NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust releases fourth quarter and year-end results

TORONTO, March 5, 2014 /CNW/ - NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (the "REIT") (TSX: NWH.UN), Canada's largest non-government owner and manager of medical office buildings and healthcare real estate, today announced its results for the three months and year ended December 31, 2013.

Highlights of the Quarter:

• AFFO per unit for the quarter was $0.22, consistent with the previous quarter and up $0.01 from the comparable prior year quarter.
• FFO per unit for the quarter was $0.26, consistent with the previous quarter and comparable prior year quarter.
• Occupancy improved relative to the prior year, although, due to a couple of large tenant move-outs which had been expected, occupancy declined slightly to 91.3% from 92.0% in the previous quarter.
• During the quarter the REIT renegotiated its $50 million Revolving Credit Facility, extending the maturity date to March 25, 2016 (previously March 25, 2014) and lowering the borrowing rates. The REIT also added a $5 million revolving letter of credit facility.
• In November, the REIT refinanced its Glenmore Professional Centre variable rate mortgage with a $50 million fixed rate mortgage, at 3.57% for a 5 year term, resulting in net proceeds to the REIT of approximately $11.4 million. The REIT also fully repaid a $13 million variable rate financing secured by its Springbank Medical Centre property. The transactions reduced the REIT's exposure to variable interest rates and provided an attractive longer term fixed interest rate.
• The REIT paid distributions of $0.06667 per unit on October 15, 2013, November 15, 2013 and December 13, 2013 consistent with its annualized target of $0.80 cents per unit.

Peter Riggin, CEO, commented that "During the year we progressed on our key strategic priorities, as we improved our financial and operating performance, expanded and improved our property portfolio, and strengthened our mix of primarily healthcare, government and institutional tenants. We have also been proactive in enhancing our financial position for 2014 and beyond by refinancing at lower fixed interest rates, improving our liquidity, extending our average loan term to maturity, reducing our exposure to rising interest rates, and extending our credit facility until 2016."

Selected Financial Information:

(unaudited)	Three Months Ended		Three Months Ended
($000's, except unit and per unit amounts)	December 31, 2013		December 31, 2012
Revenue	38,425		36,704
Net Operating Income	20,741		20,075
Funds from Operations ("FFO")	11,854		11,651
Adjusted Funds from Operations ("AFFO")^(1)	10,042		9,664
Debt to Gross Book Value	53.1%		51.6%
Per unit data
FFO	$0.26		$0.26
AFFO	$0.22		$0.21
Distributions	$0.20		$0.20
AFFO Payout ratio	92%		94%

⁽¹⁾ AFFO amounts are calculated utilizing leasing and capital reserves of 4.5% of revenue.

Subsequent Events:

• Subsequent to the year end the REIT repaid two maturing mortgages - $5.5 million at 5.89% and $7.7 million at 6.19%. One of the properties was refinanced with a $13 million mortgage at 3.31% for 5 years and the other remains free and clear.
• Subsequent to year end, the REIT entered into an agreement to sell a property in London, Ontario (Wharncliffe Health Centre).  The property is designated by the REIT as a non-core asset and it is being sold to a user group. The sale is expected to close in the first half of 2014 and generate net proceeds of approximately $3.3 million.
• The REIT declared distributions of $0.06667 per unit to Unitholders of record as at January 31, 2014 and February 28, 2014.

Some financial measures used in this press release, such as FFO and AFFO, are used by the real estate industry to measure and compare the operating performance of real estate companies, but they do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS. As such, they are unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other real estate companies.  These non-IFRS measures are more fully defined and discussed in the REIT's management discussion and analysis (the "MD&A") for the fourth quarter of 2013, which is available on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.  Also on SEDAR are the financial statements of the REIT for the year ended December 31, 2013.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements with respect to the REIT, its operations, strategy, financial performance and condition.  These statements generally can be identified by use of forward-looking words such as "may", "will", "expect", "estimate", "anticipate", "intends", "believe", or "continue" or the negative thereof or similar variations.  The REIT's actual results and performance discussed herein could differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements.  Such statements are qualified in their entirety by the inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future expectations, including that the transactions contemplated herein are completed.  Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations include, among other things, general economic and market factors, competition, changes in government regulations and the factors described under "Risks and Uncertainties" in the REIT's Annual Information Form and the risks and uncertainties set out in the MD&A which are available on www.sedar.com.  These cautionary statements qualify all forward-looking statements attributable to the REIT and persons acting on its behalf.  Unless otherwise stated, all forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release, and, except as expressly required by applicable law, the REIT assumes no obligation to update such statements.

The REIT invites you to participate in its conference call with senior management to discuss our fourth quarter 2013 results on Thursday, March 6, 2014 at 9:00 a.m. (Eastern).

The conference call can be accessed by dialing [phone] or 1-800-820-0231. The conference ID is 8027883.

Audio replay is available until March 12, 2014 by dialing 647-436-0148 or 1-888-203-1112. The passcode is 8027883.

Following the call, the webcast can be accessed from the "Investor Relations" page, under "Webcasts & Presentations", of the REIT's web site at www.nwhp.ca, and will be archived for 30 days.

About NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust
NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust is an unincorporated, open-ended real estate investment trust established under the laws of the Province of Ontario. The REIT holds a portfolio of 78 income-producing properties, with a focus on medical office buildings and healthcare real estate, comprising approximately 4.7 million square feet of gross leasable area located in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Québec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

 

 

SOURCE: NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust

Ernie Spraggs, CFO, [phone], or www.nwhp.ca