With Sufficient Cash Flow, Proposed a Final Dividend of HK2.29 Cents
Everbright Grand China Assets Limited (stock code: 03699), a subsidiary of China Everbright Group, principally engaged in the businesses of property leasing, property management and sales of properties held for sale, announced its annual results ended 31 December 2020 (“Reporting Period”).
Dearing the reporting period, the Group’s revenue amounted to approximately RMB51.7 million, which represented a decrease of approximately RMB19.6 million as compared to last year, mainly due to the absence of revenue generated from sales of the residential properties. Profit attributable to equity shareholders of the Company was approximately RMB34.0 million, which represented a decline of approximately 8.8% as compared to the last year. The decrease in profit was mainly caused by the net effect of the decrease in valuation gains on investment properties, the increase in administrative expenses due to recognition of costs in relation to preparatory works for the acquisition of properties in the United Kingdom (“U.K.”) and the increase in other income, net. The basic earnings per share was approximately RMB0.08. The Board has proposed to pay a final dividend of RMB1.92 cents (equivalent to HK2.29 cents) per share for the year ended 31 December 2020.
Property Leasing
The Group’s leasing properties are located in Chengdu, Sichuan province and Kunming, Yunnan province in the PRC. At 31 December 2020, the property portfolio comprises three commercial buildings, namely Everbright Financial Center, part of Everbright International Mansion and Ming Chang Building, with a total gross floor area (“GFA”) of approximately 89,507 (2019: 88,529) square meter (“sq.m.”). The Group’s residential properties, namely Dufu Garden, with GFA of approximately 1,319 sq.m., were disposed during the year.
Property Management Service
In order to maximize the value of the Group’s properties, the Group has a professional property management team to provide property management services for its properties, namely, Everbright Financial Center and Everbright International Mansion. Revenue from the Group’s property management services was approximately RMB15.0 million for the year ended 31 December 2020. During the year, the decrease in revenue from property management services was due to the rise in vacancy rate resulting from the expiration of tenancy agreements of individual tenants. Total GFA under the management was approximately 70,498 sq.m., an increase of 1.9% as compared with last year.
Investment Properties
The investment properties mainly consist of land and/or buildings which are owned or held under leasehold interest to earn rental income and/or for capital appreciation. As at 31 December 2020, the fair value of the investment properties was RMB933.3 million. The valuation gain on investment properties for the year ended 31 December 2020 amounted to approximately RMB17.2 million, representing a decrease of approximately RMB9.2 million as compared with last year. The decrease indicates the slow down of property market in the PRC.
Prospects
Looking ahead to 2021, the world economic outlook still depends highly on the situation and changes of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has caused permanent damage to the global economy, leading to further aggravation of long-term problems, and the withdrawal of expansionary policies will also bring uncertainty to the economic recovery. At present, developed economies have begun to vaccinate in a large scale, but in view of the difficulty of obtaining vaccines in emerging economies other than China, it is expected that the recovery process of emerging economies other than China will be slower than that of developed economies. Although the alleviation of pandemic is conducive to economic recovery, the global economy continues to face severe challenges in many areas such as public health, debt management, budget policies, central bank operation and structural reform.
With the recovery of economic activities in China, the demand for real estate purchases and property management services has gradually picked up. The unexpected epidemic has not slowed down the development of the property management industry. In early 2021, ten departments including the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the Notice on Strengthening and Improving Residential Property Management, which encourages property management companies to use technologies such as the Internet of Things and cloud computing to build smart property management service platform, and encourages property management companies to extend to areas such as elderly care, childcare and courier pick-up and delivery. Some research indicates that improving the profitability of individual project is the heart of the policy. Thanks to favorable policies, 2021 will remain as a meaningful year for the development of property management industry, and the market size of property management industry is projected to expand to RMB2,408 billion in 3 to 5 years. At the same time, hopefully the benefits brought by technology services and value-added services will be prominent, and the revenue of property management companies is expected to grow significantly.
The epidemic has not only made the public aware of the importance of property management service, but also led the capital market to rediscover the value of property management service. The property management industry is entering a new stage of development with a new look. In 2020, the Group worked hard on the front line of anti-epidemic, flexibly adjusted its commercial leasing strategy, minimized the risk of immediate rent termination, and safeguarded the long-term interests of tenants to tide over difficult times, as well as reduced rents and exempted and / or waived rent for some customers with difficulties. The Group maintained a positive brand image and welcomed new customers to settle in, which expanded the source of continuous income. Meanwhile, the property capital market was unprecedentedly hot during the year, listed property service companies were given higher valuations, and capital values continued to be reshaped.
Looking forward, as China’s economy continues to recover and the stimulus measures introduced during the year continues to be effective, the momentum of economic growth is expected to carry on. The Group will keep up with its large-scale expansion efforts, focus on effective scale growth, actively explore new revenue growth points for diversified operations, deepen the use of high-tech means to optimize management and services, and compete on the golden track of property management. Meanwhile, the Group has entered into the new framework agreement with China Everbright Group Limited and the long-term cooperation between both parties will promote the continuous growth of the leasing business. Benefiting from the recognition of the “Everbright” brand, the Group will strengthen its bargaining power and win the trust of the counterparty, which will help improve the inherent ability to expand business and achieve sustainable growth. The Group has sufficient resources in terms of capital and capability to capture opportunities of the Company and overcome challenges, and is committed to protecting the long-term interests of the shareholders (the “Shareholders”) as a whole.
About Everbright Grand China Assets Limited
Everbright Grand China Assets Limited, a subsidiary of China Everbright Group, principally engaged in the businesses of property leasing, property management and sales of properties held for sale, owns, leases and manages properties located in Chengdu, Sichuan province, and also owns and leases a property located in Kunming, Yunnan province. The properties are located in the city centers of Chengdu and Kunming, the key cities of western China. The property portfolio comprised three commercial properties, namely Everbright Financial Center, part of Everbright International Mansion and Ming Chang Building, and residential properties, namely part of Dufu Garden.
For further details regarding to Everbright Grand China Assets Limited, please visit its website at http://ebgca.com.hk/.
Issued by Porda Havas International Finance Communications Group for and on behalf of Everbright Grand China Assets Limited. For further information, please contact:
Kelly Fung Tel: +852 3150 6763 Email: kelly.fung@pordahavas.com
Ivy Chen Tel: +852 3120 6522 Email: i.chen@pordahavas.com
Email: ebgca.hk@pordahavas.com