First REIT – FX remains a drag

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Positives
+ Stable operating performance in local currency terms. FY25 income from Indonesia and
Singapore properties rose by 5.1% and 2.0%, respectively, in local currency terms, while
Japan remained stable.

+ Stable capital management. The cost of debt declined by 50bps YoY to 4.5%, while gearing
and ICR remained healthy at 42.1% and 3.7x, respectively. FIRT is in discussions to extend
and refinance S$260mn of loans due in 2026. We expect FY26e all-in cost of debt to remain
around 4.5%, with 46.1% of debt on fixed rates.

The Negative

- Rentals continue to be owed by MPU, with S$6.9mn outstanding as at 31 Dec 2025.
S$1.5mn was received in Jan 2026, reducing the amount owed to S$5.4mn.
- Decline in portfolio valuations. On a same-store basis, valuations fell 6.2%, primarily due
to FX headwinds. In local currency terms, the Indonesia portfolio rose 1.4% on higher rents,
while the Japan portfolio declined 0.7%. The Singapore portfolio declined by 5.8% due to
decreasing land tenure.

 

First REIT – Earnings stability tempered by FX

 

First REIT – Facing ongoing FX headwinds

 

First REIT – Stable operations undermined by FX

- 1Q25 DPU of 0.58 Singapore cents (-3.3% YoY) was slightly below our estimates, forming 23% of our FY25e forecast. The YoY decline in DPU was due to the depreciation of the IDR and JPY against the SGD, partially offset by higher rental income in local currency terms. 1Q25 DPU of 0.58 cents was unchanged QoQ.

- With 56.7% of its debt hedged to fixed rates, FIRT benefited from lower interest rates, bringing its all-in cost of debt down to 4.7% (Dec 24: 5.0%). After receiving S$2.4mn from MPU in 4Q24, no payments were made in 1Q25, bringing the total overdue rent to S$5.8mn as of 31 March 2025.

- Maintain BUY with an unchanged DDM-derived target price of S$0.32. We trim our FY25e/26e DPU estimates by 6%/4% to reflect ongoing FX headwinds. Despite this, FIRT is still trading at an attractive FY25e DPU yield of 9.2%. FIRT is undergoing a strategic review to assess Siloam's letter of intent (LOI) to acquire its hospital assets in Indonesia, with no material developments as of 1Q25. Organic growth will come from more Indonesian hospitals achieving performance-based rent.

 

 

 

First REIT – Impacted by FX headwinds

 

First REIT – A buyer for Indonesian hospitals

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First REIT – Hurt by the weak IDR and JPY

First REIT – A stable quarter with stable DPU

• 1H24 DPU of 1.20 Singapore cents (-3.2% YoY) was in line with our expectations, forming 51% of our FY24e forecast. 1H24 DPU was lower YoY mainly due to the stronger SGD against the IDR and JPY. 2Q24 DPU was stable QoQ at 0.60 Singapore cents.

• 1H24 revenue in local currency terms grew 4.4% YoY for properties in Indonesia, 2% YoY for nursing homes in Singapore, and remained stable in Japan. Finance costs grew marginally by 0.8% (S$0.1mn) YoY due to good interest rate risk and currency risk management.

• Maintain BUY with an unchanged DDM-derived target price of S$0.30. First REIT is trading at an attractive 16% discount to NAV and a forward FY24e distribution yield of 9.3%.  Organic growth will stem from more Indonesian hospitals achieving performance-based rent. Potential catalysts include the successful divestment of non-core assets such as Imperial Aryaduta Hotel and Country Club (IAHCC) and recycling the proceeds to fund acquisitions in developed markets as part of its First REIT 2.0 growth strategy. Our estimates remained unchanged.

