Australia real estate investment trusts (AREITs), as represented by the ASX 200 REITs index, returned 1.0% for the month of July 2018, marginally underperforming the S&P/ASX 200, which returned 1.4% over the same period.
Over the 12 months to July 2018, ASX 200 REITs posted a total return of 14.2% versus 14.6% for the broader Australian share market. The main drivers of performance came from the continuing increase in asset values and M&A activity in the sector.
Sector Performance
Table 1 below shows the performance of the AREIT sector for various periods ending 31 July 2018.
Table 1
Long-term performance from AREITs continues to be strong at 12.4% for the 5 years ended 31 July 2018. Total returns over the previous 3 months and 6 months were a respectable 6.3% and 7.5%.
Table 2 below shows the income performance of AREITs for various periods ending 31 July 2018.
Table 2