Nam Tai Property Inc. Reports Q3 2016 Results

SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Nam Tai Property Inc. ("Nam Tai" or the "Company") (NYSE Symbol: NTP) today announced its unaudited results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

(In thousands of US dollars, except per share data, percentages and as otherwise stated)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION (UNAUDITED) IN THE THIRD QUARTER OF 2016

Key Highlights of Financial Position

OPERATING RESULTS

Operation income for the third quarter of 2016 and the same quarter of last year were derived from properties and lands located in Shenzhen. Operating loss for the third quarter of 2016 was $1.7 million, a decrease of $1.3 million, compared to operating loss of $3.0 million in the third quarter of 2015. Operating loss for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 was $5.2 million, a decrease of $2.9 million, compared to operating loss of $8.1 million for the same period in 2015. The rental agreement with an external lessee on the Guangming land ended in the second quarter of 2015 as the lease term expired. As such, from the third quarter of 2015 onwards, the operation income was reduced.

Net loss for the third quarter of 2016 was $1.3 million and mainly represented exchange loss of $0.8 million as a result of the depreciation of Renminbi against US dollar in the third quarter of 2016 and general and administrative expenses of $2.3 million, but partly offset by the interest income of $1.3 million earned from time deposits and net operation income of $0.6 million, or loss of $0.04 per diluted share. Compared to the financial results for the same periods in 2015, the net loss for the same quarter of 2015 of $9.0 million that mainly represented exchange loss of $7.7 million as a result of the depreciation of Renminbi against US dollar in the third quarter of 2015 and general and administrative expenses of $3.2 million, but partly offset by the interest income of $1.9 million earned from time deposits and net operation income of $0.2 million, or loss of $0.23 per diluted share.

Net loss for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 was $4.3 million and mainly included general and administrative expenses of $6.3 million and exchange loss of $3.1 million as a result of the depreciation of Renminbi against US dollar during the nine months ended September 30, 2016, but partly offset by the interest income of $4.2 million earned from time deposits and net operation income of $1.2 million, or loss of $0.12 per diluted share. Compared to the financial results for the same periods in 2015, the net loss for the same period in 2015 of $8.2 million that mainly included general and administrative expenses of $9.0 million and exchange loss of $7.3 million as a result of the depreciation of Renminbi against US dollar during the nine months ended September 30, 2015, but partly offset by the interest income of $6.8 million earned from time deposits and net operation income of $0.8 million, or loss of $0.20 per diluted share.

Capitalization on project investment was $1.5 million for Q3 2016, totaling $4.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2016, and our accumulated project investment up to September 30, 2016 was $37.8 million, which is recorded under the account of real estate properties under development in the balance sheet as at September 30, 2016.

In the third quarter of 2016, 724,750 shares were repurchased by the Company from the open market with the average stock price of $8.47 per share and the total cost for such share repurchase is $6.3 million.

Our land development business is currently at the preparation stage where it takes time to apply for the relevant licenses from the PRC government. During this stage of the land development process, our only sources of income are limited deposit interest income and rental income; therefore, we expect to incur losses during this period of time.

Please see page 7 of the Company's Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income for further details. This information has also been published on the Company's website at http://www.namtai.com/investors#investors/quarterly_earnings in the quarterly earnings report of Q3 2016 on page 7, Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income.

COMPANY OUTLOOK

Schedules of two projects in Shenzhen

With respect to the development of "Inno Park" and " Inno City" in Shenzhen, the construction permit application processes have been proceeding smoothly, and every related step is on schedule and within the Company's control.

As part of our preparation for the development of "Inno Park", the Architectural Schematic Design was approved by the District Planning Bureau on September 20, 2016, and our internal team is working closely with the external project management company (WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff), quantity surveyor (Currie & Brown) and architectural design firm (Ronald Lu and Partners) on the design development for the application of the third permit "Planning Permit of Construction Engineering", which is expected to be obtained by July 2017 as scheduled.

As part of our preparation for the development of "Inno City", the Company has started selecting the architectural design firm, which is expected to be engaged and the design work to commence before June 2017.

In accordance with the current plan, the construction of "Inno Park" is expected to commence before June 2017, and the construction of "Inno City" is expected to commence before September 2019.

