Allos S.A. (ALOS3) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Good afternoon, and thank you for waiting. Welcome to the earnings call of Allos to discuss the results regarding the fourth quarter of 2024. We have Mr. Rafael Sales, President; Vicente Avellar, Director of Operations; and Ms. Daniella Guanabara, Financial Director and Investor Relations Director. This event is being recorded. [Operator Instructions]. This event is being transmitted via webcast. You can access it through the ri.allos.com. So you have the presentation. The replay of this event will be available for a week. We would like to inform that questions can only be asked through the Zoom app. Should it be connected via the webcast, the question has to be submitted through the IR e-mail address before continuing. Any statements that might be done during this earnings call regarding the business perspective of the company, projections and operational goals, they are based on beliefs of the Board of Directors of the company as well as based on information currently available. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of performance. They involve risks, premises and uncertainties. They refer to forward-looking statements, future statements and based on circumstances that may or may not occur. Macroeconomic conditions, industry conditions and other operational factors might affect the future performance of the company and might lead to results that are materially different from those that are in the forward-looking statements. I'd like to give the floor to Mr. Rafael Sales. He will start the presentation.

Good afternoon. Thank you for your interest in the results of Allos. We are closing 2024 with the formation of our company that last year was very intense, full of advances and with great highlight, shareholders and for the partnership that we are doing the business with. Regardless of the challenging macroeconomic scenario and the weaker results of wholesale in general, we at Allos delivered important achievements. We continue to be motivated in a sustainable way and focused on the long term. Slide 2. Here are some operational results. And I would like to say that we closed 2024 with strong operational goals regardless of the investments that we've done over the last few years. We kept a threshold of total sales in [ BRL 40 million ] in our own malls, which is equivalent to a growth of 8% in regards to the year of '23. This result comparing to the industry and sales registered by the malls in 2024 as is published by ABRASCE, we have a great highlight in comparison to the general retail. Our total sales with all the managed malls, BRL 46 million (sic) [ BRL 46 billion ], threshold that places us amongst the most relevant platforms of retail, wholesale experiences in the country. Also in 2024, 3 of our malls went over the BRL 1 million (sic) [ BRL 1 billion ] in sales per year, 16 malls in our portfolio. And Parque Shopping Dom Pedro and Shopping Recife overcome BRL 2 million -- BRL 2 billion in annual sales. What we have to highlight in terms of sales, there was an acceleration in regards to the previous years. In regards to the fourth quarter of 2023. This is by the malls in the Southern region and Northern region that grew a lot, respectively. We still show that in this quarter, we are reaping the fruits of our active management of portfolio and our precise mix curatorship. And our growth is of 11% in 2024, getting to [ BRL 2,240 ] per square meter. Just to illustrate in a graph, we have a record since 2019, and we had an average growth of 7% a year, which is much higher than the average of inflation. Thereafter, Danny can complement with the operational data of this semester. Slide 3. Let's talk about the results of the company. In the fourth quarter of '24, we had a strong performance in the operation, translated into a consistent growth in our financial indicators. Net revenue, BRL 825 million, 9% growth in regards to the fourth quarter of '23, mainly due to the rent, which advanced 6% in the quarter. And it grew less until that point in the year. The EBITDA closed with BRL 640 million, advance of 12.4%, pushed by the performance in revenue and by the gains of efficiency and