Centurion shares jump more than 5% as group anticipates ‘significant increase’ in H1 profit

[SINGAPORE] Shares of property management company Centurion Corporation surged as much as 5 per cent on Monday (Jul 14), after it lifted the trading halt it called that morning.

The group said on Monday that it expects to report a significant increase in the profits arising from fair value gains on Centurion’s investment properties, compared to the valuations on its books as at Dec 31, 2024, based on a preliminary assessment of the group’s unaudited consolidated management accounts for the half year ended June.

It also announced that it entered into agreements for the proposed listing of its new real estate investment trust (Reit) – named Centurion Accommodation Reit – to be listed on the mainboard of the Singapore Exchange (SGX).

As at 1.03 pm, its shares jumped around 4 per cent or S$0.07 to S$1.83, and subsequently 5.1 per cent or S$0.09 to S$1.85 at 1.27 pm. By 2.41 pm, it eased to S$1.82, still up 3.4 per cent or S$0.06, after more than 1.1 million securities were transacted.

Centurion Accommodation Reit will cover assets in the purpose-built worker accommodation (PBWA), purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA), and other long-stay lodging segments globally, excluding Malaysia.

The proposed initial public offering will include 14 assets at launch, consisting of five PBWA properties in Singapore, eight PBSA properties in the UK and one PBSA property in Australia. Following the completion of a deferred acquisition of the Epiisod Macquarie Park development in Sydney, the enlarged portfolio will comprise 15 assets with a total of 27,602 beds.

The agreed property value for the initial portfolio stands at more than S$1.8 billion, rising to around S$2.1 billion upon the completion of the Sydney asset, said the company on Monday.

The manager of the Reit will be Centurion Asset Management, a wholly owned unit of Centurion Corp, while Perpetual (Asia) will serve as trustee.