A summary of our planned gross floor area and budgetary estimate of the two land parcels in Shenzhen are as follows:

Please note that the eventual plot ratio and GFA for "Inno City" could be different from the above, and are subject to the final approval of the relevant authorities in China. Accordingly, the detailed budget for "Inno Park" will be subject to adjustment due to the development of the design, and the budgetary estimate for "Inno City" is just a rough budget based on the current market positioning of the project, which will be re-estimated after the plot ratio and GFA are approved by the relevant authorities and the master layout plan is finalized.

"Inno City" is listed by the PRC government as the Major Construction Project of Shenzhen City in 2016, and "Inno Park" is listed by the PRC government as the Major Construction Project of Guangming District in 2016, which means the relevant authorities of the local governments will provide full support for the permit application of "Inno City" and the "Inno Park".

Real Estate Market Conditions in China

According to the latest data announced by National Bureau of Statistics on October 21, 2016, the average price of new homes in 70 major cities rose 9.0 percent year-on-year in September, from 7.3 percent in August, while the price of new homes in Shenzhen City rose 34.1 percent. And, more than 91.4 percent of the cities saw prices rise on a monthly basis.

Nevertheless, the surge in both China property prices and transaction volume has made the overheating real estate market a major uncertainty in the Chinese economy in the fourth quarter of 2016. During the October 1st Golden Week, the PRC government implemented purchase restriction measures in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and some tier 2 cities. If the restriction measures were to expand further, the property market in China may cool for a period of time. Meanwhile, the PRC government also took some measures to control its credit growth to promote the healthy development of the property market.

 "Inno City" is situated besides National Road 107, which is planned to be the main municipal thoroughfare of Shenzhen City named as "Golden Business Belt", with a subway to be built underground. The re-construction of National Road 107 is listed on the 13^th Five-Year (2016-2020) Plan of Shenzhen City's comprehensive transport plan, which will commence in the beginning of 2018.

As some news reported, the supply of land plots for commercial residences is limited in first- and second-tier cities, as demand for apartments is substantial and urbanization will be an unavoidable trend in the coming years, especially in Shenzhen City, where value of land will rise due to an increasing population and limited land resources.

As for our Wuxi plant, the factory building continues to be listed for sale and we still expect it to be sold by 2017.

We currently derive a majority of our income from rental and interest income. Since the beginning of 2016, we have seen a stabilizing trend on the benchmark interest rates in China. However, due to the current economic conditions in China, we expect the People's Bank of China ("PBOC") to keep Renminbi-denominated official time deposit interest rates in China at a low level throughout 2016. With this lower interest rate and rental income, we expect to continue to incur operating losses in 2016 and beyond.

As the majority of our assets are denominated in Renminbi, the translation of Renminbi-denominated assets to US dollar for our reporting purposes has resulted in foreign exchange loss in this quarter. As such, we do expect to see fluctuations in the reporting of foreign exchange loss/gain in the financial statements due to the movement of Renminbi against the US dollar. Nevertheless, as a majority of our payments are in Renminbi, we also do not expect the movement of Renminbi against the US dollar to adversely impact our business.

As of September 30, 2016, we have a total cash balance of $192.1 million and no debt. With our current cash position, we believe our finances remain healthy to fund the initial stages of these property development projects within the coming two years. All of our land development related applications are subject to government policies and regulations in the real estate market. As this is our first venture into the land development projects after the cessation of our LCM business, we may encounter industry-specific difficulties that result in losses as we progress with our projects in Shenzhen. As we are currently in the planning stage of our property projects, and can only generate limited income from deposit interest income and rental income, we will continue to record operating losses. Cash on hand are expected to drop continuously, but most of the expenses incurred will be for project development, which will be capitalized as real estate properties under development (non-current asset) on our balance sheet. For more information on risks in our business, please refer to the Risk Factors section of our 2015 Annual Report on Form 20-F as filed with the SEC and on our website.

According to our project development plan, project investment for Q4 2016 is estimated to be $2.2 million, and project investment for the year of 2017 is estimated to be $30.8 million.

The information contained in or that can be accessed through the website mentioned in this announcement does not form part of this announcement.

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM

The share repurchase program previously announced on August 22, 2016 commenced on September 3, 2016 and completed on September 30, 2016, 724,750 shares were repurchased by the Company from the open market with the average stock price of $8.47 per share, and the total cost for such share repurchase was $6.3 million. For more information specific to this program, please refer to the Form 6-K as filed with the SEC and press release uploaded on our corporate website on this matter.

