Aztech Global Disastrous Financial Performance and Share Price Since IPO.

Aztech Global listed in March 2021 at S$1.28 per share. Its current share price has plunged by a jaw dropping -47% to S$0.675 per share since IPO. I can't help but feel a sense of Deja Vu as Aztech reminded me of the many short drama plots about "Reborn" and reliving a previous life. Back in March 8, 2021, I have posted a blog on 5 reasons on why I will be giving this IPO a miss. Given that Aztech just recently announced a -21.2% drop in net profit to S$10.8Mil for 3rd quarter ending September 30, 2025 as well as declining revenue for 3rd quarter with a horrendous -19.9% plunge to S$133.5Mil from S$166.7Mil, the probability of it following the old playbook of privatising at a huge discount seems to be imminent (personal thoughts only).  

Aztech is another classic example of why retail investors should not be too fixated on high dividend (7%-8%) yield without considering other business factors such as type of business and associated risks as well as track record of management team.

Venturing Into BYD (Build Your Dream) EV Stock.

Crypto crashed last Friday (Oct 10, 2025) with US$19 billion in valuation being wiped out and 1.5 million folks, in particularly those heavily on leverage, are being margin called and forced to sell off their coins during the worst part of the storm. While most Crypto later rebounded, many Crypto investors had already lost their fortune through forced liquidation at the worst possible time. The stock market is expected to also dive sharply on this week (Oct 13, 2025 onwards) but surprisingly, the decline seems to be a gradual drop in valuation. Nevertheless, there is still some decline in prices for stocks and I decided to add into a new counter, that is, BYD (HKEX: 01211) from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. 

1. BYD is clear market leader in EV with its own vertical batteries development and sales of EVs

There has been reports online that the new generation solid state batteries are undergoing live testing and maybe giving a range of over 1,200 km in single charge. This is more than 2 times the current range. The current practical range offered by EV is between 400km to 480km which is sufficient for 4-6 days for family usage. The new EV solid state battery from BYD will mean that going forward, drivers will only need to charge their cars once every 2 weeks instead of 1 or 2 times per week. Singaporeans travelling to Malaysia KL or Genting will also be able to complete a back and forth trip without charging their EV. Trial production of BYD EV retrofitted with solid state battery is being planned for 2027 while mass production is targeted for 2030.

So far, BYD, CATL and Toyota seem closest to the completion race of mass production technology of the solid state batteries.

Moreover, since 2024, BYD has surpassed Tesla in terms of EV production and sales. Many countries are also in the midst of phasing out internal combustion engines ("ICE").

BYD Sealion 7 With 480KM Range

2. BYD EV Cars Offer Good Quality and Value

I used to own and drive Japanese cars like Honda and Mazda. Recently, my Mazda car's COE came to an end and I have to look for a new replacement car. For environmental sustainability purpose, I decided to switch from ICE to EV propulsion. After going through many EV brands, I finally settled on BYD. Main reason is cheapest price and the bunch of features thrown in which offers the best value package.

I believe that BYD has its competitive advantage in production due to it producing many of its own components. Also it has been able to attract various international talent like Wolfgang Egger, BYD's Global Design Director. Egger is a renowned automotive designer who previously led design teams at luxury brands such as Alfa Romeo, Audi, and Lamborghini. 

BYD Seal

Parting Thoughts,

Many analysts seems to be projecting 50% or 100% increase in price target (HKD150 to HKD200 +). So, I have decided to start building up a position in BYD. 

Taking a Punt in Keppel DC REIT Rights Issue To Make Small Immediate Profit.

For my thoughts on whether I will be subscribing for this latest rights issue and key application milestone from Keppel DC REIT ("KDC"), please refer to my earlier post. Additionally, have decided to take a punt and make use of Keppel DC REIT ("KDC") rights issue exercise to try to earn some spare cash. The current market price is S$2.40 per unit as at Oct 3, 2025 (Friday) which I think is the peak price for this period. and price will start dropping from this point. Generally, by the time the new units get listed on SGX (Oct 22, 2025), the market price will commence tapering off as some investors will not feel happy with subscribed folks who are getting new KDC units at a discounted S$2.24. So the period from Oct 3, 2025 till Oct 22, 2025 will present an opportunity to maximise making the most money for immediate realisation and usage which I will further elaborate below. In fact, the probability of this one off punt making money is higher than striking the SG Toto's Group 7 prize (striking 3 numbers and winning S$10). 