expenses that led us to get a margin of 74%. FFO, BRL 468 million, growth of 23% in regards to '23, highlighted by the actions of liabilities management, which was very important to generate this result. FFO by action, 34% higher in the fourth quarter of '24 comparing to the '23. And if we consider the full year, the growth is 41%, which was leveraged by the repurchases that we've done all throughout the year that added to BRL 1 billion. Besides, we paid BRL 754 million in dividends, they start to be paid monthly from October onwards. In the year, BRL 1.8 billion were returned to the shareholders amongst the repurchasing and dividends. Thinking about the current market value of the company, that is a yield of almost 20%. If we consider the return capital for the shareholders, so since the creation of Allos over the last 2 years, and that percentage is 27%. That expressive return to the shareholder did not compromise the values of the company, which has been less than 2x EBITDA in leverage. Before giving the floor to Daniella, at the beginning of the second quarter, we're going to do the integration of the company and the unification of our PR, an important landmark in our history. And it's a success of a complex integration process. We are very well structured, ready to overcome the challenges of 2025 and to deliver unique experiences to our consumers, good results for the tenants and paying back the tenants, the shareholders, even with the complex macroeconomic scenario in Brazil and the world. I'll give the floor to Daniella, and I'll come back to the Q&A. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Rafael. Good afternoon, everyone. The next slide, we see that the occupancy rate is at 96.8% with an increase of 50 bps in regards to the fourth quarter of '23. That advance illustrates the strength of the portfolio to attract tenants, qualifying the mix and delivering a best experience for the consumers. In the quarter, we negotiated 341 signed contracts with our own malls and the leased GLA commercialized 61,000 square meters. If we consider the subcontracted malls, 392 new contracts, reflecting the strength of Allos and the expansion of new brands amongst the contracts that are just signed, we have H&M at Parque Dom Pedro, Atacadão at Bangu Shopping, Coco Bambu Restaurant at Shopping Grande Rio and Camarada Camarão Restaurant at Boulevard Shopping. Next slide, 5. We have the operational indicators. Occupancy cost at 9.7% in the fourth quarter of '24, a bit below what was reported in the same period of '23 due to the strong performance. The delinquency in the period was negative 1.2%, representing a drop of 85 bps in regards to the fourth quarter of '23, which was pushed by the strong performance in sales that impacts directly the financial health of the tenants. Next slide. We see that in the fourth quarter of '24, our average debt profile is CDI plus 0.8%, the average cost of the debt, CDI plus the spread, and this is due to the liability management actions that we've done over the quarters. On the profile of the debt, we closed the fourth quarter with 90% indexed to the CDI, 10% prefixed and 0.2% inflation. Our leverage is low, 1.9x the net debt over EBITDA within the guidance that was published. Fourth quarter of '24, we prepaid 2 finances that were really relevant, one with the BRL 1 billion deadline in August of '27 and a cost of CDI plus 1.4%, another one with standing at BRL 900 million deadline November of '27, cost of CDI plus 1.3%. The new captures delayed the profile of the debt of the Allos at a lower cost. The next slide. Let's talk about the media revenue, which is one of the highlights of the growth of the company and an invoicing of BRL 67 million in revenues in the fourth quarter of '24, growth of 23% in regards to the same period over the last year. Percentage of the gross revenue, the media advanced 93 bps in the fourth quarter of '23 in comparison to that year-on-year getting to BRL 181 million. Helloo got to significant landmarks, and we are at 100% of the portfolio of the malls. The company got to over 14,000 screens in residential buildings, 2,000 malls, increasing their presence and impacting different publics. The implementation of panels, external panels, they opened new opportunities reaching announcers outside of the universe of the shopping malls and expanding the campaigns. As a recognition, Helloo was elected the best media out-of-home company by the Propmark” Best Brands of 2024. This reflects the strength of the strategies of the company and consolidates our position in the sector. Next slide. We launched in 2025 the electro -- the 600 charging posts (sic) [ spots ] for electric vehicles that will be installed in shoppings and all throughout the portfolio in Brazil. We will have 600 of these spots and 200 are already working until March of '25 in 13 malls, representing 1/3 of the total potential of the operation. The project is made viable with WEG, the biggest manufacturer for chargers of electric vehicles in Brazil and a reference in the sector. When we transform the shopping malls as a hub for the charging of electric cars, Allos also stimulates sustainable and low-carbon practices for the tenants and employees with the adoption of a technology that guarantees renewable energy that is efficient. In the fourth quarter of '24, also, we implemented over 2 programs of loyalties in the shopping malls of Allos getting to 11 programs running in 2024. In the second month of operations, we got to expressive results with the capture of GMV of 26% for Shopping Campo Grande and 23% GMV penetration for Parque Dom Pedro. These results show a strong engagement of the consumers with the program that together had 4,000 benefits registered by the 115,000 members registered. We closed 24 with 2 million members using our apps. And during the first quarter -- semester of '25, there will be the rollout of -- for the program for another 23 shopping malls in the company. Continuing in the presentation, and we have a few highlights that are recent for our journey of sustainability. We took part on the 29th COP -- on the COP29 at Baku in Azerbaijan. This gathered global leaders, specialists and representatives from several sectors, so we can debate and try to find solutions for the challenges -- global climatic challenges. The Legal Director and coordinator of the Sustainability Commission, Paula Fonseca; and Director of Development and New Businesses, Mario Oliveira, took part on panels, which the themes contributed to stimulate the dialogue about how the shopping mall sector can have a significant performance in the fight against the climate change. We are the first company in the shopping sector to define sustainability guidelines until 2030. Allos announced the anticipation of their environmental goals in 4 malls under its administration in the Amazon for 2025. The region is ready to receive the most important event in climate change this year in '25, COP30. In 2025, Manauara Shopping and Amazonas Shopping of Manaus will have the implementation of the reutilization of water, an initiative that is already done by Parque Shopping Belém and Boulevard Shopping Belém in the capital of Pará. And the 4 will get before to the operational goal of Allos, which is 90% of recycling and composting. In the case of Manaus, a great deal of the organic residue is reused as animal feed and a small part is tossed away. In energy, the fourth malls already subcontract 67% from renewable energy sources, and for 2025, they will consume 100% of their energy with a certificate -- international certificate of renewable energy, the I-REC certificate. With that, they will be carbon neutral in regards to the greenhouse gases and these spaces. We'll have next year projects of efficiency. And on the next slide, we have the new guidances for 2025. Keeping our commitment with more transparency, we are publishing the new guidance of 2025 of EBITDA, which is going to be between BRL 2.070 billion and BRL 2.150 billion, which corresponds to a growth of 8% in the guidance -- in the central point of the guidance in regards to 2024 pro forma. Now for CapEx, we project an investment in BRL 450 million to BRL 550 million. The guidance is of EBITDA and CapEx consider the current scenario of transactions of M&As already announced, and they can be reviewed should we find any relevant modifications. Thank you very much, and we will start now the Q&A session.

