CAPREIT Announces Another Strong Quarter in Q2 2012 and a 3.7% Increase in Monthly Cash Distributions; to $1.12 on an Annualized Basis
Acquisitions and Strong Operating Performance Contribute to Solid NFFO Growth
(firmenpresse) - TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 08/08/12 -- Canadian Apartment Properties Real Estate Investment Trust ("CAPREIT") (TSX: CAR.UN) announced today strong operating and financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2012.
"So far this year we have acquired 5,594 residential suites and land lease sites, significantly outpacing last year's portfolio growth and our target of purchasing between 1,500 and 2,000 suites per year," commented Thomas Schwartz, President and CEO. "The strong and accretive contribution these acquisitions will make to our results, combined with our solid organic growth in same property NOI, should result in another year of record operating and financial performance in 2012."
"We are also very pleased to announce that distributions would increase by 3.7% to $0.093 per Unit ($1.120 on an annualized basis) effective for the August 2012 distribution payable on September 17, 2012. This increase is a reflection of our continuing strong growth and operating performance, and our highly positive long-term outlook," Mr. Schwartz added.
PORTFOLIO OPERATING RESULTS
Operating Revenues
For the three and six months ended June 30, 2012, total operating revenues increased by 8.7% and 9.5%, respectively, compared to the same periods last year primarily due to the contribution from acquisitions, higher rent guideline increases, increased average monthly rents in the residential suite portfolio, and continuing strong occupancies. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2012, ancillary revenues, including parking, laundry and antenna income, rose by 3.1% and 2.1%, respectively, compared to the same periods last year, as Management continued its focus on maximizing the revenue potential of its property portfolio.
CAPREIT's annualized net rental revenue run-rate based on the average monthly rents in place on CAPREIT's share of residential suites and sites as at June 30, 2012 increased to $411.1 million, up 19.9% from $342.8 million as of June 30, 2011 primarily due to acquisitions completed within the past twelve months. Net rental revenue for the twelve months ended June 30, 2012 was $356.0 million (2011 - $327.6 million).
Average monthly rents decreased slightly by 2.2% as at June 30, 2012 compared to the same period last year due to the acquisition of MHC land lease sites in certain lower rent geographic regions, while occupancy remained at nearly full levels at 98.4% due to ongoing successful sales and marketing strategies and continued strength in the residential rental sector in the majority of CAPREIT's regional markets.
The higher rate of growth in average monthly rents on lease renewals during the periods is primarily due to the higher guideline increases for 2012 (Ontario - 3.1%, British Columbia - 4.3%), which compares more favourably to the permitted guideline increases in 2011 (Ontario - 0.7%, British Columbia - 2.3%) and above guideline increases ("AGI") applied. Management continues to pursue applications for AGIs where it believes increases are supported by market conditions above the annual guideline to raise average monthly rents on lease renewals. In July 2011 Ontario announced that the rent control guideline for the Province in 2013 would be 2.5%.
Operating Expenses
Operating expenses as a percentage of revenues decreased for the three months and six months ended June 30, 2012 to 40.9% from 41.1% and 42.8% from 43.5% respectively, for the same periods last year. The improvement is primarily due to: (i) the diversification of the portfolio into regions with lower taxation rates, (ii) lower utility costs, and (iii) successful energy-saving initiatives and enhanced procurement strategies.
Net Operating Income
In the second quarter of 2012, NOI improved by $4.7 million or 9.1%, and the NOI margin increased to 59.1% from 58.9% for the same period last year. For the first six months of 2012, NOI increased by $10.9 million or 11.1%, and the NOI margin improved to 57.2% from 56.5% for the same period last year. The significant improvements in NOI were primarily the result of acquisitions completed in the last 12 month period and higher operating revenues.
For the three and six months ended June 30, 2012, operating revenues for stabilized suites and sites increased 2.2% and 2.0%, respectively, and operating expenses increased 1.4% and decreased 0.8%, respectively, compared to the same periods last year. For the three and six months ended June 30 2012, stabilized NOI increased by a significant 2.7% and 4.1%, respectively, compared to the same periods last year.
NON-IFRS FINANCIAL MEASURES
Normalized Funds From Operations
NFFO is not a financial measure determined by IFRS, and is calculated by excluding from FFO the effects of certain non-recurring items, including changes in fair value of hedging instruments, amortization of losses on certain hedging instruments, and losses incurred on the amendment of natural gas contracts. NFFO, increased by 16.7% and 19.7% for the three and six months ended June 30, 2012, respectively, compared to the same periods last year. The increase was primarily due to the contribution from acquisitions, and higher operating revenues, resulting from Management's sales and marketing programs.
