RL Commercial REIT Inc., the newly-listed real estate investment trust company of Robinsons Land Corp., plans to add one to two office assets annually as the company aims to be the bellwether of the Philippine office market.
RCR president and chief executive Jericho Go said in a news briefing following the company’s listing ceremony it aimed to deliver a low double-digit return through acquisitions, rental escalations and rental of leases.
RLC plans to inject 40,000 to 100,000 square meters of gross leasable area to RCR over the next 18 months. RLC and RCR signed a memorandum of understanding in July for the potential acquisition of Cyberscape Gamma and/or Robinsons Cybergate Center 1. The two assets have a combined GLA of 72,100 sq. m.
RLC also has office assets and business process outsourcing spaces located in various commercial centers and projects that are in various stages of construction. RLC’s potential pipeline for infusions to RCR could reach GLA of 422,000 sq. m.
RCR is the largest REIT company to list in the Philippine Stock Exchange, as it raised P23.5 billion in proceeds from the initial public offering. It is also the largest REIT company in terms of market capitalization, with P64.2 billion and has the largest portfolio valuation at P73.9 billion. It has the biggest asset size with of 425,315 sq. m. in GLA.
“We are extremely grateful for the overwhelming response of the capital markets to our landmark offering. We would like to thank the investing public for their continued trust and support to the Robinsons Land brand. We appreciate how our reputation and track record over the years have resulted in this expression of confidence in RCR’s IPO,” said RCR chairman Frederick Go.
Go said the company was committed to sustainable growth of RCR as it aimed to maintain its position as the largest REIT company.
“It is important to be the largest in terms of market capitalization and market valuation because we want to have the largest global funds as shareholders of RCR. This is also gives shareholders liquidity to trade the stock,” Go said.
Go said being largest in terms of office assets, size and coverage is important for the business and shareholders as it mitigates risks.
The stock price of RCR, which started trading on Tuesday, closed higher by 0.16 percent to P6.46.