[Operator Instructions] The first question comes from Ana Julia Zerkowski from UBS.

We have 2 questions. First, in regards to the start of this year, if you can share with us what you've seen in January, February in terms of performance? And what do you feel in regards to the health of the tenant. And you showed the CapEx well for 2025. And we wanted to understand what is going to drive the additional CapEx in 2025 versus 2024? And should we wait for the level of 2025 as recurrent from now on?

In regard to the CapEx, what we like to look at the perspective if we're going to compare the CapEx. We had an issue with the audio. So thank you for the question. At the beginning of the year, we continue with an important demand. January, February in regards to the fourth quarter. And there was a good movement in March in the shopping malls, and we expect a similar scenario year-on-year. About CapEx, we'd like to highlight that if we look at the CapEx in 2021, and the 2 companies together, the CapEx had a larger CapEx than what we are posting this year. And there were several synergies, new technology and with expansions, we have to look at the shopping malls that had a high performance. In the combined over the last 2 years and 2 months, these are shopping malls that went through important revamps. This range is the same one as last year. And it's a confirmation that we continue to invest in the older ones, we have 46 malls.

The next question from André Mazini, Citi Bank.

Two questions. The first one, if you can talk about the CRM of Oracle for SAP, S-A-P, something that you're studying for a long time, something that can be delicate for the operations. And this is the last stage of the process of the company. So how much do you imagine of savings with this integration for the guidance of synergy with the Fusion and all the teams with the CRM? Or is it something more efficient? Is it easier to close the business and contracts and operational -- that's the first one. And the second one, about the selling of assets. You had a guidance that is informal. You sold a lot of things. The last one was, correct, if I remember correct, do we have anything else to expect in terms of investment for 2025?

Thank you for the question. Really, we are at the final phase, remembering that we had 2 DRPs that were separate. And we are going to -- we're not going to have Oracle and now we're going to work 100% with SAP. We are doing this process for over 2 years. We had a year of studies. A lot of things were implemented at priority. So a lot of systems and satellites, we are testing beforehand. So a great deal of the experience of the final user, we're going to have more work. We keep our planning for the beginning of April, so we can have a stabilization of the system until the publication of the second quarter. So the studies that we've been doing are very trustworthy. We have the same people that implemented Oracle as SAP. They continue to work with the companies. And this knowledge brings a lot of comfort that we have the right places and expression so we can have this key. We -- while the turn of the system is very sensitive, but we have the experience, but the technical capacity to do it in the best way possible. In regards to gains of efficiency, we hope to have it after the system is stabilized quicker processes, automatic readings and with more artificial intelligence. So these are points that we are working for a long time, and we are gaining efficiencies and with more intensity to have more efficiency. And in CapEx, in 2 years, we imagine that we're going to have a significant reduction in IT due to the turning off of the Oracle.

Next question...

Just 1 minute. I would like to bring your attention that from 2022 and more than 2024, 2023, we're talking about sales of almost BRL 2.8 billion that are done in these 2.5 years. For the market cap of the company, it's a very relevant sector, and we get to this final part of the period, paying the shareholder with the BRL 2.5 billion in repurchasing and dividends. We don't have, as I told you, in Brazil, we have the scenario at the beginning of the year, and we are getting to the interest in Brazil, we cannot joke around with leverage. So we are -- we have our feet firm in the ground. We've done some disinvestments. We have a great capacity for execution. So we have the EBITDA, and we prepare the company to go over this movement with an interest rate on [ 15 ] is positive for this investment. And we have the projects with the right valuation to get a good return on investment. So paying and returning capital is the good strategy plus the investments are done every day, improving our capacity to work with better assets. And we have to be -- have patience with this scenario of investments.

Our next question is from Pedro Lobato, Bradesco BBI.

The question is more about dividends. In the guidance of at least 30% of payout, you have that it can be a combination of dividends and buyback. of interest over capital. So how much do you expect that is the design of this combination in the way that we can remunerate the shareholder? And if there is a disinvestment, Rafa commented on this last answer, which is the return for the shareholders with the volume of this investment. So if there is any window for pinpoint disinvestments or is this an upside for this disinvestment?

So Mr. Pedro, could you repeat the question?

Do you hear me?

Well, guys, we had a problem, technical problem for the second time, so I apologize. Pedro, if you can answer the question.

Well, I'm going to repeat here. about the 50% of the guidance of dividends, which is the 50% payout, which is a combination of dividends, buyback and interest of our capital. So I wanted to understand what is the design on how you remunerate the shareholder to compose this amount? And if there is any disinvestment, if that can mean an upside for this 50% of guidance of remuneration for the shareholder.

Pedro, I'm Danny. Thank you for the question. Now we heard it. In regards to the relation of the guidance of 50%, we kept just as the last year, which is at least 50% of the FFO of the year being returned to the shareholder via dividends or buyback. It's important to reinforce that we understand the interest of our capital dividend as a similar instrument. So we are going to keep the practice of the dividends in this threshold that we are doing and doing the complementation via repurchase. You are right. We did BRL 2.5 billion of disinvestment, and we return this value for the shareholder. And if we have the opportunity of doing new disinvestments that generate accounting gains, then we have the will to return to the shareholders via dividends or canceling shares and doing buyback. But as Rafa said, we have a scenario that is more challenging in '25 in regards to this investment. And we should expect that the window of opportunity for the market in order to restart.

