Core assets deliver profit for GPT
Strong performances of office, retail and industrial properties have helped drive a 13 per cent increase in post-tax profit for GPT Group.
The Australian Securities Exchange listed property group announced it had delivered a net profit after tax of $645.3 million for the 2014 financial year — up 12.9 per cent on 2013 — with earnings per share forecast of five per cent for the 2015 financial year.
GPT chief executive, Michael Cameron, said the group had continued to deliver consistent and solid returns through a disciplined approach to capital allocation and management.
"The strong result we have delivered for FY14 and the outlook for FY15 is that it is being driven by GPT's core portfolio of high quality assets, with over 90 per cent of the Group's income coming from rental income," he said.
GPT chief investments officer, Carmel Hourigan, said each of the Group's core asset classes — retail, office and industrial — had performed strongly, contributing to a total portfolio return of 9.3 per cent.
Hourigan reported that specialty retail sales growth for 4.2 per cent had played a part in boosting the retail portfolio's total return up from 7.5 per cent in 2014 to nine per cent in 2014.
She added that occupancy rates across the retail portfolio was at 99.5 per cent, while the office portfolio occupancy rate had risen from 90.6 per cent in 2013 to 94 per cent last year, as the group focused its office assets were located predominantly in Australia's top performing markets of Sydney and Melbourne.
Meanwhile GPT's active growth strategy in the logistics sector had seen a 12.7 per cent increase in total portfolio return, with further growth in this category expected in 2015, as the group anticipates the delivery of a further $285 million of new assets in the year ahead.
AUTHOR
Nicholas O'Donoghue
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