United Hampshire REIT: A Closer Look

United Hampshire REIT (UH REIT) remains an attractive prospect for investors, with its latest presentation highlighting several key strengths:

• Anchor Tenant Sales: Walmart’s U.S. comparable sales (excluding fuel) grew by 5.3% year-on-year in Q3 2025, underpinned by broad-based strength across merchandise categories and e-commerce sales, which rose 22%. BJ’s Wholesale Club also reported a 3.8% increase in comparable sales, driven by strong customer traffic, a growing membership base of 7.5 million, and a 30% surge in digitally enabled comparable sales. Meanwhile, Publix Super Markets recorded a 4.9% sales increase, with comparable store sales growing 3.4%.
• Resiliency in Self-Storage and Strip Center Property Values: Valuations in the Strip Center sector have increased by 20% since June 2020, while Self-Storage property values have risen by 40%, both benefiting from post-pandemic remote work trends.
• Portfolio Strength: UH REIT boasts a 97.6% occupancy rate and a weighted average lease expiry (WALE) of 7.9 years, with its top 10 tenants at 9.8 years. The portfolio achieved strong leasing momentum with 11 new and renewal leases spanning 290,886 sq ft.

Currently trading at \$0.475 with a market cap of US\$277.1 million, UH REIT offers a dividend yield of 8.5% and trades at 0.6x price-to-book ratio. Analysts have set a consensus target price of \$0.64, reflecting a 33.3% upside potential. Investors are encouraged to join UH REIT’s upcoming webinar on February 26, 2025, for deeper insights.

Warren Buffett’s Remarkable Year in 2024

Warren Buffett, the legendary CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, had a transformative year in 2024. Here are the highlights:

• Berkshire Hathaway reached a \$1 trillion market value for the first time.
• Buffett sold a significant portion of his favorite stocks, reducing Apple holdings by 67%, Bank of America by 26%, and Capital One. Despite these reductions, Berkshire revealed a near-\$7 billion stake in Chubb and bought almost 4% of Domino’s Pizza.
• Berkshire’s cash pile grew to a record \$325 billion by the end of September, accounting for 27% of its total assets.
• Buffett emphasized a cautious approach toward acquisitions, citing high valuations and limited bargains in the market.
• He also called out “casino-like behavior” in stock markets, taking aim at trading apps like Robinhood.
• Charitable giving continued, with \$55 billion donated over 18 years and a further \$5.3 billion donated in 2024.

Buffett’s strategic moves highlight his focus on long-term value creation and his commitment to philanthropy.

Top SGX-Listed Companies: Performance and Insights

Acquisitions

• Envictus International: Dato Jaya JB Tan acquired 5 million shares at \$0.30, increasing his stake to 28.78%.
• Hiap Hoe Ltd: Teo Ho Beng purchased 500,000 shares at \$0.565, raising his holding to 75.4%.
• Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust: Temasek, via DBS Bank, bought 1.75 million shares at \$1.20, now holding a 57% stake.

Disposals

• ACESian Partners Ltd: Goh Tiow Guan sold 20.6 million shares at \$0.034, reducing his stake to 6.41%.
• IPS Securex: Kelvin Lim disposed of 4.37 million shares at \$0.014, holding 9.39% post-sale.

Share Buybacks

Several companies engaged in share buybacks to enhance shareholder value. Highlights include:

• Singtel: Bought back 2.5 million shares at \$3.08.
• DBS: Acquired 300,000 shares at \$44.30.
• ST Engineering: Repurchased 500,000 shares at \$4.59.

Fund Flow Data

Institutional investors were net buyers, with a net inflow of S\$52.9 million during the week of December 23, 2024. Retail investors, on the other hand, were net sellers with an outflow of S\$73.6 million. Key trends included strong institutional interest in financial services and industrials, while retail investors favored technology and REITs.

Dividend Announcements

Several companies announced dividends and special distributions, providing attractive returns for shareholders. Notable announcements include:

• Frasers Property Ltd: 4.5 cents (final) payable on February 14, 2025.
• Thai Beverage: THB47 cents (final) payable on February 28, 2025.
• LHN Ltd: 1 cent (final) payable on February 21, 2025, and an additional 1 cent (special) payable on May 30, 2025.

What’s Ahead in January and February 2025

Investors should keep an eye on upcoming earnings announcements and events:

• January 15: Qianhu results (after market).
• January 22: OUE REIT results (after market).
• February 3: Lendlease Global (after market).
• February 5: Keppel Ltd (before market).

SGX Watch-Listed Companies

As of January 2025, 32 companies remain under SGX’s watch list, including recent additions such as:

• Addvalue Technologies: Entered the watch list on December 5, 2023.
• Renaissance United: Added on December 5, 2023.
• Global Invacom Group: Joined on June 5, 2024.

These companies are monitored for compliance with SGX listing requirements and may face delisting if performance does not improve.