CLT – BT

Cache posts $12.4m Q1 distributable income

DPU of 1.952 cents is 0.6% higher than document forecast

CACHE Logistics Trust, which listed in April last year, has posted distributable income of $12.4 million in its first quarter, only slightly pipping projections by 0.2 per cent.

Its distribution per unit (DPU) was 1.952 cents, about 0.6 per cent higher than the 1.94 cents forecast in its introductory document.

However, both gross revenue and net property income retreated about one per cent from what were projected. They stood at $14.8 million and $14.4 million, respectively.

ARA-CWT Trust Management, Cache’s manager, said the difference from the projections was ‘due to timing variance of rental step-ups’.

The real estate investment trust (Reit) has recently completed the acquisition of 6 Changi North Way, bringing its portfolio to a total of seven logistics properties in Singapore.

All of them are 100 per cent occupied, with tenants on triple-net master leases and multi-tenancy leases.

What stood out in its first-quarter results were ‘other trust expenses’, which more than doubled to $562,000 from $250,000.

The sharp rise was due to set-up costs in a multi- currency medium-term note programme under its subsidiary Cache-MTN that was not budgeted for in the introductory document.

Cache-MTN was incorporated on Feb 14 to provide treasury services to Cache.

However, these costs will not impact DPU as expenses are not tax-deductible. Cache’s net asset value per unit is currently 90 cents.

It said that it is actively seeking accretive acquisitions in the Asia-Pacific region to continue delivering sustainable distributions and growth to its unitholders. Its gearing stands at 26.4 per cent with about $208.3 million in borrowings as at March 31.

‘With a strong balance sheet and a conservative gearing ratio, Cache is on a strong footing to execute this strategy,’ said the Reit in its financial results yesterday.

Cache’s counter closed unchanged at 94.5 cents yesterday.