– alstria office REIT-AG (symbol: AOX, ISIN: DE000A0LD2U1) (“alstria”) announces a stronger than expected result for the first nine months of 2021 and a guidance uplift for FY 2021.
Revenues at EUR 135.9 million and FFO at EUR 87.5 million
Rental income increased by 3.4% to EUR 135.9 million (9M 2020: EUR 131.5 million), mainly due to revenues from new signed leases and a positive revenue effect from transactions.
The operating result (FFO after minorities) grew by 4.8% year on year and amounted to EUR 87.5 million in the reporting period (9M 2020: EUR 83.4 million). The increase was driven by higher rental income but also by lower operating costs. These were the consequence of the lack of implementation of planned maintenance measures considering both, the pandemic and supply chain constrains. The combined effect improved the FFO margin to 64.4% (9M 2020: 63.5%).
Consolidated net income for the period under review reached EUR 82.0 million (9M 2020: EUR -3.0 million).
Investment properties up by EUR 145 million, EPRA NTA at EUR 18.26 per share
The fair value of investment property amounted to EUR 4,701 million as of September 30, 2021, compared to EUR 4,556 million as of December 31, 2020. The increase by EUR 145 million resulted mainly from the acquisition of two assets in Frankfurt and Berlin (AIC: EUR 85.9 million), a disposal of an asset in Trier (EUR 25.4 million) and the capex into the portfolio (EUR 87.7 million). As of September 30, 2021, alstria’s cash and cash equivalents amounted to EUR 293 million (December 31, 2020: EUR 461 million). The change in cash position is mainly due to the dividend payment of EUR 94.2 million (EUR 0.53 per share), property acquisitions, the investments in the real estate portfolio and FFO contribution.
Within the first nine months of 2021, alstria’s equity slightly decreased by 0.3% to EUR 3,243 million, reflecting the net effect of the profit generated and the dividend payment in May 2021. On September 30, 2021, the company’s EPRA NTA stood at EUR 18.26 per share (+2.0 yoy). The G-REIT equity ratio amounted to 68.3% and the company’s Net LTV was 30.0% as per September 30, 2021.
Gradually improving leasing market
While Q3 saw a gradual improvement of leasing activity (33,000 sqm in Q3 2021 vs. 37,400 sqm in H1 2021), tenants generally focused on shorter lease terms and lease extensions. In addition, enquiries for large office volumes remained low, as tenant needs remain uncertain after the pandemic.
In the first nine months of 2021, alstria signed new leases for 26,800 sqm as well as lease extensions of around 43,600 sqm. Rent reversion of new leases with more than 1,500 sqm was on average 9%. At the end of Q3 2021, the EPRA vacancy rate stood at 8.5% (December 31, 2020: 7.6%). The increase is mainly based on the acquisition of the Frankfurt asset with a vacancy rate of 55% (vacant space: 5,800 sqm). alstria does not expect a full recovery of the letting market until tenants have gained clarity on their future office needs, which alstria expects to happen in early 2022.
Sustainability report 2020/2021 published
In addition to the interim statement, alstria published its annual sustainability report for the financial year 2020. The report provides insights into the environmental, employee-related and societal strategies and performance of alstria. The report follows the GRI standards and the EPRA guidelines for real estate served and addresses the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD). The report is assured by KPMG for all environmental and employee-related KPIs.
Major sustainability accomplishments for 2020:
