KUALA LUMPUR (April 20): Axis Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) has announced the first interim income distribution of 4.10 sen per unit or a total of RM22.5 million for the first quarter ended March 31 (1QFY2015).

The amount distributed is equivalent to 99.1% of the Axis REIT’s total income available for distribution for the quarter.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia today, Axis REIT announced it had posted a 4% increase in its net profit for 1QFY2015 to RM23.3 million, from RM22.4 million a year ago.

Revenue meanwhile grew 14% to RM40.6 million, from RM35.6 million previously.

For the quarter under review, the total income available for distribution amounted to RM22.7 million, said Axis REIT.

On prospects, Axis REIT (fundamental: 0.9; valuation: 0) said it was optimistic it would be able to maintain its current performance for current financial year ending Dec 31, 2015.

Axis REIT shares ended three sen higher at RM3.60, with a market capitalisation of RM1.8 billion.

(Note: The Edge Research's fundamental score reflects a company’s profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations.)