APN Property Group (ASX:APD) confirms end-of-year distribution

• Real estate investment management company APN Property Group (APD) told investors today its end-of-year distribution is back on
• The company withdrew its distribution guidance at the end of March as COVID-19 cast uncertainty upon global markets
• Today, APN said things have somewhat-stabilised and it expects to pay shareholders a 1.55 cent distribution at the end of the financial year
• This brings its total distribution payments for the 2020 financial year to 3.15 cents
• The company is still taking on some important cost-saving measures to help offset the impact of the COVID-19 storm
• Shares in APN gained 3.19 per cent today to close worth 48 cents each

Real estate investment management company APN Property Group (APD) told investors today its end-of-year distribution is back on.

At the end of March, as COVID-19 continued to throw uncertainty across global markets, APN withdrew its distribution guidance in light of severe market volatility.

The company has been relatively quiet since then, but today dropped the news that things seem to have stabilised and it will be forking out a 1.55-cent-per-share distribution to shareholders at the end of the year.

Including APN’s interim payout to shareholders, this will bring the company’s full-year distribution to 3.15 cents per share.

For reference, a distribution is similar to a dividend in that it is a payment to shareholders. Dividends are considered a cut of company profits, while distributions are paid before tax and are generally considered part of the company’s equity.

Of course, just because the distribution has been announced does not mean the company is completely out of the clear.

APN said its funds under management (FUM) stood at $2.56 billion at the end of April compared to the $3.07 billion at the end of December 2019.

APN CEO Tim Slattery said market pricing movements were the key factor in the decrease in FUM value.

“APN and its funds entered the current period of uncertainty with strong balance sheets and well-positioned portfolios,” Tim said.

“While our funds have been impacted most significantly by market pricing movements, at an underlying level they continue to be well placed to deliver strong cash income yields for investors, including APN as a material co-investor,” he explained.

To offset the impact of the coronavirus, APN said it has taken on a range of cost-reduction measures including cutting personnel costs.

Still, confirmation of the distribution seemed to please shareholders today, with APN shares gaining 3.19 per cent to close worth 48 cents each.