Land Securities moves de-risking up the agenda

However, chief executive Robert Noel is pretty clear that steps to de-risk the property portfolio are now becoming more appropriate. To a great extent this is already being achieved as developments like the so-called Walkie-Talkie building in Fenchurch Street proceed to the point of generating rental income. Mr Noel would ideally like to enter the next downturn with a portfolio of properties let out on long leases to ride through a more subdued environment. He is also happy to see gearing fall as property values rise. The company's net loan-to-value ratio fell from 36.9 per cent to 32.5 per cent over the year, and outright net debt also finished £368m lower, at £3.33bn.

Adjusted book value last year grew by 12.2 per cent to 1,013p a share, benefiting from a valuation surplus of £764m, of which more than a third came from the development portfolio. Net rental income grew by 8 per cent to £594m, with the gains concentrated within the retail portfolio - up 19 per cent to £335m. Here the main contributor was the Trinity Leeds shopping centre, which started generating income in March last year and is now 97 per cent let.

The group continues to focus on identifying retailer requirements and shopping trends as well as building a leisure portfolio. This has included taking a 95 per cent stake in the X-Leisure cinema chain and financing such developments as the Westgate Centre in Oxford by selling off weaker assets. However, Mr Noel did concede that, for all the improvement in the economic outlook, the scope for increasing retail rents is still some way off.

Analysts at Oriel Securities are forecasting adjusted book value of 1,093p by March 2015 (from 903p in 2014).