Invesco hikes stake in Filinvest Land to 5.11%

Invesco Hong Kong Ltd., a member of global investment management company  Invesco, has raised to 5.11 percent its stake in Gotianun-owned property developer Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI).

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, FLI said  Invesco purchased FLI shares in the stockmarket from Nov. 16, 2007 up to Jan. 18, 2008 at a price ranging from P1.18 to P1.91 per share.

From only 4.28-percent interest in FLI, Invesco’s shareholdings increased to 5.11 percent equivalent to 24.47 billion shares of the local real estate development firm. With $506.6 billion in assets under management (as of Nov. 30, 2007) and offices in 20 countries, Invesco  is dedicated to helping people worldwide build their financial security.  Listed on the New York Stock Exchange, Invesco has a significant presence in the institutional and retail markets across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

In the nine months ending September this year, FLI  posted a net income of   P666 million, up 96 percent from the previous level on the back  higher real estate sales and lease revenues.

Revenues from real estate sales grew 32 percent to P2.3 billion due to the strong take up of projects in Tarlac, Pampanga, Davao and Cebu.

Rental income contributions from Filinvest Supermall and the company’s office buildings, mainly from Northgate Cyberzone which currently has eight  buildings fully leased out to business process outsourcing companies, also boosted FLI’s sales.

FLI expects to sustain its income growth with the launch of new projects which include  One Oasis Ortigas, FLI’s first medium-rise residential project;  West Palms in Palawan,and  La Costanera in Cebu.

In October, Firstsource Building, the latest addition to FLI’s BPO office buildings in the Northgate Cyberzone IT Park in Filinvest Corporate City, was inaugurated, bringing FLI office building portfolio to 108,000 square meters of gross leasable space.

Another four buildings are currently under construction with a gross leasable area of 59,000 square meters, and are slated for completion next year.