Here is the next question about from Elvis Credendio, BTG.

A question about synergies. You opened and you captured the millions in synergies in '24 and about BRL 20 million -- BRL 30 million so in synergies of costs. When we compare it to this with a number of synergies of costs at the beginning of last year, it was about BRL 28 million. So I wanted to understand, first, why is it along the road, along the road? And when we were talking way back when, you were talking about 40%, BRL 210 million of synergies that will come from costs. So I wanted to understand where do you think that the remainder of the BRL 50 million in synergies, how do you think that you're going to capture, in fact, the BRL 40 million in synergies and the deadline, whether if it's medium or long term?

Great. So this BRL 134 million, we're talking about BRL 104 million in revenue and BRL 30 million in expenses and costs. We still have that stage of the DRP. After the [ DPR ], we are still expecting to have more synergies of costs and expenses and the efficiencies that we analyzed in the past. So there is a new stage of capturing the gains of costs. But it's important to highlight that synergy of revenues, which is a point that existed a skepticism, and we proved that we didn't have a strong help in the rents during a great deal of the year, it stayed in the negative. And we've seen that we managed to deliver a result that is very expressive of NOI, EBITDA and also the growth of FFO. And when we're talking about the growth of FFO per share above 50%, which is the impact of the repurchasing. So all the work that we've done of qualification of mix plus the disinvestment is contributing a lot so that we can reach this objective of synergies that we saw -- that we gave to the market. So we are certain that we will get to BRL 110 million at the end of the fifth year and 80% of this value until the end of the last year that we are doing. We got a part in the release that is very important, which is the evolution of what we managed to do on sales per square meter and NOI per square meter since '19. When we look at the indicator of sales per square meter of the portfolio of '19 versus '24, we have a growth of 45% in the sales per square meter. And when we look at the NOI, this growth is even more expressive when it's above 60%. So we have managed to capture the synergies via revenue via expenses regardless of the macro scenario that last year had a bigger challenge because of IGP. So we are confident that we're going to get to the guidance of the synergy in the market.

Next question, Matheus Meloni, Santander.

On our side, we have 2 questions. First, in regards to parking, we have the parking growing 16% year-on-year. But due to the readjustment of tariffs and the flow is flat. I wanted to understand on the expectation of flow looking at 2025. And what do you expect that is still missing so that we have a growth in the flow versus the pre-pandemic? And the second question is in regards, I wanted to understand what are the strategies for the expansion of helloo given that you have 100% of the portfolio? And what do you foresee in terms of challenge in terms of the rollout of the loyalty Well, you're doing 23 malls all at once in the first quarter. in regards to this adoption that was lower. That's it from my side.

Matheus, this is Rafael. I'm going to give you the answer of the first one here to my colleague.

Matheus, in regards to the parking lot, we see an acceleration in the fourth quarter regardless that in the year, the growth is not so expressive. But in the fourth quarter, it accelerates. And as Rafael has commented before, our perspective of January, February also point towards this direction. We are confident in regards to this. The flow of paying cards also is doing well above all in certain regions, we see, for example, the Center East very well, the North also doing well. So we see the agribusiness, as we've discussed, affects positively our portfolio. So we are confident above all in these regions, we are delivering a growth along the lines of the parking lot that will pull through the flow and not only the revenue. In regards to helloo, you commented on the expansion strategy. Well, as you know, we are advancing in the front of shopping malls and what we call home, which are the residential screens. In shopping malls, we concentrated part of the CapEx in new screens and above all what we call the iconic properties. So properties that bring an appeal that is higher for the marketing and that mark the shopping mall from the architectural standpoint, generating more impact for the announcers. This was an important focus of investment. And along the lines of home, we are expanding around our shopping malls, the residential screens with a lot of success. These 2 fronts remain this year. And there is a third front that is important that we start to grow on top of panels, digital panels in the terrains of our shopping malls. So the -- our shopping malls by nature are well localized within the city, so always in regions with a good flow and important avenues with a lot of visibility. So we are exploring successfully this front in several cities. And we have a lot of these projects already ongoing and some projects throughout this year that we should implement in the panels, external panels. Regardless of it being in the shopping mall that is a different pocket of the external real estate with visibility for different types of announceers, not only the ones that are within the mall, what brands they want to talk about in general with the regions that we are. So a positive expectation of expansion for helloo in that sense. Now Leandro will talk about the impact of the rollout.

