MAS owned Moldova Mall in Romania underwent a redevelopment and reopened in April 2025. MAS recognised a loss from its ordinary shareholding in DJV for the period after elimination of impact from cross shareholding.
Image: Supplied
Tawanda Karombo
Property group MAS plc reported a sharp decline in half-year earnings, reflecting a softer consumer environment in Central and Eastern Europe and the impact of recent asset disposals.
The company’s earnings fell significantly to €11.6 million for the six months to December 2025, down from €76.1m in the comparable period a year earlier. Earnings per share also dropped steeply to 1.97 euro cents from 12.01 euro cents previously.
The plunge in half year earnings for MAS has been attributed to a moderation in consumption dynamics.
“A softer trading environment prevailed in Romania, which is the primary contributor to like-for-like passing net rental income (NRI) growth of 2.4% for the Group's directly owned CEE properties (compared with 7.3% in the corresponding prior period),” it said on Tuesday.
Although rental growth remained positive for the period, the moderation in consumption trends resulted in a more measured increase in the fair value of the Group's directly owned investment properties in the Central and Eastern Europe region compared to the comparable period.
Additionally, the disposal of the Strip Malls portfolio also weighed down earnings for the period.
“The sale of the Strip Malls in January 2025 resulted in the reinvestment of proceeds at returns lower than those generated by the disposed assets, thereby reducing earnings contribution relative to the comparable period,” said the company.
MAS also said fair value adjustments to its Flensburg Galerie property had also dented earning as the carrying value of the operation was reduced following the group's commitment in December 2025 to conclude its disposal at a price below the property's 30 June 2025 book value.
This resulted in a negative fair value adjustment for the period. Losses attributable to ordinary shares in the Development Joint Venture (DJV) were also partly to blame for the fall in half year earnings.
MAS recognised a loss from its ordinary shareholding in DJV for the period after elimination of impact from cross shareholding. Accordingly, the Group's attributable share of earnings from DJV declined relative to the comparable period.
This was mainly a consequence of higher finance costs incurred by DJV due to additional secured debt drawn during the six months ending 31 December 2025. This includes funding raised in connection with DJV's voluntary bid to acquire shares in MAS not already owned.
A higher proportion of development margin and preferred share coupon being expensed by DJV in the period reflected lower levels of active development whereas in prior periods a significant portion of such costs was capitalised.
Furthermore, materially lower investment property valuation gains relative to the comparable period, when completions and associated revaluations also weighed down earnings.
MAS net asset value as at 31 December 2025 amounted to 181 eurocents per share, compared with 169 eurocents per share in the previous contrasting period.
MAS has adopted a disciplined capital allocation approach, with funding deployment directed to investments that are expected to generate superior risk-adjusted returns over the long term.
“Any expansion beyond the Group's current core markets will be undertaken incrementally and only when the board is satisfied that adequate investment and management expertise, governance capacity and risk controls are in place,” said the company.
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