Home Consortium announced today that in light of the uncertainties surrounding the social and economic impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and associated actions taken by the government to manage its spread, it is withdrawing its FY20 earnings, distribution and occupancy guidance which was provided on 26 February 2020.
Home Consortium states that they are well capitalised with no debt maturities until FY23 and $146 million in liquidity through cash and undrawn bank facilities and the ability to fully fund its future commitments.
Home Consortium has however slowed the roll-out of the Richlands (QLD) development project and all pad developments until the operating environment stabilises. The development projects at Cairns (QLD) and Coffs Harbour (NSW) are still expected to complete in FY21 as previously announced.
The group confirmed that customer number for the period 1 January 2020 to 22 March 20201 has been resilient as evidenced by very positive foot traffic growth during this period. Home Consortium expect to be less impacted than traditional centres due to their portfolio which offers customers hyper-convenience and exposure to essential daily needs and services tenants, including supermarkets, pharmacies, medical centres, radiology, convenience stores, pet stores and veterinary services, particularly since over 90% of current tenants are national retailers and service providers.
Mr David Di Pilla, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman said, “We have been proactive in ensuring the safety and well-being of our employees, retailers, visitors and the broader community during this challenging time. While fully understanding our corporate responsibility to all our stakeholders, we continue to believe in our hyper-convenience centre model and will endeavour to deliver long-term value to our shareholders. As an Australian organisation we support, and will continue to support, all the measures being taken by the Federal and State governments across Australia at this time.
Related Articles
