Consumer confidence continued to rebound last year, prompting retailers in the UK and Ireland to expand their operations. This bore fruit for retail landlord Hammerson (HMSO) in the form of a 2.3 per cent growth in like-for-like net rental income.
Within the group's 11 major UK shopping centres 151 leases were signed, generating £11.7m in annual rental income. What's more, rents on principal leases were secured at an estimated rental value 4 per cent higher than the previous year. However, the group's premium portfolio was the jewel in its crown. A rise of more than half in revaluation gains on the group's premium outlet portfolio augmented smaller revaluation benefits on its remaining property portfolio, helping boost pre-tax profits.
The group has been increasing its exposure to the premium outlets sector via its partnership with Value Retail, which operates nine high-end shopping tourism villages across Western Europe. These villages generated 11 per cent brand sales growth and finished the year with a 95 per cent occupancy rate.
The acquisition of a portfolio of loans from Ireland's National Asset Management Agency saw Hammerson take ownership of Dublin's largest shopping centre Dundrum Town Centre. Chief executive David Atkins says the group plans to use its existing relationships with international brands such as Apple and Topshop to improve the mix of retailers in the shopping centre.
Broker UBS forecasts net asset value of 738.4p at the end of December 2016.
HAMMERSON (HMSO) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 562p | MARKET VALUE: | £4.41bn | |
| TOUCH: | 561.5-562p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 704p | LOW: 531p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.0% | DEVELOPMENT PROP: | £389m | |
| DISCOUNT TO NAV: | 20% | |||
| INVESTMENT PROP: | £6.74bn* | NET DEBT: | 54% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Net asset value (p) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 529 | 302 | 41.1 | 16.6 |
| 2012 | 540 | 94 | 12.6 | 17.7 |
| 2013 | 570 | 326 | 45.3 | 19.1 |
| 2014 | 634 | 703 | 95.7 | 20.4 |
| 2015 | 703 | 732 | 92.8 | 22.3 |
| % change | +11 | +4 | -3 | +9 |
Ex-div: 17 Mar Payment: 29 Apr *Includes £2.5bn investment in joint ventures | ||||