For the six months ended June 30, 2012, basic NFFO per Unit increased by 5.0% compared to the same period last year despite the approximate 14% increase in the weighted average number of Units outstanding. For the three months ended June 30, 2012, basic NFFO per Unit increased by 0.3% compared to the same period last year due primarily to the increase in NFFO, despite the approximate 16% increase in the weighted average number of Units outstanding. Management expects FFO and NFFO per Unit, and the related payout ratios, to improve in the medium term as a result of the full NOI contribution from recent acquisitions.
Comparing distributions declared to NFFO, the NFFO payout ratios for the three months ended June 30, 2012 was 78.8% compared to 78.1% for the same period last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2012, NFFO payout ratio improved to 81.0% compared to 84.7% for the same period last year. The effective NFFO payout ratio, which compares NFFO to net distributions paid, improved for the three and six months ended June 30, 2012, to 60.5% and 61.7%, respectively, from 60.2% and 65.8% for the same periods last year primarily due to higher NFFO during the current year and by higher participation in distributions reinvested. Management believes NFFO will be sufficient to fund CAPREIT's distributions on an annualized basis.
LIQUIDITY AND LEVERAGE
Financial Strength
Management believes CAPREIT's strong balance sheet and liquidity position will enable it to continue to take advantage of acquisition and property capital investment opportunities over the long term.
CAPREIT is achieving its financing goals as demonstrated by the following key indicators:
Property Capital Investment Plan
During the first six months of 2012 CAPREIT made property capital investments of $40.4 million as compared to $36.8 million for the same period last year.
Property capital investments include suite improvements, common areas and equipment, which generally tend to increase NOI more quickly. CAPREIT continues to invest in energy-saving initiatives, including boilers, energy-efficient lighting systems, and water-saving programs, which permit CAPREIT to mitigate potentially higher increases in utility and R&M costs and significantly improve overall portfolio NOI.
Monthly Cash Distribution Increase
The Board of Trustees also announced today that cash distributions would increase by 3.7% to $0.093 per Unit ($1.120 on an annualized basis) effective for the August distribution payable on September 17, 2012 to Unitholders on record as at August 31, 2012.
Additional Information
More detailed information and analysis is included in CAPREIT's unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements and MD&A for the three and six months ended June 30, 2012, which have been filed on SEDAR and can be viewed at under CAPREIT's profile or on CAPREIT's website on the investor relations page at .
Conference Call
A conference call hosted by Thomas Schwartz, President and CEO and Scott Cryer, Chief Financial Officer, will be held Thursday, August 9, 2012 at 10.00 am EST. The telephone numbers for the conference call are: Local/International: (416) 340-2218, North American Toll Free: (877) 240-9772.
A slide presentation to accompany Management's comments during the conference call will be available one hour and a half prior to the conference call. To view the slides, access the CAPREIT website at , click on "Investor Relations" and follow the link at the top of the page. Please log on at least 15 minutes before the call commences.
The telephone numbers to listen to the call after it is completed (Instant Replay) are local/international (905) 694-9451 or North American toll free (800) 408-3053. The Passcode for the Instant Replay is 9025605#. The Instant Replay will be available until midnight, August 16, 2012. The call and accompanying slides will also be archived on the CAPREIT website at . For more information about CAPREIT, its business and its investment highlights, please refer to our website at .
About CAPREIT
CAPREIT owns interests in multi-unit residential rental properties, including apartments, townhomes and manufactured home communities located in and near major urban centres across Canada. At June 30, 2012, CAPREIT had owning interests in 36,273 residential units, comprised of 32,908 residential suites and two Ontario manufactured home communities ("MHC") comprising 3,365 land lease sites. For more information about CAPREIT, its business and its investment highlights, please refer to our website at and our public disclosure which can be found under our profile at .
