Ayala Land sells stake in Alabang Town Center for P13.5B

Ayala Land Inc. is unloading its stake in Alabang Town Center (ATC), selling its ownership in the iconic southern Metro Manila shopping destination to its joint venture partner, the Madrigal group.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) on Tuesday, Ayala Land announced it executed a share purchase deal for the sale of its 50% ownership in Alabang Commercial Center Corp, the entity that operates ATC, for P13.5 billion.

The property developer said the transaction would allow the company to recognize gains from the sale and monetize its stake in ATC.

Proceeds from the share sale will “fuel growth in our leasing portfolio and provide our stakeholders with return of capital.”

In particular, the proceeds will bankroll Ayala Land’s leasing pipeline, which includes nearly 700,000 square meters of new gross leasable area (GLA) in the next five years.

In a separate news release, Ayala Land said the move is a “deliberate execution” of its strategy of “a disciplined approach of developing assets, stabilizing their operations, and monetizing them at an optimal valuation to aggressively fund future growth and enhance shareholder returns.”

"Our strategy is focused on a dynamic cycle of value creation. We build, we stabilize, and we unlock value at the right time to fuel our next wave of innovation," said Meean Dy, president and CEO of Ayala Land.

"This transaction is a prime example of that strategy in action. We are monetizing a legacy asset at peak valuation to accelerate the rollout of our expansive pipeline of commercial and retail spaces, which will define the Ayala brand of development for the next decade,” said Dy.

Ayala Land said it reaffirms its deep commitment to southern Metro Manila, “a region defined by our large-scale, master-planned Estates such as Arca South, Vermosa, and Evo City.”

In the Alabang area, the property developer said it continues to serve the local community with ongoing developments like its 6.6-hectare Cerca Estate. — BAP, GMA Integrated News