Matheus, this is Leandro. We -- this rollout started from last year, we did 3 malls last year. And this year, we do the next -- well, some are on live this week. The challenge continues the same, which is to grow the base of tenants within the app itself. Today, we have in the mature malls, 30% of the tenants taking part actively of the app with benefits, and this obviously is very good because it makes the entirety of the ecosystem to work in favor of the app. Just when we launched this product, in Shopping Tijuca, which was the first mall, it took a year to get 10% of the base of tenants. It was born in Campo Grande with 26% of the tenants already on. It's a bit of the normal flow of things. So you show value, you bring things inwards, the consumer accepts more. We have 20,000 sessions per day per mall with the malls that are in the program for over 2 years. So that's a natural evolution. The scalability is important, one, because of the tenants because the tenants that are the key accounts are embarked in the offerings within the program. And also for us in terms of negotiation is very important. Last year, we did BRL 3 billion in reading of GMV within our programs, which is an achievement. It's the number of partners that we have, which is the biggest challenge. We are certainly the program of -- which has the biggest active partners, and it has a benefit that is relevant for the consumer. So the biggest challenge is to educate the consumer on the loyalty program, the rewards program so they can use it as part of their journey and bring in more tenants so that this equation is more fruitful for the ecosystem as a whole.

Next question, Mariangela Castro, Itaú BBA.

I wanted to talk about the economy in SG&A that you talked. Can we wait for this threshold of SG&A as recurrent? And if you can give us some more color in regards to this? Second one, about the reversal of provisions for debt that contributed for the margin of NOI. And I wanted to see how you have the scenario for reversing the provisions? And what can we think about in terms of margins for the consolidated...

Mariangela, this is Danny. When we talk about the SG&A year-on-year, we grew less than the inflation. So I think it's an important data. And in the fourth quarter specifically, in last year, we had an increase of SG&A. So what was the harmonization between the 2 legacies and what we said that there was an effect, but it was referenced throughout the year. So when we look at the threshold of the fourth quarter of '24, we can expect this threshold of SG&A as a recurrent threshold looking from now on to the future. And when we look at the PDD, we understand that our PDD is at a threshold that is correct. We have studies to determine the aging and the percentage of retrievability of the aging that we have in the provisions table. So we understand that we have the provisions that are correct. When we look at '24 in percentage of revenue, it was a percentage that was more sustainable. So we imagine that in a scenario that is similar for '25, we're going to have an expectation that it can be at a sustainable threshold as well.

So just to confirm with the delinquency, do you think that it's not going to be negative over the next quarters? Is it going to be controlled or no? Should we still live with the delinquency negative in the fourth quarter?

It's a quarter that you have a recovery of delayed titles in a natural way. So you have to be careful with the seasonality of the sector. Usually, the fourth quarter is where you have the best period of delinquency. So it's natural that you have the seasonality. But when you look at the year as a whole, we have a threshold of provisioning that is very adequate in regards to the revenue, and we do not expect a modification for the year of '25. It doesn't mean that I'm not going to have a difference amongst the quarters because there is a natural seasonality.

Next question, Rafael Rehder, Safra.