 

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First REIT – Forging ahead post-restructuring

 

 

Company Background
First REIT (FIRT) is Singapore’s first healthcare REIT focused on investing in income-producing real estate assets primarily used for healthcare-related purposes. Its S$1.14bn portfolio consists of 32 properties comprising 15 in Indonesia (74.5% of assets under management), 14 in Japan (22.7%), and 3 in Singapore (2.8%). FIRT’s sponsors are OUE Limited and OUE Healthcare Limited (OUEH). FIRT has the right-of-first-refusal (ROFR) from OUEH, and a ROFR for a pipeline of hospitals from Lippo Karawachi (LPKR), a majority shareholder of Siloam. Siloam International Hospitals (38.7%) and LPKR (34.9%) are major tenants.

 

Key Investment Merits
• Restructured MLA and a long portfolio WALE of 11.3 years ensure long term cash flow visibility. The new MLA includes a minimum annual rental escalation of 4.5% or a performance-based rent of 8% of the hospital’s Gross Operating Revenue (GOR) from the preceding financial year, denominated in IDR, for the Indonesian hospitals. Currently, 3 of the 14 hospitals are already paying performance-based rent, and more may start contributing as the operational performance of the hospitals improves. Furthermore,
with Siloam added as a party to the new Tripartite MLAs, the exposure to LPKR will decrease from c.88% before the restructuring to 18.7%, assuming that rentals for each of the Tripartite MLAs beyond 2026 are calculated based on the performance-based rent. LPKR has been experiencing tight cash flow since FY19.
• Recycling capital to fund expansion plans. FIRT plans to divest some of its non-core and mature assets to fund its expansion plans. Currently, Imperial Aryaduta Hotel and Country Club (IAHCC) has been identified as a non-core asset and is being marketed for
divestment. The manager is also exploring divesting into some of the older nursing homes in Japan to recycle the proceeds and buy newer, better nursing homes in Japan. FIRT is also open to divesting some of its mature Indonesian hospitals, if the conditions are right.
• Expansion into developed markets. After expanding into Japan in FY22, FIRT plans to diversify further into developed markets, with a target of having >50% of AUM in developed markets by FY27. This could be done through further acquisitions in Japan or
Australia. This will help reduce exposure to Indonesia and the depreciating Indonesian Rupiah against the strong Singapore Dollar.

 

We initiate coverage on First REIT with a BUY rating and a DDM-derived target price of S$0.30, based on a COE of 10.5% and a terminal growth rate of 2%. We forecast a DPU of 2.36 cents for FY24e and 2.51 cents for FY25e, translating into a forward yield of 9.6% and 10.3%, respectively.

First REIT – Virtuous cycle in Indonesia healthcare

 

Company Background

First REIT (FIRT) is Singapore’s first healthcare REIT that focuses on investing in income-producing real estate assets that are primarily used for healthcare-related purposes. Its S$1.14bn portfolio consists of 32 properties comprising 15 in Indonesia (74% of assets under management), 14 in Japan (23%), and 3 in Singapore (3%). FIRT’s sponsors are OUE Limited and OUE Lippo Healthcare Limited (OUELH). FIRT has the right-of-first-refusal (ROFR) from OUELH, and a ROFR to a pipeline of hospitals from Lippo Karawachi (LPKR), a majority shareholder of Siloam. Siloam International Hospitals (39%) and LPKR (35%) are major tenants.

 

VISIT HIGHLIGHTS

 

Day 1 – 18Mar24: Siloam International / Siloam Hospital Simatupang / Mochtar Riady Comprehensive Cancer

Siloam operates 41 hospitals and 3,800 operational beds across Indonesia, serviced by 3,600 plus general practitioners, specialists, and dentists. It has around 9% market share in the private hospital sector. Siloam started investing in private hospitals in 1996. But only ramped up its expansion in 2011.  The general practitioners are employees of Siloam. Other doctors collect 100% of the consultation fees in outpatient and inpatient treatment. In general, 20-35% of hospital bills go to the doctor. The annual price increase ranges from 3 to 4%. Rental is 6% to 6.5% of revenue. The new law for foreign doctors to practise in Indonesia, it will require several years. The new government needs to be set up and implementation law passed.

 

 

 

 

Day 2 – 19Mar24: Siloam Hospitals Kebon Jeruk / Siloam Hospitals Lippo Village

 

 

 

 

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