Green REIT's (GRN) foray into the Dublin property market is proving very well timed, as half-year figures for the last six months of 2014 confirm. Property values in Dublin - where 95 per cent of the portfolio by value is sited - are still playing catch-up after the collapse in 2008. This trend probably has some way to run: after a long development freeze, the supply of prime property assets has yet to meet demand for quality space in a fast recovering rental market.
The group has invested all of the €710m (£520m) it raised in a 2013 IPO and a secondary offering last year, well ahead of the expected time frame. Some of the initial investments have enjoyed a significant increase in value, which explains the €45.5m uplift in the property portfolio valuation to €807m. Profits were further boosted by €23.5m from its Central Park joint venture.
The rental income from recently acquired properties pushed annual passing rent up by €24.4m from June last year to €53m. A total of 16 new leases were signed, generating annual contracted rent of €1.25m. That was 13 per cent ahead of last June's estimated rental values, suggesting valuers are very cautious.
Analysts at Goodbody expect to upgrade their current net asset value forecasts of 132¢ for June this year and 145¢ for December.
| GREEN REIT (GRN) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 147¢ | MARKET VALUE: | €980m | |
| TOUCH: | 145-148¢ | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 147¢ | LOW: 111¢ |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 0.6% | DEVELOPMENT PROPERTIES: | nil | |
| PREMIUM TO NAV: | 21% | NET DEBT: | 8% | |
| INVESTMENT PROPERTIES: | €809m | |||
| Half-year to 31 Dec | Net asset value (¢) | Pre-tax profit (€m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢)* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 97 | 0.1 | 0.04 | nil |
| 2014 | 121 | 74.3 | 11.1 | nil |
| % change | +25 | - | - | - |
Ex-div: na Payment: na *Maiden dividend of 0.92¢ declared in respect of year to June 2014 payable on or before 23 March | ||||