Non-IFRS Financial Measures
CAPREIT prepares and releases unaudited quarterly and audited consolidated annual financial statements prepared in accordance with IFRS. In this and other earnings releases and investor conference calls, as a complement to results provided in accordance with IFRS, CAPREIT also discloses and discusses certain non-IFRS financial measures, including Net Rental Revenue Run-Rate, NOI, FFO, NFFO and applicable per Unit amounts and payout ratios. These non-IFRS measures are further defined and discussed in the MD&A released on August 8, 2012, which should be read in conjunction with this press release. Since Net Rental Revenue Run-Rate, NOI, FFO and NFFO are not determined by IFRS, they may not be comparable to similar measures reported by other issuers. CAPREIT has presented such non-IFRS measures as Management believes these non-IFRS measures are relevant measures of the ability of CAPREIT to earn and distribute cash returns to Unitholders and to evaluate CAPREIT's performance. A reconciliation of Net Income and such non-IFRS measures including Adjusted Funds From Operations ("AFFO") is included in this press release. These non-IFRS measures should not be construed as alternatives to net income (loss) or cash flow from operating activities determined in accordance with IFRS as an indicator of CAPREIT's performance.
Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements contained, or contained in documents incorporated by reference, in this press release constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of securities laws. Forward-looking information may relate to CAPREIT's future outlook and anticipated events or results and may include statements regarding the future financial position, business strategy, budgets, litigation, projected costs, capital investments, financial results, taxes, plans and objectives of or involving CAPREIT. Particularly, statements regarding CAPREIT's future results, performance, achievements, prospects, costs, opportunities and financial outlook, including those relating to acquisition and capital investment strategy and the real estate industry generally, are forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking information can be identified by terms such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "intend", "estimate", "predict", "potential", "continue" or the negative thereof or other similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts.
Forward-looking statements are based on certain factors and assumptions regarding expected growth, results of operations, performance and business prospects and opportunities. In addition, certain specific assumptions were made in preparing forward-looking information, including: that the Canadian economy will generally experience growth, however, may be adversely impacted by the global economy; that inflation will remain low; that interest rates will remain low in the medium term; that Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation ("CMHC") mortgage insurance will continue to be available and that a sufficient number of lenders will participate in the CMHC-insured mortgage program to ensure competitive rates; that conditions within the real estate market, including competition for acquisitions, will become more favourable; that the Canadian capital markets will continue to provide CAPREIT with access to equity and/or debt at reasonable rates; that vacancy rates for CAPREIT properties will be consistent with historical norms; that rental rates will grow at levels similar to the rate of inflation on renewal; that rental rates on turnovers will remain stable; that CAPREIT will effectively manage price pressures relating to its energy usage; and, with respect to CAPREIT's financial outlook regarding capital investments, assumptions respecting projected costs of construction and materials, availability of trades, the cost and availability of financing, CAPREIT's investment priorities, the properties in which investments will be made, the composition of the property portfolio and the projected return on investment in respect of specific capital investments. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on assumptions, Management believes they are reasonable as of the date hereof, there can be no assurance actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements; they may prove to be incorrect.
Forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond CAPREIT's control, that may cause CAPREIT or the industry's actual results, performance, achievements, prospects and opportunities in future periods to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, risks related to: reporting investment properties at fair value, real property ownership, leasehold interests, co-ownerships, investment restrictions, operating risk, energy costs and hedging, environmental matters, insurance, capital investments, indebtedness, interest rate hedging, taxation, harmonization of federal goods and services tax and provincial sales tax, government regulations, controls over financial accounting, legal and regulatory concerns, the nature of units of CAPREIT ("Trust Units") and of CAPREIT's subsidiary, CAPREIT Limited Partnership ("Exchangeable Units") (collectively, the "Units"), unitholder liability, liquidity and price fluctuation of Units, dilution, distributions, participation in CAPREIT's distribution reinvestment plan, potential conflicts of interest, dependence on key personnel, general economic conditions, competition for residents, competition for real property investments, continued growth and risks related to acquisitions. There can be no assurance the expectations of CAPREIT's Management will prove to be correct. These risks and uncertainties are more fully described in regulatory filings, including CAPREIT's Annual Information Form, which can be obtained on SEDAR at , under CAPREIT's profile, as well as under Risks and Uncertainties section of the MD&A released on August 8, 2012. The information in this press release is based on information available to Management as of August 8, 2012. Subject to applicable law, CAPREIT does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information.
SOURCE: Canadian Apartment Properties Real Estate Investment Trust
Contacts:
CAPREIT
Mr. Michael Stein
Chairman
(416) 861-5788
CAPREIT
Mr. Thomas Schwartz
President & CEO
(416) 861-9404
CAPREIT
Mr. Scott Cryer
Chief Financial Officer
(416) 861-5771
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Datum: 08.08.2012 - 15:15 Uhr
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