News of Quantitative Easing (QE) tapering from the FED are getting stronger day by day as we see plenty of retail investors who start to worry about the possible rise in interest rates. Economists and Analysts are cautioning investors to watch out for Sept 17 where more than 65% believe that it will finally be the day the FED is going to reduce its bond buying purchase and increase interest rates. Will this be the start of funds outflow from the traditionally strong equity and property markets into a safe heaven US dollar and Gold? And how will this impact REITS - a market which has enjoyed much capital appreciation for the past couple of years.
Well, the market can be irrational in those moments of madness. And in these moments the likelihood is that the prices for REITS will go south. But does interest rates increase means the end for REITS? I personally don't think so. In fact, I feel it is a good chance, especially for investors who has missed the previous buy-in to go long on REITS cautiously in order to provide a greater yield boost to the portfolio. So in this exercise, I have listed down the REITS - each divided into individual sectors - by a couple of matrix: NAV, Gearing ratio, Effective interest rate (cost of debt), Interest Coverage Ratio and Yield.
Amongst the 5 matrices listed, my favorite when choosing for REITS are the Gearing, Cost of Debt and Yield. I am not a big fan of the NAV and Interest Coverage Ratio as their ways of calculation may differ company to company. For instance, some may calculate the Interest Coverage Ratio by using EBIT/Interest costs while another uses the Net Property Income (NPI)/Interest Costs. Both methods will result in different outcomes which makes it difficult for comparison purpose. Also, some REITS may also include one-off items in its interest costs such as early redemption fees on Notes borrowed etc hence making it unfavorable for comparison. Nevertheless, it is still a good tool as it gives us an overall indicator of the ability of the company to repay its interest costs. The higher the ratio obviously indicates the better they are in paying off their finance related costs.
Retail Sector
| Retail Sector | Current Price | NAV | Gearing (Debt/Assets) | Effective Int. Rate | Int. Cov Ratio | Current yield | Fwd yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CapitaMall | $2.00 | $1.68 | 34.9% | 3.40% | 4.2x | 5.07% | 5.45% |
| CapitaRChina | $1.42 | $1.42 | 23.5% | 2.58% | 9.1x | 6.70% | 7.04% |
| FrasersCT | $1.87 | $1.54 | 30.4% | 2.72% | 6.3x | 5.88% | 6.00% |
| LippoMalls | $0.48 | $0.57 | 24.2% | 4.93% | 4.1x | 7.50% | 7.91% |
| MapletreeGCC | $0.92 | $0.95 | 41.5% | 2.00% | 4.2x | 5.87% | 6.40% |
| Starhill | $0.81 | $0.88 | 30.3% | 3.03% | 5.3x | 6.17% | 6.17% |
| SPH Reit | $0.98 | $0.89 | 27.3% | 2.20% | - | 5.12% | 5.32% |
Retail sector is one of the most resilient sectors in the Singapore REITS market. Most of the retail REITS are backed by strong sponsors who managed to obtain low costs of financing for its REITS. Recent IPOs REITS - MapletreeGCC and SPH Reits stand out for me in terms of their extremely low costs of financing, at 2% and 2.2% respectively. CapitaRChina numbers looks very even in terms of the gearing, costs of debts and yields. This could be the dark horse which I might add to my portfolio should retail REITS plummet downwards.
