YTL-REIT records rise in net property income
PETALING JAYA: YTL Hospitality Real Estate Investment Trust (YTL-REIT) expects the hospitality sector to remain resilient in Malaysia, Australia and Japan – the markets where it operates – supported by sustained demand and active portfolio management.
'The group is actively managing its business portfolio and making strategic decisions to protect long-term growth, while ensuring sustainable value creation for its unitholders,' it said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia.
This comes as the YTL-REIT posted a 0.9% rise in net property income (NPI) to RM292.07mil for the financial year ended June 30, 2025 (FY25), despite a 1.2% dip in revenue to RM548.3mil.
The REIT attributed the performance to additional rental contributions from refurbished AC Hotels in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Kuantan, as well as a new rental agreement for AC Hotel Ipoh, which commenced in April.
Hotel Stripes and the step-up rental from the renewed lease of JW Marriott Hotel – both in Kuala Lumpur – also supported earnings, it said.
Overall, its Malaysian portfolio saw steady growth, with revenue up 5.9% to RM163.1mil in FY25 from RM154mil in FY24 and NPI rising 6% to RM154.9mil from RM146.1mil.
In contrast, revenue from Australia and Japan fell 4.1% and 2.1% year-on-year to RM358.6mil and RM26.6mil respectively, with NPI dropping 3% to RM116.1mil in Australia and 11.4% to RM21.1mil in Japan.
The lower NPI from its Japanese assets was due to repair and maintenance works, YTL-REIT explained.
For the fourth quarter ended June 30, 2025 (4Q25), YTL-REIT's topline dipped about 2.4% to RM127.03mil from the RM130.19mil in the previous corresponding quarter.
NPI for the quarter under review fell 2.8% to RM63.97mil from RM65.78mil in 4Q24.
YTL-REIT declared a final income distribution of 4.8372 sen per unit for the second half of FY25, bringing the total to 7.75 sen – representing a 100.4% payout ratio.
This was slightly lower than the 8.27 sen distributed in FY24, which had a 95% payout ratio.
Earnings per unit fell to 8.72 sen in FY25 from 10.44 sen in the previous financial year.
On a brighter note, the REIT said it recorded a RM124mil revaluation surplus in May 2025, lifting the value of its investment properties to RM5.06bil from RM4.94bil.
In Japan, it has two properties valued at RM501mil, while in Australia, it owns three properties worth RM1.9bil.
In Malaysia, the REIT holds 13 properties with a combined value of RM2.66bil.
Net asset value per unit, however, declined 1.3% to RM1.725 as at end-June, from RM1.746 a year earlier.
As at June 30, YTL-REIT managed a portfolio of 4,915 rooms across Malaysia, Australia and Japan.
Properties in Malaysia and Japan remain under master lease agreements, while its three Marriott-branded hotels in Australia recorded a stable average occupancy rate of 82.9% in FY25, compared with 82.5% in FY24.
Its total borrowings stood at RM2.33bil, with a gearing ratio of 42.8% and an interest cover of 2.1 times.
The group has a total asset value of RM5.44bil and the group said it has an estimated debt headroom of RM621mil for potential acquisitions.
YTL-REIT closed unchanged yesterday at RM1.13 a unit, valuing the trust at RM1.93bil.
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