A&J Mucklow (MKLW) continues to prosper as the property recovery percolates from London out into the provinces. Profits were boosted by a £27.7m valuation uplift on the group's portfolio of regional industrial properties, up sharply from £2.7m a year earlier.
Crucially, net rental income rose to £20.1m, boosted by two acquisitions that added £600,000 to the annual gross rent roll. Some costs were incurred by an ongoing refurbishment programme, but strong demand for property assets ensured that refurbishments helped lift the overall value of the portfolio.
Two investment properties were acquired during the first half, for £6.7m, but competition then stiffened, prompting a shift towards development rather than acquisition. The only asset Mucklow bought in the second half was a vacant 36,000 sq ft industrial building in Birmingham. Following refurbishment, it is now available to rent for £210,000 - a 12 per cent yield on the total acquisition and redevelopment cost of £1.74m.
Prior to these numbers, John Cahill of broker Oriel Securities was forecasting adjusted net asset value of 351p next June, but we expect this to be revised up significantly.
| A&J MUCKLOW (MKLW) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 465p | MARKET VALUE: | £294m | |
| TOUCH: | 462-468p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 542p | LOW: 417p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.4% | DEVELOPMENT PROPERTIES: | £9.7m* | |
| PREMIUM TO NAV: | 31% | NET DEBT: | 30% | |
| INVESTMENT PROP: | £288m | |||
| Year to 30 Jun | Net asset value (p) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 310 | 36.0 | 60.9 | 18 |
| 2011 | 314 | 12.9 | 22.4 | 18.5 |
| 2012 | 295 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 19.1 |
| 2013 | 303 | 16.3 | 27.2 | 19.64 |
| 2014 | 356 | 40.7 | 66.5 | 20.23 |
| % change | +17 | +150 | +144 | +3 |
Ex-div: 27 Nov Payment: 2 Jan *Excludes trading properties of £468,000 | ||||
