The real estate investment trust (REIT) of Gokongwei-led property developer Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) has increased its public float to 49.95% from 33.86% previously after completing an overnight block sale valued at P8.50 billion.
RLC sold 1.73 billion common shares of RL Commercial REIT, Inc. (RCR) at P4.92 apiece to “high-quality long-only institutional investors,” the company said in a disclosure on Friday.
“This placement enables RCR to acquire accretive assets from RLC’s diverse pipeline of investment properties,” RLC said.
“The proceeds from the block sale will be settled on April 11 under the placement agreement. RLC will submit the required reinvestment plan detailing the use of proceeds obtained from the sale of the placement shares in due course,” it added.
Data from the Philippine Stock Exchange website showed that RCR’s free float level was previously at 33.86%.
RLC enlisted BPI Capital Corp as the sole placement agent and bookrunner for the transaction.
“Being the majority shareholder of RCR, RLC (will) continuously fuel the growth of RCR by infusing yield-accretive and high-quality assets that will complement the existing predominantly-office asset portfolio of RCR in order to maximize both RLC and RCR’s shareholder value,” RLC President and Chief Executive Officer Lance Y. Gokongwei said.
“We envision RCR to be the bellwether REIT in the Philippine real estate landscape,” he added.
RLC plans to infuse approximately P25 billion worth of assets and increase RCR’s total gross leasable area (GLA) by approximately 60% this year.
In addition to offices, the listed property developer also intends to infuse other assets into RCR, such as malls, hotels, and warehouses.
“With the potential infusion of various asset classes in several key cities across the country, this maximizes RCR’s revenue streams to ensure its continuous growth,” RLC said.
“RLC continues to demonstrate its commitment in growing RCR by evaluating its existing portfolio for distribution per share-accretive assets that will maximize capital recycling efforts in support of its various local real estate projects,” it added.
The company also aims to invest the net proceeds in various projects under construction and land acquisition.
RLC has an investment portfolio that includes 1.6 million square meters (sq.m.) of leasable mall spaces, 270,000 sq.m. of remaining leasable office spaces, 26 hotels with 4,243 room keys, and 227,000 sq.m. of leasable logistics facilities.
RCR’s portfolio consists of 16 assets in 10 major cities with 480,000 sq.m. of gross leasable space.
RLC saw a 24% growth in its attributable net income to P12.06 billion last year. Its revenue declined by 8% to P42.02 billion. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave
