- October was a volatile month with most global markets falling between -3% and -7% in response to rising global cases of Covid-19 and uncertainty around the US election. Australian listed property also posted a negative return in October due to concerns about the lasting impact of the extended Melbourne lock-down.
- The Atlas High Income Property Fund delivered a flat return in October. Over the month, we were pleased to see several trusts in the portfolio providing trading updates that revealed high rates of rent collection and that unpaid invoices from the period March to June were also now being received.
- Additionally, in October, we saw several significant asset sales by large listed property trusts, mainly to foreign institutions, that were priced either at book value or at a premium to book value. As the share prices of the vendors currently trade at discounts between 20-30% to their net tangible assets, we see scope for the sector to be re-rated upwards, especially if some of these trusts trading at a discount receive takeover offers.
Go to Monthly Newsletters for a more detailed discussion of the listed property market and the fund’s strategy going into 2021.