to Feb 28 from Jan 31, 2023. The extension is due to the purchasers being unable to complete the divestment by Jan 31 “as they are in the process of obtaining the relevant financing approvals from their lending banks in relation to their financing for the proposed divestment”. Units of EC World Reit closed flat at S$0.45 on Monday before the announcement.