Deal subject to owners&rsquo consent to lower reserve price sale would be biggest en bloc acquisition since 2023

 

UOL : U14 -0.74%, Singapore Land and CapitaLand Development (CLD) have signed an option to acquire the 99-year leasehold Thomson View Condominium for S$810 million in a collective sale, the companies said on Saturday (Oct 26).

 

The deal would be struck at a price 12 per cent lower than the condo owners&rsquo original reserve price of S$918 million. It is conditional on consent from at least 80 per cent of owners at the Bright Hill Drive development.

 

The property, on a sprawling 5-hectare site, was put up for tender this year in February with a guide price of S$918 million. The en bloc sale was relaunched in July at the same price, before owners moved to reduce the price on the sale earlier this month.

 

Two previous attempts were made in November 2021 and May 2022 when the site was marketed at S$950 million.

 

The sale of Thomson View Condo, marketed by Edmund Tie & Co, would be the largest en bloc deal done in Singapore since Chuan Park&rsquo s collective sale got the go-ahead in May 2023.

 

The move to lower the reserve price brings the unit land cost down to S$1,178 per square foot per plot ratio, after including land betterment charges to intensify the land use and a lease upgrading premium to top up to a fresh 99-year lease. The current lease starts from 1975. At the previous reserve price of S$918 million, the site was valued at S$1,275 psf ppr.

 

The lower offer saw renewed interest from developers, said Swee Shou Fern, head of investment advisory at Edmund Tie, leading to discussions with &ldquo several interested parties&rdquo .

 

&ldquo The proposed realignment of the reserve price sets the stage for a compelling win-win opportunity that not only appeals to developers but also allows the owners to cash out an attractive en bloc premium,&rdquo said Swee on Oct 18.

 

UOL, SingLand and CLD are eyeing a massive 1,240-unit project on the land. Thomson View Condo now houses 200 apartments, 54 townhouses and a shop unit. 

 

In a joint statement sent on Saturday (Oct 26), UOL group chief executive Liam Wee Sin and CLD Singapore chief executive officer Tan Yew Chin said: &ldquo If 80 per cent consent is secured, this acquisition adds another prime land parcel into our portfolio of joint venture sites with its strategic location and exceptional attributes.

 

&ldquo We will leverage our combined expertise to transform the site into a 1,240-unit condominium, capitalising on the limited supply in the vicinity.&rdquo

 

The proposed acquisition of Thomson View is by a 50:50 joint venture between UOL Group and CLD. UOL and its unit SingLand hold 50 per cent of the joint venture on a 80:20 basis, while CLD holds the other 50 per cent stake.

 

Together, the three partners have been actively building up land bank for joint projects in the last two years. UOL group units and CLD topped bids for a Holland Drive state land site in May with a S$805.39 million bid. At S$1,285 psf ppr, the bid was below expectations for the large, prime piece of land.

 

The same three partners also bagged a mixed-use plot in Tampines for S$1.21 billion or S$885 psf ppr last year. Some 1,200 residential units are planned on the site.

 

If concluded, the S$810 million acquisition of Thomson View will be financed mainly from bank borrowings and internal resources, UOL said on Saturday. The deal is expected to be completed &ldquo no later than February 2026&rdquo .

The property player must urgently address its yawning market discount to book value

 

PROPERTY developer UOL Group : U14 +0.56% has been making astute investments and executing well on various fronts of late. However, this good work may be wasted as the market marks down the value of assets that the group holds. As at Oct 16, UOL traded at a 59 per cent discount to end-June&rsquo s net asset value (NAV) per share of S$13.19.    

 

With lower interest rates, UOL should seize the opportunity to optimise its balance sheet, drive higher return on equity (ROE) and grow in fund management. The group can actively embrace capital-efficient ways of holding its investment properties and hospitality assets. This could possibly be through listed real estate investment trusts (Reits) and business trusts, or private funds.

 

While the Urban Redevelopment Authority&rsquo s flash estimate of private-home prices in the third quarter showed a quarterly decline, there is demand for the right projects, even in the prime segment which is reeling from the high taxes that apply to foreigners, who are not permanent residents, buying homes here. 

 

Early this month, freehold condominium Meyer Blue in District 15, which is being developed by UOL and its listed subsidiary Singapore Land Group : U06 -1.12%, sold over half of its 226 units during its launch weekend at an average of S$3,260 per square foot. Meyer Blue&rsquo s positive take-up follows strong sales at the launch of another prime condominium project, Watten House. The District 11 project was launched by UOL and Singapore Land last November.

 

Overseas expansion and Singapore development pipeline

On Oct 11, UOL and Singapore Land announced their joint purchase of a 50 per cent stake in 388 George Street, a freehold property in Sydney, Australia, for a consideration of A$460 million (S$405 million). Located in the heart of the central business district, the refurbished building has a net lettable area of 37,444 square metres (sq m) in office space and 3,654 sq m in retail space.

