AREIT, Inc. (AREIT), a subsidiary of Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), received multiple international awards and citations in 2020 as the first Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) to list in the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) last year. The landmark debut saw AREIT successfully complete its initial public offering (IPO) that has made the Philippine property market more inclusive and accessible to Filipino investors.
The AREIT IPO was named the South East Asia Deal of the Year by FinanceAsia, which commended AREIT’s “determination and dedication to opening the Philippines’ equity market to the REIT sector” in spite of multiple regulatory hurdles. FinanceAsia considered the AREIT listing an important step forward for the PSE as it brought additional liquidity to the market.
The Asset Country Awards 2020 furthermore cited AREIT as the Best IPO in the Philippines for breaking barriers as the first ever REIT in the country. The Asset’s annual Triple A recognition represents the industry’s most prestigious awards for banking, finance, treasury and the capital markets. Issuers and investors around the region are consulted in the awards process either through the Asset Benchmark Surveys or in the course of the Triple A presentation with financial institutions.
The AREIT IPO was also instrumental in garnering for Ayala Land the 2020 Best Investor Relations for a Corporate Transaction award in South East Asia from UK-based IR Magazine. The recognition was conferred to the IR team that “went above and beyond to support the corporate transaction through crafting the messaging for the financial markets and organizing the outreach and dialogue to the buy-side and sell-side.” ALI was the only Philippine company to be recognized during the 2020 IR Magazine Virtual Forum and Awards
AREIT continued to expand its portfolio this month as it acquired a 9.8-hectare land in Laguna Technopark for Php1.1 billion. The said property is currently under lease to electronics manufacturer Integrated Micro-Electronics Inc. Together with the recent acquisition of The 30th commercial development in Pasig City, AREIT’s portfolio has doubled to 344,000 square meters of leasable space since its listing in August of last year. The latest acquisition will also raise AREIT’s total property value to P37 billion.
AREIT earlier disclosed its three-year investment strategy which targets a 10-12 percent total shareholder return through organic expansion and new acquisitions and plans for a follow-on offering in 2022. The strategy seeks to maintain the company’s leadership position in the Philippine REIT sector in terms of asset size and market capitalization.
AREIT is the only REIT listed on the PSE to date and its success has led to stronger interest by other real estate companies to list their own REITs.
