Ascendas REIT has reported a distribution per unit (DPU) of 4.005 cents for its 1Q 2019, a marginal increase of 0.1% year-on-year.

The REIT’s gross revenue for the period rose by 6.1% on-year to SGD229.7 million, bolstered by contributions from newly acquired properties in the UK and Australia.

Net property income rose by 11.5% on-year to SGD177.5 million, while the total amount available for distribution rose 6.3% over the same period to SGD124.7 million.

The REIT’s overall portfolio occupancy rate declined to 91.1% compared to 91.9% in the previous quarter.

This was mainly due to the lower portfolio occupancy rate in Australia, which fell to 92.3%.

Its portfolio’s weighted average lease expiry (WALE) declined to 4.1 years, from 4.2 years as at 31 March 2019.

As at 30 June 2019, the REIT’s aggregate leverage stood at 37.2% with weighted average all-in cost of borrowing was maintained at 3.0%.

Ascendas REIT was last done on the Singapore Exchange at SGD3.05, which gives a yield of about 5.25% based on data from the Singapore REITs fundamentals table.