 

UOL and Singapore Land appear to be making a good buy. According to media reports, their entry price is at an estimated capitalisation rate of 6.2 per cent. This contrasts with the estimated 4.5 per cent cap rate for Hong Kong-listed Link Reit&rsquo s purchase of a 25 per cent stake in 388 George Street in 2022.

 

In the income capitalisation method, a property&rsquo s value is derived by dividing the assumed net property income by its cap rate. The property&rsquo s value is inversely related to the cap rate used.

 

Assuming that the net property income remains constant, the price of a property with a 6.2 per cent cap rate is around 27 per cent lower than that with a 4.5 per cent cap rate.

 

UOL&rsquo s latest Sydney foray will pay off if there is further momentum in workers returning to physical offices in Sydney, and interest rates continue to decline. Such trends could drive rental and capital value growth.

Meanwhile, should lower interest rates and Singapore&rsquo s stability amid rising geopolitical tensions buoy the private-homes market, UOL could chalk up more successes in the Republic.

 

Working with partners, UOL is launching residential developments in 2025 that include projects in prime sites in Orchard Boulevard and Holland Drive.

 

UOL, together with Singapore Land and CapitaLand Development, will also be launching Parktown Residence, with 1,195 condominium units, likely early next year. This is part of an integrated development with a mall, a bus interchange, a community club, a hawker centre, and direct connectivity to the upcoming Tampines North MRT station. Homebuyers typically flock to integrated developments with good public transport and other amenities.

 

In addition, UOL is actively growing its hospitality segment.

 

New properties, which the group owns, that opened this year include Pan Pacific Jakarta and Parkroyal Serviced Suites Jakarta in Indonesia. Between 2025 and 2027, the group will expand its Asian hospitality footprint in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. 

 

With rising income in Asia and strong demand for travel, UOL&rsquo s hospitality segment should enjoy positive tailwinds. Moreover, an emphasis on biophilia at UOL&rsquo s hotels here such as Pan Pacific Orchard, Parkroyal Collection Pickering and Parkroyal Collection Marina Bay helps to burnish the group&rsquo s green credentials and build customer loyalty.

 

Singapore Land, which is a major local office-property owner, is also busy rejuvenating its assets. It is carrying out major asset enhancement works in its flagship Singapore Land Tower in Raffles Place.

 

Embrace property funds

All the hard work in investments and operations will go to waste unless UOL&rsquo s board urgently addresses the share price discount to book value, especially as the NAV is conservative and the balance sheet is healthy. For example, the NAV does not capture potential profit from housing development projects or the upside from marking to market the value of hotel properties carried under property, plant and equipment. 

 

UOL should look to own investment properties and hospitality assets through listed or unlisted property funds. Capital can be freed up by reducing the group&rsquo s ownership stake in assets, while ROE may be helped by earning fund management fee income.

 

Leading Reit CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust : C38U +0.48%, which has substantial exposure to Singapore office buildings, malls and integrated developments, traded at close to its end-June NAV based on its unit price as at Oct 16.

 

UOL will create tremendous shareholder value through owning assets via vehicles that trade at much narrower book value discounts than UOL. Perhaps, UOL can start by working with Singapore Land to inject commercial properties in Australia and the United Kingdom into, say, a Reit, before tackling its substantially larger Singapore investment property and global hospitality portfolios.

 

UOL has ownership interests in prime London properties 110 High Holborn and 120 Holborn Island, as well as 72 Christie Street in Sydney. Completion of the 388 George Street purchase is expected within the first half of 2025.

 

UOL turned 60 last year. Earlier this year, Wee Ee Lim succeeded his late father Wee Cho Yaw, who was chairman for over 50 years until his death, as the group&rsquo s chairman.

 

Hopefully, UOL will boldly write a new chapter for its business in funds management. After all, a great property and hotel group needs to excel in buying assets, project execution, operations and owning assets.

 

Between Aug 15 and 16, Wee Investments acquired two million shares of UOL, at an average price of S$5.21 per share. This increased the deemed interests of both UOL chairman Wee Ee Lim and director Wee Ee-Chao. Wee Ee Lim&rsquo s total interest increased from 15.79 per cent to 16.03 per cent. The preceding acquisition was between Jun 27 and 28, with 426,700 shares acquired at an average price of S$5.20 per share.

 

On Aug 13, the group reported a 3 per cent decline in net attributable profit for its H1 FY2024 (ended Jun 30) to S$130.4 million, mainly due to attributable fair value losses of S$12.2 million compared with fair value and other gains of S$3.3 million for H1 FY2023.

 

UOL noted that Singapore&rsquo s residential property market is expected to remain stable with slower price growth, supported by healthy household balance sheets.

 

The Singapore-listed property and hospitality group added that office rents are projected to stay resilient despite increased supply, while the retail and hospitality sectors are expected to continue their recovery, driven by strong leasing demand and a tourism rebound. UOL&rsquo s overseas hospitality segment is growing with the recent launches of Pan Pacific Jakarta and Parkroyal Serviced Suites Jakarta. 

