Dividend Is King

Changes to Portfolio  Recently, I have just divested my shares of CapitaLand in my portfolio. I purchased $2600 worth of CapitaLand shares at $2.9 per share before their ex-dividend date in July and sold them in December at $3.25 per share. I gained about 15% ($400), including both capital gains and dividends, from this trade which I am extremely satisfied with. This has been quite a disappointing year for Singapore REITs but 2020 Q3/Q4 has already to begun to show signs of improvement and here's hoping 2021 would be a much smoother year for everyone.  Future Plans   I have around $40k in REITs which I would not touch and just receive dividends passively for next year. On the other hand, I currently have 9,500 shares of Mapletree Industrial Trust at $2.99 per share which I am looking to sell off at around $3.25-$3.3. This would give me a return of around 8.6% - 10.3%. Also, I have another 500 shares of Ascendas REIT at $3.03 per share that I am looking to sell off at $3.3 as well.

Singapore's stock market for blue-chip stocks such as banks and REITs have almost returned to all-time lows in March recently. This fall in share price can be attributed to two things mainly: the poor performance of the US market recently due to the presidential election creating uncertainty among investors and the increase in COVID-19 (Secon/Third-wave) cases in Europe and the United States. As a result, many blue-chip REITs and banks in Singapore's stock market share prices have plummeted as well due to the general negative market sentiment. However, nothing fundamentally significant has changed with these stocks. This means that these blue-chip REITs business models are still extremely stable and relatively low risk. This creates many opportunities for investors to acquire these blue-chip REITs at a massive discount at their current prices. Here are my top 3 REITs that are on huge discounts currently.  1. CapitaMall Trust (Blue-Chip) CapitaMall Trust is currently trading at

Lendlease REIT is Singapore's newest commercial REIT that was listed on 2nd October 2019. Its initial portfolio comprises a leasehold interest in 313 @ somerset and a freehold interest in Sky Complex, which comprises three office buildings located in Milan. Lendlease REIT is strongly sponsored by the Lendlease Group which is a leading international property and infrastructure group with operations in Australia, Asia, Europe, and the Americas and is also listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. Lendlease REIT quickly gained popularity among Singapore investors with a current market capitalization of $800 million at its current share price of $0.67. Here are 3 things you should know about Singapore's latest commercial REIT.  Prudent Capital Management Lendlease REIT has a current debt gearing ratio of 35.1% as of 30 June 2020 and is well within my appropriate range of <40%. REITs often use debt as leverage to acquire more properties and investments to expand their portfol

ESR-REIT is Singapore's 4th largest industrial REIT with a market capitalization of $1.3 billion and total assets worth $3.1 billion. It focuses on income-producing industrial properties islandwide in Singapore.  The properties are in the following business sectors: Business Park, High-Specs Industrial, Logistics/Warehouse, and General Industrial, and are located close to major transportation hubs and key industrial zones island-wide. ESR-REIT is one of Singapore's lesser-known industrial REITs compared to the top 3 Singapore industrial REITs (Ascendas, Mapletree Industrial Trust, Mapletree Logistics Trust). The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed that industrial REITs are much more resilient than retail/hospitality REITs in tough economic times. Moreover, the emergence of e-commerce and the boom of online shopping in the 21st century has gradually increased the demand for industrial/logistics properties while decreasing the demand for retail properties. Here are 3 things you should

SGX (S68) is one of Singapore's oldest blue-chip dividend stocks in the Singapore market. SGX is Asia's most international and connected exchange with about 40% of listed companies and over 80% of listed bonds originating outside Singapore. Singapore has always had a reputation for being one of Asia's most popular and successful financial hubs with an international stock market. Naturally, SGX has performed fairly well for itself over the past years. Their share price increased from $7.5 to a high of $10 over the past 5 years before decreasing to $9.1 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There have been a few news articles recently about SGX's incredible performance and how it is a good blue-chip dividend stock to own. How exactly did SGX perform in 2020?   Record High Revenue in 2020. SGX's revenue for FY2020 hit a record high of $1.05 billion which is a significant increase from its FY2019 revenue of $910 million. They achieved double-digit growths across all business un

Keppel REIT is one of Asia's leading commercial REITs with properties in prime locations in pan-Asia and it is Singapore's 2nd largest commercial REIT, just behind Capitaland Commercial Trust. Keppel REIT was first listed in 2006 with only $600 million worth of assets and has slowly increased its portfolio size over the years through various acquisitions and divestments to a current worth of $7.9 billion. Keppel REIT is extremely popular among dividend investors in Singapore and it is known for being a high-quality REIT with sustainable dividends. Also, Keppel REIT is strongly sponsored by Keppel Land Limited, one of Asia's largest property companies with a total asset valued at $14.2 billion. A strong sponsor such as Keppel Land Limited provides assurance to investors and provides financial stability to Keppel REIT. Keppel REIT's share price has decreased slightly from $1.25 to the current share price of $1.10 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is one of the few Singapor

Mapletree Commercial Trust (MCT) is Singapore's largest mixed REIT with a market capitalization of $6.5 billion at its current share price of $1.95. MCT has a diversified portfolio of properties in Singapore that are used for both retail and commercial purposes. MCT is sponsored by Mapletree which is a leading real estate development, investment, capital, and property management company in Singapore. MCT's popularity has increased among investors over the recent years with its share price soaring from around $1.40 in 2016 to a high of $2.45 in Jan 2020. Its share price has since decreased by 20% to $1.95 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. MCT's excellent track record over the years has propelled it to become one of Singapore's hot retail/commercial REITs among dividend investors. What exactly makes MCT such a popular REIT? Consistently Increasing Dividends MCT has a 10-year consistent dividend history and has been paying out dividends to shareholders without fail since 2011.