The self-storage industry is still fairly immature in the UK, and Safestore (SAFE) has the added advantage of also being the largest operator in Paris, a market virtually closed to new competition because of planning restrictions. The focus now is to start filling some of the 1.7m sq ft of vacant space within the 5.64m sq ft portfolio in the UK and the French capital.
Revenue in the UK grew by 3.9 per cent to £42.2m in the six months to 30 April 2017 on a like-for-like basis, driven by a 1.7 per cent increase in rents and a rise in like-for-like occupancy from 68.6 per cent to 69.5 per cent. However, revenue grew by 15.1 per cent when including the acquisition of Space Maker last July and the opening of four new stores between August and November last year, although including these meant that occupancy was down slightly at 68.1 per cent.
Paris, revenue grew for the 19th consecutive year, reaching €17.8m (£15.6m), thanks to a 150 basis point increase in occupancy and a 2.7 per cent hike in rents. But with sterling down 12 per cent against the euro over the period, revenue in sterling terms grew by 17.7 per cent.
Analysts at Peel Hunt are forecasting adjusted EPS for the year to October 2017 of 22.2p, on net operating income of £83.5m, from 16.6p in FY2016.
| SAFESTORE (SAFE) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 434.0p | MARKET VALUE: | £908m | |
| TOUCH: | 434-434.6p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 457p | LOW: 312p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.80% | DEVELOPMENT PROP: | £8.3m | |
| PREMIUM TO NAV: | 49% | |||
| INVESTMENT PROP: | £972m | NET DEBT: | 58% | |
| Half-year to 31 Mar | Net asset value (p) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2016 | 256 | 49.1 | 22 | 3.6 |
| 2017 | 296 | 55 | 28.1 | 4.2 |
| % change | 16 | 12 | 28 | 17 |
| Ex-div: 13 Jul | ||||
| Payment: 18 Aug | ||||
