Aberdeen funds differ on Mitsubishi Estate outlook
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The £200.8m Aberdeen Asia Pacific and Japan fund has sold its holding in Mitsubishi Estate after failing to see the fruits of the property developer’s expansion plans.
But another Aberdeen portfolio has held onto the stock after noting that the Japanese corporation is working to enter the Chinese market.
Mitsubishi Estate is one of Japan’s largest property developers and is active in Japan, the UK, the US and across Asia. The company owns the Yokohama Landmark Tower, Japan’s tallest building, as well as parts of the Rockefeller Center in New York and a number of sites in the City of London.
According to its latest factsheet, the Aberdeen Asia Pacific and Japan fund – which is managed by the Aberdeen Asian equities team – sold Mitsubishi Estate in December because “expansion efforts have disappointed over the years, despite its clutch of decent core assets”.
The proceeds of the disposal were used to introduce Singapore-based conglomerate Keppel Corporation into the portfolio. The managers note that Keppel has “a growing pipeline of business in its key offshore and marine division”.
However, the £266.4m Aberdeen Japan Growth fund – which is run by the asset manager’s Japanese equities team – still features Mitsubishi Estate in its portfolio, despite recently trimming its position to take profit from its relative outperformance.
Highlighting the company’s recent activity, the fund’s factsheet says: “Mitsubishi Estate is entering into the Chinese residential market through two joint ventures.”
Mitsubishi Estate opened its Shanghai Representative Office in China during April 2011, saying it hopes to capitalise on the country’s strong economic growth. The developer also plans to open an outlet mall in Shenyang in 2012.
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