My Pick: CapitaRChina
Industrial Sector
| Industrial Sector | Current Price | NAV | Gearing (Debt/Assets) | Effective Int. Rate | Int. Cov Ratio | Current yield | Fwd yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AimsAmp | $1.45 | $1.50 | 25.4% | 2.80% | 4.9x | 7.58% | 8.27% |
| Ascendas | $2.28 | $1.94 | 28.6% | 3.09% | 5.7x | 6.32% | 6.67% |
| Cache | $1.15 | $0.96 | 29.2% | 3.48% | 6.3x | 7.57% | 7.83% |
| Cambridge | $0.66 | $0.67 | 35.8% | 4.01% | 4.6x | 7.88% | 8.48% |
| MapletreeLog | $1.09 | $0.92 | 34.0% | 2.40% | 6.6x | 6.42% | 6.60% |
| MapletreeInd | $1.36 | $1.11 | 35.8% | 2.40% | 7.0x | 6.84% | 7.13% |
| Sabana | $1.15 | $1.06 | 37.1% | - | 4.2x | 8.35% | 8.26% |
The Industrial sector's trend looks to be going downwards as probably seen from the relatively higher yield compared to other sectors. I have been contemplating about getting Cache and Ascendas but their costs of debts look to be on the higher side as compared to the MapletreeLog and MapletreeInd. In addition, most of them are on the relatively higher side of the gearing. Since this industry is facing some headwinds, the probability of prices falling is greater than other sectors. I will be picking up counters when the yield become enticing to my portfolio cashflow.
My pick: Cache
Commercial Sector
| Commercial Sector | Current Price | NAV | Gearing (Debt/Assets) | Effective Int. Rate | Int. Cov Ratio | Current yield | Fwd yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CapitaComm | $1.40 | $1.65 | 28.9% | 2.80% | 5.1x | 6.45% | 6.45% |
| FraserComm | $1.24 | $1.45 | 39.5% | 2.80% | 4.2x | 7.13% | 7.37% |
| Keppel Reit | $1.23 | $1.27 | 44.2% | 2.16% | 4.8x | 6.37% | 6.45% |
| MapletreeComm | $1.16 | $1.07 | 40.8% | 2.22% | 4.8x | 6.03% | 6.17% |
| Suntec | $1.57 | $2.04 | 36.5% | 2.68% | 3.4x | 5.80% | 6.11% |
The Commercial sector is on the trend up. I am liking this sector due to the recent economic pick up which translates into higher rental yield for these REITS. The gearing is certainly on the higher side for the commercial sector but forward dpu looks to be the most potential in increasing its payout. With revising rentals to come in 2014, I don't think they will proceed with any acquisitions just yet and hopefully that means no raising of equity in the near term.
Hospitality Sector
| Hospitality Sector | Current Price | NAV | Gearing (Debt/Assets) | Effective Int. Rate | Int. Cov Ratio | Current yield | Fwd yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AscendasHT | $0.80 | $0.77 | 35.4% | 2.90% | - | 6.75% | 7.00% |
| Ascott | $1.25 | $1.36 | 40.2% | 3.10% | 4.2x | 7.15% | 7.28% |
| CDL Trust | $1.58 | $1.60 | 29.7% | - | 9.0x | 6.90% | 7.03% |
| FarEastHT | $0.87 | $0.96 | 29.3% | 2.20% | 9.1x | 6.61% | 7.12% |
| OUEHT | $0.88 | $0.90 | 33.2% | 2.80% | - | 7.30% | 7.40% |
The hospitality sector is currently on a falling knife trend. It is falling so fast that the yield is almost all back to 7%. This is a cyclical industry and when the right time comes, this would be a great place to put your money in. I like the low gearing and low costs of financing for FEHT as compared to others. It is definitely in my radar right now.
My pick: FEHT
Healthcare Sector
| Healthcare Sector | Current Price | NAV | Gearing (Debt/Assets) | Effective Int. Rate | Int. Cov Ratio | Current yield | Fwd yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Reit | $1.18 | $0.90 | 33.4% | - | 7.0x | 6.40% | 6.80% |
| ParkwayLife | $2.32 | $1.55 | 31.2% | 1.52% | 10.2x | 4.75% | 4.75% |
The healthcare sector is the most defensive of all sectors, given their nature of business. Plife has the lowest costs of financing and highest interest coverage ratio and it can be seen from its lowest yield payout amongst all other REITS. If Plife can yield above 5%, I would not hesitate to pick it up.
My pick: Plife
What about you?
What do you think will happen to REITS when interest goes up?