1. Key Factors to Consider

(a) No major changes in macro-economic outlook or market events causing sudden surge in market prices within this short period;

(b) Able to have the "lobang"(via your stock broker) to get one's hand on the exact same number of excess rights issue as the number of units that one will be selling off immediately so as to maintain the same number of holdings in KDC;

(c) No of units for immediate sell-off should be of sufficient size to make the transactional trading cost (referring to selling cost here as the rights allotment admin fees is just S$2 irrespective of size of the subscription/purchase) worth it.

(d) As alluded to 1(b), if unfortunately unable to get the full 5,000 units of excess rights, then I will re-invest the proceeds into other higher yield SREITs. I believe that KDC current 4% per unit will be easy to beat. 

2. Execution of Plan and Mechanics

On the morning of Oct 6, 2025 (Monday), I have sold off 5,000 units of KDC at S$2.39 per unit for a total of S$11,950 (sold off immediately at S$2.39 bid price as I decided against queueing to sell at S$2.40 per unit).

Subsequently, I have made an excess rights application of 5,000 units of KDC at S$2.24 (totalling S$11,200) on top of my allocated allotment with my stock broker.

3. Mechanics & Targeted Profits

I am targeting for a quick profit realisation of S$750 (S$11,950 less off S$11,200) with the above maneuver by locking in the selling price of S$2.40 per unit as of Oct 6, 2025 morning. 

Parting Thoughts

Overall, I have no interest in increasing my stakes in KDC by too much as it is only yielding 4% and the market price per unit is at a huge premium over its NTA per unit. Market seems to be pricing KDC as a growth stock. Hence I am taking a bet that S$2.40 per unit is the peak market price reached for this rights issuance and to sell off immediately to optimise the profit realisation.

Prime US REIT Short-Changed Existing Unit-Holders With Private Share Placement.

By now, everyone should be aware of the downside of investing in US Commercial REITs listed on SGX. Given the maximum rule of no individual unit-holders can hold more than 9.8% of total units without dismantling with special tax concession granted by Uncle Sam, existing unit-holders will not be able to participate in rights issue. Instead existing unit-holders have to watch their investment get diluted at the worst possible time.

Financial Highlights

Prime US REIT remains in great peril with aggregate leverage level of 46.7% albeit the gradual but slow recovery in US Offices occupancy rate. While Manulife US REIT is in a far worse condition, this gives scant comfort to existing unit-holders of Prime US REIT. The current strategy of suspending bulk of the dividends distribution from Unit-holders to finance CAPEX seems not to be working well as on September 25, 2025, the management of Prime US REIT announced a private placement of 129.2Mil new units to raise approximately US$25Mil at a 10% discount of average market price of US$0.215 per unit. This led to an immediate dip in market price of Prime US REIT to US$0.199 per unit as at Oct 3, 2025. 

Parting Thoughts

Existing loyal retail unit-holders remain adversely short-changed by the management of Prime US REIT with this dilutive move. I hope that the management of Keppel Pacific Oak US REIT does not get inspired by this terrible move while trading at a huge discount to NAV per unit.  

Keppel DC REIT Growing Fast- New Acquisition of Tokyo Data Centre and Preferential Offering.

Wow....great news for folks holding on to Keppel DC REIT ("KDCREIT"). KDCREIT just announced on September 23, 2025 that it will be acquiring a 98.47% stake in a freehold new data centre in Tokyo. This is a newly completed 5 storey data centre in 2025 that comes with a Fortune Global 500 client that has signed on for 15 years and granted an option to renew the lease for another 5 years at the end of the current lease term. 

1. Acquisition Overview

This acquisition is expected to be immediate yield accretive by 2.8% while maintaining a healthy debt leverage of 34.5% post acquisition. With the entry of this hyperscaler tenant, this property is expected to strengthen overall portfolio resilience and also provide even more diversification. This is a wonderful growth opportunity.

