CapitaLand Ascott Trust (CLAS) has divested Citadines Karasuma-Gojo Kyoto in Japan to an unrelated third party for about JPY6.18 billion (S$53.1 million).

The 124-unit property was divested at 40.1% above book value at an exit EBITDA yield of about 0.3%. Net proceeds of the divestment are JPY4.4 billion (S$37.8 million) and CLAS has recognised a net gain of JPY0.9 billion (S$8.0 million).

Ms Serena Teo, Chief Executive Officer of CapitaLand Ascott Trust Management Limited and CapitaLand Ascott Business Trust Management Pte. Ltd. (the Managers of CLAS), said: “The divestment of Citadines Karasuma-Gojo Kyoto is in line with CLAS’ active portfolio reconstitution strategy. The mature property has reached the optimal stage of its lifecycle. We plan to redeploy the divestment proceeds into higher-yielding investments to further grow our returns to Stapled Securityholders. Japan remains a key market for CLAS and is one of our strongest performing markets. We continue to seek opportunities to strengthen our portfolio in Japan.”

“The proposed acquisition of lyf Funan Singapore announced last week demonstrates CLAS’ ability to enhance value for Stapled Securityholders by using proceeds from our divestment of Citadines Mount Sophia Singapore at an exit EBITDA yield of 3.2% towards the proposed acquisition of lyf Funan Singapore at a higher yield of 4.7%. In 1H 2024, CLAS also completed the acquisition of Teriha Ocean Stage, a rental housing property in Fukuoka, Japan and fully acquired Standard at Columbia, a student accommodation property in the United States of America. The acquisitions will strengthen our income stream, creating sustainable value for our Stapled Securityholders,” added Ms Teo.