ENBD REIT, the Shari’a-compliant real estate investment trust managed by Emirates NBD Asset Management Limited, has said the occupancy of its portfolio rose to 80 percent in the year ending 31 March 2022 from 76 percent a year before.
Its net rental income, however, fell by 19.7 percent to $9.5 million, resulting from a fall of 14.6 percent in gross income from the previous year, the firm said.
The fall was attributed mainly due to the renegotiation of the Uninest lease and other leases throughout the portfolio being concluded at lower rates following on from the impact of the pandemic and soft market conditions remaining in the office and alternative sectors, the firm said.
The ENBD REIT’s property portfolio value stood at $356 million, down 1.1 percent year-on-year whilst Net Asset Value (NAV) was $167 million or $0.67 per share at the end of the financial year, 7.4 percent lower than the year before due to capital expenditure on the buildings, in particular the refurbishment to Al Thuraya Tower, and an accounting liability relating to the cross currency profit rate swap, it added.
The firm has proposed a final dividend of $5 million or $0.02 per share for the six-month period ending 31st March 2022, a 13.6 percent increase from the same period of 2021.
This brings the total dividend payable to shareholders for the year to $9.5 million, a 2.7 percent increase from previous year.
Anthony Taylor, Head of Real Estate at Emirates NBD Asset Management, said the firm will strengthen “our policy of securing reliable and predictable revenues in order to manage any market volatility, while ensuring lease terms contain covenants of appropriate strength”.
“We will continue to implement cost saving initiatives and safeguard our financial position to maintain consistent dividend distributions. In addition, we will consider any attractive opportunities for asset disposal or acquisition in order to ensure an optimal mix of properties in our portfolio,” he said.