Shares of doormaker surge as it secures planning permit for student accommodation in Australia

Shares of Singapore doormaker HS Optimus surged on Tuesday (Oct 21), after it secured a permit for a 14-storey purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) in Melbourne, Australia.

HS Optimus was the top-traded counter on the Singapore Exchange as at the midday break, with 107.3 million shares changing hands. Its share price jumped by 50 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.003.

This comes after the company was granted a planning permit for the development of the building.

The approval was granted through its wholly owned subsidiary Ambertree Vic Mel, which partnered development manager Fathom Group.

The current office building, which sits at 23 to 31 Lincoln Square South in Melbourne, is a five-storey refurbished heritage building valued at A$16 million (S$13.5 million), according to HS Optimus’ annual report.

Located at the edge of the city’s central business district, the property is within walking distance of both the University of Melbourne and RMIT University, which have a combined student population exceeding 143,000.

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The planning permit allows for the Lincoln Square South property to have about 9,184 square metres (sq m) of gross floor area on a 906 sq m freehold site, with the approval for 268 PBSA beds. This can be increased to 300 beds, subject to approval.

HS Optimus first ventured into Melbourne in 2014 with the purchase of a seven-storey building from Victoria University, which was subsequently sold in 2016 for A$34.2 million.

Chia Fook Sam, chief operating officer of the company, said that they continued to see strong demand drivers in the PBSA sector.

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For the full year ended Mar 31, HS Optimus reported a net loss of S$2.6 million, widening from a net loss of S$2 million the year before. The revenue for FY2025 was down 6 per cent at S$14.4 million.