2. Method of Financing

The total acquisition cost of the new Tokyo data centre is expected to be S$708.3Mil. It will be funded via a mix of new JPY denominated debts and equity fund raising.

3. Key Details of the Preferential Offerings

The issuance price will be S$2.24 per unit on a 80 for 1000 units allotment ratio. As as September 23, 2025, the last market traded price of KDCREIT is S$2.36 per unit. The offer price is thus at a 5.1% discount to the market price.

4. Timetable of Preferential Offering

For those interested in the rights issue by KDCREIT, please take note of the above timeline so as not to miss the subscription. The last date and time for acceptance of the new units is on October 13, 2025 at 5.30pm (Monday).

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5. Parting Thoughts- Will I subscribe to this Preferential Offering?

Well, this is after all a yield accretive deal so yes, I will be subscribing as long as the market price does not drop below S$2.24 per unit. As of September 23, 2025 morning, KDCREIT market price has increased to S$2.37 per unit after investors begin digesting news of the announcement. 

Record High Car COE Prices in Singapore and Association With S$100 Chicken Rice.

I was watching 1M65 channel by the influential Mr Loo yesterday. Apparently, Mr Loo is in angst over the record high Certificate of Entitlement (“COE”) price as his current car COE is expiring by mid January 2026. Consequently, he lamented that he has no choice but to spend a large sum of money to buy a car which is essential for him as he needs to travel to Malaysia frequently as well as for local business meetings or business appointments. Interestingly, he gave an example of a S$100 chicken rice to elaborate how S$100 is deemed affordable to many local residents but that many will think that it is not value for money as an analogy to his unhappiness over the raging COE prices across the motor vehicle categories.

The Tesla Model Y Now Comes With Cat A Version To Keep It Affordable

1. Car is a always a Luxury Good in Singapore Context

I think that car is always a luxury good….period. From economics perspective, owning a car is one of the most wasteful consumption act in society. If we are using cars like taxis or private hired vehicle which are on the road most of the time during the day, then it will be a just consumption. However, for privately owned cars, the real issue is that most people just drive it to and fro work and that most of the day, the car remains idle thus producing no real benefits.

Furthermore, in Singapore context, the public transport network such as MRT trains, buses as well as public hired vehicles like Grabs and also hailed down taxis are very well developed and convenient.

Given Singapore’s limited land size and growing population, there is unfortunately a limit to the growth in car supply. COE at S$100K will be a norm going forward under the constraint in supply situation.

2. The Chicken Rice Analogy is Flawed

Chicken rice is actually nearer to the spectrum of essential goods rather than luxury goods from economics theory perspective. So there is actually no meaning to compare the current high COE prices to the imaginary scenario of S$100 chicken rice and paining that as an analogy to the high car prices in Singapore.

Moreover, S$100 plate of chicken rice is never affordable in the first place for basic essential meals so not sure why Mr Loo thinks that it is affordable. 

The BYD Sealion 7 Now Also Comes With Cat Version To Beat High COE Price.

Parting Thoughts

If one wants to own a car in Singapore, then one has to accept the fact that one has to pay a heavy price to government coffers for the right to own a car in Singapore for 10 years. Be prepared to fork out S$200K for a new car in Singapore going forward. S$200K is a huge sacrifice towards financial freedom as the opportunity cost at 6% per annum amounted to the loss of <S$12K> of recurring income on a yearly basis.  

Centurion Accommodation REIT IPO- 3 Reasons To Stay Away (Part 2).

Honestly speaking, I think that it is too pre-mature for Centurion to launch their Centurion Accommodation REIT ("CAREIT"). A REIT is supposed to hold investment properties that are stable and has a good historical track record of generating an amount of rental income, so I was very surprised that some of its assets that just came online from development or redevelopment are being pushed directly into CAREIT for a lightning pace listing. For example, there is a student accommodation that is still being developed in UK but will be injected into CAREIT within 6 months after its anticipated IPO date (estimated to be Oct 1, 2025). The management should have waited at least 1 year till end 2026 to allow such newly developed property to be pumped into CAREIT so that it can prove its worth. Then there is also the enigmatic variable called the "Mandai Expanded Capacity" (please see my previous post) that makes the entire prospectus hard to understand due to it being loosely crafted. Seriously, it makes me wonder whether the Centurion management team is facing a dire cash crunch crisis as they seemed desperately in need of cash for working capital and trying so hard to get CAREIT listed on SGX as soon as possible.

