2015 full year income from non-REITs.

Before I reveal the numbers, let me talk to myself about what I did in 4Q 2015, investments wise.

I re-initiated a long position in ARA as I felt that its stock price declined to a reasonably attractive level. 

ARA's rights issue which followed not long after was unexpected but I took up my entitlement and applied for excess rights as I looked at it as an opportunity to buy more on the cheap. I will probably buy more if the stock declines further in price.

Of course, those who follow my blog will also remember another rights issue and that was by Croesus Retail Trust. I too participated fully in that rights issue.

A back of the envelope calculation shows that Croesus Retail Trust is now trading at a 10% distribution yield. 

Croesus Retail Trust has rather high gearing level but if we were to take that away, Croesus Retail Trust is actually still generating more than a 5% distribution yield (i.e. non-leveraged yield) which I think is very attractive for a portfolio of mostly freehold retail properties in Japan. 

As the Trust's unit price declined, I added to my position again in the middle of December at 78c a unit.

I also increased my investment in Accordia Golf Trust as its stock price declined. The last time I did this was in mid-December at 51c a unit.

Investing in Accordia Golf Trust, we must realise that weather plays an important part in its performance. So, we have to expect its revenue to fluctuate quite a bit seasonally, much like investing in hospitality REITs.

With sentiments pretty negative, if Mr. Market were to offer me meaningfully lower prices, I would probably be buying more.

I also did a bit of trading in 4Q 2015. I reduced my long positions in Wilmar and ST Engineering as their stock prices recovered. That gave me some trading gains for the quarter.

I don't trade very much anymore as it requires a bit more work. Now, I might not even look at the stock market for several days in a row.

I added to my long position again in ST Engineering as its stock price declined by more than 10% from my recent selling price. 


ST Engineering is still one investment for income and growth. I definitely want to buy more if Mr. Market goes into a depression.

For those who do not follow my comments section, I initiated a smallish long position in DBS. Some know that I have been thinking of buying into the three local banks for a while and have been waiting for their stock prices to become cheaper.

I chose DBS first because it was trading at the smallest premium to NAV compared to OCBC and UOB. There is also consensus that DBS would be the biggest beneficiary of rising interest rates.

I also added to my investment in SingTel as its stock price declined. We invest in SingTel, Starhub and M1 because they are defensive income generators but with SingTel, there is also a nice element of growth.

Finally, I added to my long position in APTT this month after having left it alone since its inception. The rapid plunge in APTT's unit price up till middle of December seemed excessive to me even though I have mentioned before that a DPU of 8c a year is unsustainable in the longer run.


A much lower DPU of between 4c to 5c would probably be more sustainable for APTT. So, adding to my long position at 63c a unit, I am expecting a more realistic distribution yield of 6.3% to 7.9%.


A more recent development was an expression of interest by a party to acquire Ascendas Hospitality Trust which I included in my income portfolio in 3Q 2014. I have added to my investment on a few occasions since then, as and when its unit price declined.

The last time I increased exposure to Ascendas Hospitality Trust was on 24 August 2015 at 58.5c a unit. With an estimated annual DPU of 5.5c, I was looking at a distribution yield of almost 10%.

Although I hope that the offer is going to be at a fairly attractive premium to valuation, I am aware that if the Trust should be taken private, my income from non-REITs next year would take a hit.

Very safe to show hand like this.

Including my first income distribution from Religare Health Trust (RHT), dividends from my investments in non-REITs in Q4 brings my income in 2015 from them to a grand total of S$76,804.69.

This works out to be about S$6,400.00 a month.

Including the distributions from S-REITs this year, I am pretty satisfied with the total income generated by my investment portfolio.


Related post:
1. ARA: Re-initiating long position.
2. Croesus Retail Trust: Rights.
3. Trading ST Engineering.
4. Religare Health Trust: Entered at 88c.
5. 9M 2015 income from non-REITs.

2015 full year income from S-REITs.

I did not do anything substantial to my investments in S-REITs in 4Q 2015. I just collected dividends, mostly.

However, it seems that I would be receiving less income from S-REITs in the not too distant future as Saizen REIT looks likely to be delisted as a firm offer of $1.17 per unit was received from a potential buyer.

Saizen REIT is currently one of my top three investments in S-REITs. Off the top of my head, it contributes to around 20% of my passive income from S-REITs.

So, losing Saizen REIT will greatly impact my income level in future, for sure.

Readers who have been following my blog since its inception in 2009 will remember that I was, back then, already a strong proponent of investing in Saizen REIT for income (and for its very cheap valuation).

Needless to say, I ate quite a bit of my own pudding.

So, I have grown somewhat attached to Saizen REIT after so many years. It is like having a good son who has been giving me regular and meaningful pocket money.

Now, this good son is going to give me a lump sum payment which is not a bad thing either but on the condition that there will be no more pocket money in future.

I just have to make sure that I remain financially prudent, I guess. Of course, there is no guarantee of this. Stress...

15A Changi Business Park Central 1.

Did I do anything at all in the S-REIT space?

I did increase my exposure to Soilbuild REIT by about 15%, taking advantage of the weakness in its unit price. I was waiting to see if Mr. Market would sell to me at an even lower price than 73c a unit but it didn't happen. Not for me, anyway.

However, 73c a unit was a fairly good deal and it is still lower price than the additional investment I made in the REIT back in August when stock prices plunged badly. That was 75c, if I remember correctly.

Including Q4's income distributions from my investments in S-REITs, my 2015 full year income from S-REITs is: S$90,344.81

This works out to be about S$7,528.00 a month.

I will be blogging about my investments in non-REITs next week. If you are interested, look out for it.


Related posts:
1. Saizen REIT: A firm offer.
2. Soilbuild REIT: A nibble.
3. 9M 2015 income from S-REITs.