Two questions on my side. The first question about the guidance of EBITDA. In the middle of the range, it's a growth that is very strong of 8%. And I just wanted to understand, do you see this coming from the top line? Or do you still see a space for margin next year? And the second question is a follow-up in regards to the dividends and the repurchasing. I wanted to understand your mindset in this process for the decision-making process. Is there a minimum threshold of dividends that you're going to pay? And do you have a valuation threshold that you think that is more attractive? Or would you have any other decision-making process that you can share with us?

Rafael, thank you. In regards to the guidance of EBITDA, I think it's natural that we have a ramp-up of our new contracts. We did many changes of mix that started to impact in the fourth quarter in terms of top line. And along with this, there is the acceleration of our contracts adjusted by the IGPM. So we are very convinced that, of course, with our business, with our margin in the fourth quarter, the revenue is more important mathematically than the expenses and costs, and it's natural that we gain efficiency with the dilution of fixed costs and expenses with the top line that is growing. So that's why the EBITDA is a combination of both factors. This is for the FFO as well that even with a high rate -- high interest rates, we continue -- we expect to continue to have a good result of FFO. We're giving the guidance of the dividends based on FFO. And as Danny explained, it's a number that should continue monthly similar to what we've seen over the last months, so we can have predictability for the shareholders that privilege to dividends. And it's easier to expect an improvement, macroeconomic improvement. And the repurchasing of shares is the consequence of the difference in terms of cash flow and the level of leverage with the capacity of the company to reallocating capital. Today, we have cash flow. We have space for repurchasing and the repurchasing, we do it throughout the year, along with the payment of the dividends in this threshold. If we're going to have the valuation is attractive, we understand that this is one of the best options, and that's why the repurchasing is still existing. We have some accounting limitations. And as soon as we can generate flexibility in these or service some requirements of the law, it seems like a good destination for the company to do the repurchasing and the dividends as well. We can service these 2 types of profiles of investors.

Next question, Igor Machado, Goldman Sachs.

My question is regarding the operational performance. We've seen same-store sales in 6.6% [indiscernible] months and 6.2% in the third quarter, same-store rent, biggest jump with 6% and 4.2%. In this scenario, I wanted to understand with you how do you see this space for the growth of revenue in rent? That's it.

Igor, I think that the biggest and main driver of our guidance of EBITDA is going back to have a revenue on rent that is growing. That's why we highlighted that in the quarter, the point for biggest attention for the revenue was the rent because helloo parking and services as a whole, they've been growing a lot. So the news of the quarter was a catch-up that we've given that would happen in the fourth quarter, and now we have a scenario that is positive. The cost of occupancy is low with a positive relationship with the tenant and good news for the shopping mall, many launches of retrofit of new areas in the second quarter, all of that combined gives you an expectation for top line and EBITDA that is better. That's why we occupy the top line that we have. The macroeconomic scenario in Brazil is always challenging, specifically this year with the interest rates going up, but we understand that the consumer in the middle class is resilient because of the stable employment and the regional scenarios, as we've commented, which are very favorable for our portfolio. Just with the southern exposure, we have an exposure to agribusiness Center East as well. In the Northeast and the North, also because of the export corridor that is ever more in use. And the 2 states of the North that we have a very privileged position for market share are states that are doing very well from an economic standpoint. And the COP30 effect in Pará is also something positive. So several positive factors. And in compensation, we are cautious with a balance that is well planned and without exaggerations in leverage, so we can pay dividends and the growth comes at the level of the 8% of EBITDA.

Since we don't have any more questions, we close the Q&A session. And I would like to give the floor to Mr. Rafael Sales for the final closing remarks.

Thank you very much for your interest once again in the company. I apologize for the technical difficulties. We are getting a lot of rain where we are. So that hindered the connection, but I hope that the message has gotten well, and we remain at your service to clarify the results and the company and its strategy for the future. Thank you very much.

Thank you. The earnings call for the fourth quarter of Allos is closed. Thank you very much. Have a nice afternoon. [Statements in English on this transcript were spoken by an interpreter present on the live call.]