1. Investment Property With No Proven Track Record Being Pushed into CAREIT + Weaker Rental Rates across some properties. 

(i) Unstable and concerning lower rental rates for student accommodation?

For dwell Princess Street, dwell Cathedral Campus, dwell Archer House and dwell Hotwells House, there is a reduction in NPI for projected FY2026 and FY2027 relative to FY2024 due to reductions in rental rates. Does this mean that there is a correction in student accommodation rental market or are there issues with the properties? Will this lead to a fall in its other UK properties going forward?

(ii)  Epiisod Macquire Park property in UK still being built but to be pushed into CAREIT upon TOP.

Epiisod Macquarie Park is one of the newer premium student accommodation (PBSA) assets under development by Centurion, and slated to be included in the CAREIT after completion. The problem here is that Centurion should have held on to this property while awaiting it to be more stabilised before injecting it into CAREIT. Instead, it is pushing CAREIT unit-holders to take on the risk of a new property that may not perform as well as expected. 

(iii) 4th block of worker dormitory with 3,696 beds still being developed at Mandai

While this can be termed as an asset enhancement, the fact remains that this is a significant new development in its Mandai property portfolio, and it will need to be filled to match financial projection.

2. Weakness in Financial Strength of CAREIT's Sponsor Centurion.

Unfortunately, despite the fantastic performance in its share price, Centurion Corporation Holdings is still relatively tiny in scale relative to the Big REIT Sponsors in Singapore. Centurion is much smaller compared to heavyweights like Mapletree, CapitaLand, Keppel or Frasers.

Market cap (as of mid-2025) is approximately S$1.1–1.2 billion, versus tens of billions for the mega sponsors.

So in relative terms, Centurion is a mid-cap niche operator and not a “mega-sponsor”. During times of financial crisis of CAREIT, there will always be lingering doubts on the mind of investors on whether Centurion will be able to save its own REIT. There is no free lunch, hence the high distribution yield on offer of around 7.66% to 8.57% in projected FY2026 and FY2027 respectively (based on S$0.88 per share) to entice investors for subscription into CAREIT which reflects the substantial market risk premium. 

3. Workers accommodation is significantly more than student accommodation

This is a huge bugbear for me. Personally, my own view is that student accommodation supporting the education industry is probably the most resilient business out there while worker accommodation industry I thought is rather cyclical in nature that follows the boom and bust of the construction industry. If construction demand slowed down, there is no point in business owner keeping too many workers in the dormitory. I am utterly disappointed that the student accommodation component (even if the sponsor throws in Epiisod Macquire Park) is such a tiny proportion of the entire CAREIT. It is not even 50% of the entire portfolio. My preference would be to wait for a REIT that has 100% holdings in student accommodation.

Only a small fraction is Student Accommodation

Accommodation Industry Is NOT weatherproof

One final thoughts on this point is that since we have just been through COVID, the hard truth is that not even student accommodation industry resilience can save it during times of pandemic but nonetheless, the probability of another pandemic occurring in our lifetime is on the low side based on history.

Parting Thoughts

I am actually lukewarm with regard to my overall feel for this IPO and not particularly excited. With the projected cuts in interest rate and recovery of the REIT market, I think that CAREIT should do fairly well in its IPO given its low leverage ratio of 30% even after targeted acquisition of the newly developed Epiisod student accommodation into its enlarged portfolio- It does gives it additional room for further yield accretive acquisition. Nevertheless, I am still troubled by the weaker financial strength and capabilities of the sponsor during crisis relative to the Singapore government linked sponsors.  

Put it this way, if Mapletree Investments were to list their student accommodation business for IPO, I will definitely be subscribing for it. Summarising, I am going to give this IPO a miss while waiting for a more suitable investment opportunity. 

[P.S: For those interested in CAREIT IPO, note that it opened at 10pm on September 18, 2025 (Thursday) and will close by 12pm on September 23, 2025 (Tuesday). It will commence trading at 2pm on September 25 , 2025 (Thursday).]