has been mandated to manage a AUD500m ($440m) listed property portfolio by a subsidiary of Australian superannuation BT Financial.
The long-only mandate from Westpac subsidiary Advance Asset Management includes a concentrated portfolio of Asia-Pacific, North American and European global real estate securities investing in up to 25% of the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed Index, currently less than 80 stocks.
Advance typically focuses on asset allocation, manager selection and risk management, with its funds built around long-term strategic asset allocations.
John White, managing director and head of Heitmanβs Asia-Pacific public real estate securities group, said: βInvestor demand for real estate continues to grow around the world.
βEven in this period of irregular economic growth, occupier demand is showing improvement, and new construction is still limited in most markets.β
Asset classes such as listed real estate offer a βcompelling return outlookβ, White said, providing investors with an βattractive yield, supported in most cases by stocks that are trading at a discount to their tangible asset backingβ.
He added: βThrough allocating a considerable amount of capital to listed real estate, Advance is making a strategic move to enhance exposure to opportunities from the current and long-term expected market conditions for listed property.β
