• Maintain BUY, TP rises to MYR2.00 from MYR1.54, 49% upside with c.2% yield. We think the market has not fully priced in the upside potential of Google’s recent announcement of its USD2bn investment in Malaysia. The tech giant’s announcement of MYR1.74bn in capex for the first Google data centre (DC) and Google Cloud region may just be the beginning. The potential impact of this on earnings may be under-estimated. Our new TP reflects the incremental value of the contribution from the Google facility, as well as the faster turnaround of Sime Darby Property’s industrial parks ahead.

• The USD2bn investment by Google. Last month, Google announced its commitment to invest USD2bn in Malaysia. The Google DC at Elmina Business Park (EBP) will power the tech giant’s popular digital services, such as Search, Maps and Workspace. When operational, Malaysia will join the 11 countries in which Google has built and now operates DCs. Note that, in the Asia-Pacific, countries and areas where Google Cloud operates include India, Singapore, Jakarta, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Australia and Seoul.

• The remaining MYR7.5bn of investments may come later. So far, Google has only announced its DC and Google Cloud region, which are worth about MYR2bn (or MYR1.74bn, based on the contract value secured by Gamuda (GAM MK, BUY, TP: MYR7.08)). We think there could be further investments for subsequent phases (which may be what the remaining MYR7.5bn is for) in EBP at a later stage. While the initial Google DC is estimated to have a capacity of 80MW, the entire 49-acre site earmarked for Google at EBP could accommodate 200-250MW, based on our estimate.

• Expanding its assets under management (AUM) aggressively. The DC investment is expected to boost SDPR’s total AUM significantly from MYR4.4bn currently (includes a concession arrangement for Bandar Universiti Pagoh). By FY26, we think its AUM may be worth MYR6-7bn, which could generate a total recurring income of MYR120-130m at the operating level. We raise our FY26 earnings forecast by about 3% to reflect the initial contribution from Google DC, as the facility may only be completed in 2H26.

• SDPR has both landbank and a robust balance sheet to accommodate more DC demand. SDPR is well-positioned to capture the prevailing investment wave, driven by global tech giants, in the South-East Asia region. The company currently has five industrial park projects with a remaining total land area of >2,000 acres, and we believe that the basic infrastructure facilities are ready at these industrial sites, since projects are ongoing. SDPR is an experienced player in industrial development, and the segment now accounts for 30% of its total property sales.

Source: RHB Research - 12 Jun 2024