Strong full-year figures from Capital & Regional (CAL) sparked a 10 per cent surge in the share price. That's testament to the successful restructuring of the property company's business model over the past half decade, which in December culminated in the buy-out of minority interests in the Mall shopping centre portfolio and conversion to real-estate investment trust status.
The revaluation of the investment portfolio produced a £36.9m gain, sending adjusted book value up from 56p to 59p. That was despite a near doubling of the shareholder base as a result of last year's open offer and placing to fund the July purchase of 63 per cent of the Mall Fund. The company's operational performance was strong, too, with the occupancy rate rising from 95 to 96.1 per cent. Footfall across the shopping centre portfolio increased 0.9 per cent, beating the national benchmark by 1.8 percentage points.
After the year-end, Capital & Regional completed the €350m (£254m) sale of its German joint venture, which netted £42.1m. Management said the disposal, along with the earlier sale of its interests in Hemel and Lincoln, underscored a year of "aggressive recycling of capital".
JPMorgan Cazenove predicts adjusted book value of 65.6p for the year-end.
| CAPITAL & REGIONAL (CAL) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 57p | MARKET VALUE: | £401m | |
| TOUCH: | 57-58p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 58p | LOW: 42p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 1.7% | TRADING PROPERTIES | £39.5m* | |
| DISCOUNT TO NAV: | 5% | NET DEBT: | 80% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Net asset value (p) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 50.0 | 46.0 | 13.0 | nil |
| 2011 | 56.0 | 23.0 | 6.0 | nil |
| 2012 | 51.0 | -13.0 | -3.0 | nil |
| 2013 (restated) | 54.0 | 7.3 | 2.0 | 0.65 |
| 2014 | 60.0 | 67.2 | 14.0 | 0.95 |
| % change | +11 | +821 | +600 | +46 |
Ex-div: 16 Apr Payment: 12 May *Interest in German joint venture and Leisure World, Hemel Hempstead | ||||