Between Jun 27 and 28, Wee Investments acquired 426,700 shares of UOL : U14 +0.38% Group at an average price of S$5.20 per share. With a consideration of S$2.2 million, this increased the deemed interests of UOL Group chairman Wee Ee Lim and director Wee Ee-chao.

 

This has brought the total interest of Wee Ee Lim from 15.74 per cent to 15.79 per cent.

 

The preceding acquisition of UOL Group shares by Wee Investments via a market transaction was back in March 2023 with 300,000 shares bought at S$6.74 per share.

 

Wee Ee Lim was appointed chairman of the group in February 2024. Prior to this, he was deputy chairman from the time of the appointment in August 2015.

 

He is also the chairman of Singapore Land Group and a non-executive and non-independent director of UOB.

 

In addition, he is the president and CEO of Haw Par Corporation since 2003 and has been closely involved in the management and growth of the Haw Par Group for more than 30 years.

 

An STI constituent, UOL Group is a leading Singapore-listed property and hospitality group.

 

With a rich history that began as Faber Union in 1963, today UOL Group maintains a robust portfolio that includes residential properties, commercial investments, and a strong foothold in the hospitality industry, with around S$22 billion in total assets.

 

For its FY23 (ended Dec 31), UOL Group reported a 44 per cent increase in net attributable profit to S$707.7 million, mainly due to a gain of S$442.3 million from the sale of a wholly owned subsidiary which held Parkroyal on Kitchener Road. In FY23, 85 per cent of the group&rsquo s revenue was from Singapore.

 

Looking to the remainder of FY24, Wee Ee Lim maintains that demand for private residential properties in Singapore is expected to grow at a slower pace. He adds that office rents are likely to moderate due to new pipeline of offices and more companies may right-size in view of economic uncertainties.

 

On the hospitality side, Wee Ee Lim expects that with tourism projected to recover fully this year, the retail sector should benefit with higher tourist arrivals, and retail rents would be further supported by a lack of supply in retail space. Likewise, he expects that Singapore&rsquo s hospitality sector is likely to continue its growth with the regional travel recovery.

 

As at Jul 4, UOL Group maintains a return-on-equity ratio of 6.5 per cent, and as at the same date, a price-to-book ratio of 0.4x, a discount to the five-year average price-to-book ratio of 0.6x.

 

The stock has ranked as Singapore&rsquo s 23rd most traded by average daily turnover this year, in addition to ranking among the 10 stocks that have booked the most net retail inflow.

 

The Reuters Consensus Estimate Target Price for UOL Group is S$7.715. This represents the average of individual estimates provided by analysts covering the company, with estimates typically representing analyst&rsquo s opinion of the stock performance over the next 18 months.

 

INSTITUTIONS were net buyers of Singapore stocks over the five trading sessions through to Jul 4, with S$188 million of net institutional inflow, as 20 primary-listed companies conducted buybacks with a total consideration of S$23.6 million.

 

CapitaLand Investment : 9CI -2.21% (CLI) led the buyback consideration tally for the five sessions, acquiring 5,970,400 shares at an average price of S$2.65 per share. This brings the percentage of shares acquired on the current mandate to 1.47 per cent of the issued shares (excluding treasury shares) as of the date of the share-buyback resolution.

 

For the contingent of non-STI primary-listed companies that conducted buybacks, First Resources : EB5 +0.72% led the consideration tally with 1.15 million shares purchased at an average price of S$1.38 per share.

 

OUE : LJ3 -0.86% also filed that the date of purchase of its off-market acquisition of 84,038,036 shares was Jul 5.

 

Leading the net institutional inflow were DBS : D05 -1.47%, UOB : U11 -0.21%, Singtel : Z74 -1.38%, OCBC : O39 -0.99%, Seatrium : 5E2 0%, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding : BS6 -1.23%, Sats : S58 -0.34%, Great Eastern : G07 +0.08%, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust : N2IU 0%, and Venture Corporation : V03 -0.42%.

 

Meanwhile, Sembcorp Industries : U96 -0.62%, Genting Singapore : G13 -0.59%, Jardine Cycle & Carriage : C07 -0.27%, Singapore Airlines : C6L -0.43%, Mapletree Industrial Trust : ME8U 0%, Singapore Exchange : S68 -0.52%, Keppel : BN4 +0.31%, CapitaLand Ascendas Reit : A17U -0.78%, Wilmar International : F34 0% and CapitaLand Ascott Trust : HMN 0% led the net institutional outflow.

 

The five trading sessions saw around 100 director interests and substantial shareholdings filed for close to 50 primary-listed stocks. Directors or chief executives filed 19 acquisitions, and no disposals, while substantial shareholders filed 11 acquisitions and nine disposals.