CapitaLand Malaysia Trust achieved 22.3% year-on-year growth in 1H 2024 distribution per unit to 2.36 sen

Net property income was up 34.7% driven by strong retail performance

Kuala Lumpur, July 25, 2024 -- Disciplined capital management

Gurney Plaza will embark on the next phase of asset enhancement initiatives to revitalise its tenancy mix following the refurbishment of the entrance driveway and unit reconfiguration of Sports Direct & USC.

Summary of CLMT’s results

CapitaLand Malaysia Trust (CLMT) achieved a 22.3% increase in distribution per unit (DPU) to 2.36 sen for the period from 1 January 2024 to 30 June 2024 (1H 2024) compared to the same period in 2023. CLMT’s distributable income for 1H 2024 also grew 38.1% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM66.9 million. Its net property income rose 34.7% y-o-y to RM129.4 million. 

CLMT’s strong results was mainly attributed to contribution from Queensbay Mall which it acquired in March 2023; and better performances of Gurney Plaza, Sungei Wang Plaza, 3 Damansara and Valdor Logistics Hub.  

"CLMT continued to achieve strong financial performance in 1H 2024, enhancing returns to Unitholders. Our proactive asset and lease management strategies have resulted in higher occupancies and positive rental reversions across most of our retail properties. The introduction of new retail concepts and tenant offerings as well as exciting shopper activation programmes have boosted footfall and tenant sales."

Mr Tan Choon Siang, CEO of the manager of CLMT (pictured left)

Mr Tan added, “We will be embarking on the next phase of our asset enhancement initiatives (AEI) at Gurney Plaza to revitalise its tenancy mix following the refurbishment of its entrance driveway and the unit reconfiguration of Sports Direct & USC – a sports offering, in September 2023. Shoppers can look forward to new-to-market offerings and exciting retail concepts progressively when the AEI completes in 2H 2024.” 

“On our new economy front, the construction work at Glenmarie Distribution Centre is on track to complete in 4Q 2024. We will continue to actively seek investment opportunities in the logistics and industrial sectors with financial discipline, as part of our ongoing commitment to enhance the resilience and quality of our portfolio,” said Mr Tan. 

Proactive portfolio management

As at 30 June 2024, CLMT’s retail occupancy remained stable at 92.3%. Including its two fully leased logistics properties, CLMT’s overall portfolio occupancy was 93.1%. In 1H 2024, CLMT’s retail properties also registered positive rental reversions of 8.7%. Same-store shopper traffic was up 6.5% y-o-y, while tenant sales per square foot grew 6.6% y-o-y.

CLMT has maintained a well-spread debt maturity profile, with an average term to maturity of 2.9 years. As at 30 June 2024, CLMT’s year-to-date average cost of debt and gearing ratio were 4.50% and 41.9%, respectively. 86% of its total borrowings were at fixed interest rates to mitigate exposure to interest rate movements.

Sustainability initiatives

CLMT continued to make strides in its sustainability efforts with the inaugural procurement of 7.2 megawatts of renewable energy for The Mines following the mall’s successful quota allocation under the Corporate Green Power Programme1. This initiative is part of its plans to achieve its target of having 45% of electricity consumption from renewable sources and Net Zero carbon emissions for Scope 1 and 2 by 2050 as outlined in its 2030 Sustainability Master Plan.

Distribution details

As CLMT’s DPU is paid out on a half yearly basis, Unitholders can expect to receive a DPU of 2.36 sen for the period from 1 January 2024 to 30 June 2024, payable by September 2024. The Board of CMRM has elected to apply the Distribution Reinvestment Plan to the income distribution for 1H 2024, enabling Unitholders to choose to receive the distribution fully in cash or to reinvest part of the distribution in new units. The dates of book closure and income distribution will be announced upon obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals.

[1] The Corporate Green Power Programme is an initiative introduced in 2022 by the Suruhanjaya Tenaga that allows the private sector to secure a long-term supply of renewable energy from solar power producers on a willing buyer, willing seller pricing regime.

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