PAYMENT OF QUARTERLY DIVIDENDS FOR 2016 AND 2017

As announced on December 23, 2015, the Company has set the payment schedule of quarterly dividends for 2016. The dividend for Q4 2016 was paid on October 20, 2016.

The following table updates the previously announced schedule for declaration and payment of quarterly dividends in 2016.

The Company announced today that the Board approved to increase the annual dividend of 2017 to 0.28 ($0.07 x 4 quarters) from $0.08 ($0.02 x 4 quarters) of 2016 per outstanding share of the Company's common stock, effective from the first quarter of 2017. After extensive review, the Board determined that the distribution of an annual dividend of $ 0.28, which further enhances our dividend distribution program at a competitive level, is a prudent measure, in view of the fact that 1) the property market in China, especially in Shenzhen, is booming with stable growth in the following years, we believe that the development of the two land parcels will be successful with reasonable and satisfactory profits in the future; and 2) we have sufficient cash on hand for the next two years, especially with support from banks for the land development. The Company recognizes the importance of dividends to our shareholders and the significance of this decision, and believes it is the right action at this time given the highly competitive market environment to further strengthen the Company for the long-term, while still providing an attractive dividend.

The Company's decision to continue making the dividend payments in 2017 as set out and confirmed in the above table does not necessarily mean that cash dividend payments will continue thereafter. Whether future dividends after 2017 are to be declared will depend upon Company's future growth and earnings at each relevant period, of which there can be no assurance, and the Company's cash flow needs for business operations and transformation. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that cash dividends on the Company's common shares will be declared beyond those declared for 2017, and we also cannot assure you what the amounts of such dividends will be or whether such dividends, once declared for a specific period, will continue for any future period, or at all.

PROPOSED SCHEDULE OF RELEASE OF QUARTERLY FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR Q4 2016 AND 2017

To maintain the efficiency of delivering the Company's quarterly financial results to the market, the Company's management has decided to follow approximately the same schedule of 2016 to release the quarterly financial results for 2017. Details of the expected quarterly release dates are as follows:

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND FACTORS THAT COULD CAUSE OUR SHARE PRICE TO DECLINE

Certain statements included in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may", "will", "expect", "intend", "estimate", "anticipate", "plan", "seek" or "believe". These forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions, may include projections of our future financial performance based on our growth strategies and anticipated trends in our business. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations about future events. There are important factors that could cause our actual results, level of activity, performance, or achievements to differ materially from the results, level of activities, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, delay in the Company's ability to obtain all requisite permits and approvals from relevant government authorities in relation to the redevelopment of two parcels of properties in Gushu, Shenzhen, and Guangming, Shenzhen, respectively, and the successful redevelopment of the two parcels of properties; the sufficiency of the Company's cash position and other sources of liquidity to fund its property developments; continued inflation and appreciation of the Renminbi against the US dollar; rising labor costs in China and changes in the labor supply and labor relations. In particular, you should consider the risks outlined under the heading "Risk Factors" in our most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F and in our Current Report filed from time to time on Form 6-K. The Company's decision to continue dividend payments in 2016 does not necessarily mean that dividend payments will continue thereafter. Whether future dividends will be declared depends upon the Company's future growth and earnings, of which there can be no assurance, as well as the Company's cash flow needs for further expansion. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that cash dividends on the Company's common shares will be declared beyond those declared for 2016, what amount those dividends may be or whether such dividends, once declared for a specific period, will continue for any future period, or at all; and whether we will purchase any of our shares in the open markets or otherwise. Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance, or achievements. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. These forward-looking statements apply only as of the date of this press release; as such, they should not be unduly relied upon as circumstances change. Except as required by law, we are not obligated, and we undertake no obligation, to release publicly any revisions to these forward-looking statements that might reflect events or circumstance occurring after the date of this release or those that might reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

ABOUT NAM TAI PROPERTY INC.

We are a real estate developer. We hold two parcels of land located in Gushu and Guangming, Shenzhen, China. , We are converting these two parcels of land that formally housed the manufacturing facilities of our prior businesses into high-end commercial complexes. We expect our principal income in the future will be derived from rental income from these commercial complexes.

Nam Tai Property Inc. is a corporation registered in the British Virgin Islands and listed on the New York Stock Exchange (Symbol: "NTP").

Please refer to the Nam Tai website (www.namtai.com) or the SEC website (www.sec.gov) for Nam Tai press releases and financial statements.

SOURCE Nam Tai Property Inc.