Dubai-based Emaar Properties is planning to sell “hotels, clinics and schools” to raise funds, according to the Financial Times.

The newspaper said in a report on Monday that Emaar Properties is seeking to raise up to $1.4 billion through a sale of certain assets, citing unnamed sources.

It said that the company is looking to raise around $700 million through the sale of most of its hotel portfolio, except for “two prime properties”. It added that the sale of clinics and schools across existing communities in Dubai could bring in a further $700 million.

The newspaper said Standard Chartered Bank had been hired to manage the sale process, but added that the bank had declined to comment on the news.

In a statement sent to Zawya, an Emaar Properties spokesperson said: "Emaar regularly considers various financing options as part of our strategy to streamline our business and generate significant value for the company. We will announce details regarding such opportunities as and when they are finalised.”

Emaar Properties is the developer behind Dubai’s iconic Burj Khalifa, along with many other residential and commercial developments in the United Arab Emirates and other countries. The company recorded a 5.7 billion United Arab Emirates dirhams ($1.55 billion) profit last year – up 5.3 percent on the 5.4 billion dirham profit earned in 2016.  

In the first quarter of 2018, the company reported an 8.4 percent increase in its net profit to 1.5 billion dirhams, but its property sales dropped to 3.9 billion dirhams during the quarter, compared to 6 billion dirhams in the same period last year. The company’s shares closed 2 percent higher at 5.17 dirhams on Monday, but remain 21.3 percent lower in the year to date.

(Reporting by Michael Fahy and Yasmine Saleh; Writing by Yasmine Saleh; Editing by Michael Fahy)

(yasmine.saleh@thomsonreuters.com)

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