Filinvest REIT Corp. (FILRT), the real estate investment trust of Filinvest Land Inc., (FLI) said Tuesday it signed 20,139 square meters of new leases in 2023, nearly a four-fold increase from 5,087 sq. m. of new leases signed in 2022.
FILRT said in a disclosure to the stock exchange the new leases include 2,630 sq. m. signed in the fourth quarter of 2023 which came from the expansion of two BPO companies and 4,512 sq. m. of traditional tenants.
It said the new leases were closed at higher rates against current transacted rates in the Alabang area.
“The new leases that we have in 2024 have been encouraging and we are optimistic that leasing activities will improve further in the second half of the year,” said FILRT president and chief executive Maricel Brion-Lirio.
“Despite some challenges in the market conditions, we remain committed to expanding our portfolio and steadfast in our goal to significantly increase dividends for our shareholders in the long term,” she said.
FILRT said that in terms of tenant retention, 31,835 sq, m. or 77 percent of 41,110 square meters of expiring leases in 2023 were renewed.
FILRT has been diversifying its tenant mix with the addition of traditional tenants and co-working locators as part of its strategies.
Current tenant mix is comprised of 78 percent multinational BPO companies, 11 percent traditional office and co-working, 11 percent hospitality and the small remainder taken up by retail tenants.
The company reported that its board approved the dividend declaration of P0.067 cash dividend per outstanding common share, after reporting a net income of P1.05 billion in 2023.
The first quarterly cash dividend declaration for the year translates to an annualized yield of 8.3 percent based on the previous trading day’s closing price of P3.23 per share.
FILRT said its future growth will be driven by a pipeline of high-value and green-designed assets that owned by FLI.
FLI has about 532,000 sq. m. of office and retail gross leasable area in key central business districts that are potential acquisitions for FILRT in the near to medium term.