Real-estate investment trust LondonMetric (LMP) announced the sale of retail parks in Mansfield and Sheffield for £19.2m alongside these half-year results. Chief executive Andrew Jones says he couldn't have achieved that price even two months ago.
The sale demonstrates the opportunistic element of LondonMetric's strategy. "I'm not attached to any assets," says Mr Jones. Yet the group, which was formed this year by merging the vulture fund London & Stamford with retail park landlord Metric, also has a long-term focus: retail parks and retail distribution assets. Mr Jones wants to take advantage of the structural changes affecting retail by helping chains consolidate into larger stores and improve their B2C distribution assets.
The group has been selling assets that don't fit this strategy, including a London office block in September and 257 of its inner-city flats. It has, meanwhile, spent £253m on acquisitions since March, including a portfolio of 10 Odeon multiplex cinemas. LondonMetric has sold more than it has bought but, because the rental yield of acquisitions has been higher than that of disposals, the rent-roll has grown by 7.8 per cent to £67.4m. This matters because the company's generous dividends remain uncovered. Now, however, Mr Jones reckons the rent-roll will cover the annual payout by the year-end.
Broker Peel Hunt expects adjusted book value of 118p by the end of March 2014 (112p in 2013).
LONDONMETRIC PROPERTY (LMP) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 132p | MARKET VALUE: | £829m | |
| TOUCH: | 131.5-132p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 135p | LOW: 103p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 5.3% | TRADING PROPERTIES: | £0.91m | |
| PREMIUM TO NAV: | 19% | NET DEBT: | 46% | |
| INVESTMENT PROPERTIES: | £1.01bn | |||
| Half-year to 30 Sep | Net asset value (p) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 112 | -3.70 | -0.90 | 3.50 |
| 2013 | 111 | 44.7 | 7.00 | 3.50 |
| % change | -1 | - | - | |
Ex-div: 4 Dec Payment: 20 Dec | ||||
