A major acquisition, on top of a major rebranding, fluffed-up a dull set of full-year results from Intu Properties (INTU), formerly Capital Shopping Centres. The company is buying the Midsummer Place mall in Milton Keynes for £251m and will expand its equity base by 9.9 per cent (the maximum possible without resorting to a rights issue) to fund it.
Last year proved the toughest for Intu since the 2008-09 financial crisis. Net rental income plunged 2.7 per cent as £13m of rent lost to tenant failures more than offset rent increases worth about £5m. This year may be no easier, after the wave of high-profile bankruptcies in the first quarter - most notably those of HMV, Blockbusters and Jessops. These and other bust tenants currently account for 4 per cent of rent, although three-quarters of the outlets in question are still trading. Overall, occupancy fell over the year to 96 per cent.
Intu's property valuations remain immune to these problems - suspiciously so, say many analysts, particularly as valuations haven't been tested with a sale for many years. The surveyors marked the portfolio up 0.6 per cent to just over £7bn, keeping adjusted net asset value (NAV) broadly flat at 392p.
Espirito Santo expects the share placing, together with swap-breakage costs as Intu refinances debt, to reduce adjusted NAV by 12p.
INTU PROPERTIES (INTU) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 336p | MARKET VALUE: | £2.92bn | |
| TOUCH: | 335-336p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 370p | LOW: 302p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.5% | TRADING PROPERTIES: | £2.1m | |
| DISCOUNT TO NAV: | 3% | |||
| INVESTMENT PROPERTIES: | £7.01bn | NET DEBT: | 122% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Net asset value (p) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009* | 390 | -120 | -35.2 | 15.0 |
| 2010 | 331 | 446 | 68.3 | 15.0 |
| 2011 | 342 | 27.2 | 2.90 | 15.0 |
| 2012 | 347 | 153 | 17.6 | 15.0 |
| % change | +1 | +463 | +507 | - |
Ex-div: 24 Apr Payment: 4 Jun *Restated to reflect the demerger from Liberty International | ||||
