Shaftesbury plc (LON:SHB), a REIT with a 15.2-acre portfolio in London’s West End, has reported steady demand and high footfall for the three months covering the 2019-2020 Christmas period.
The company announced that in the three months to 31 December 2019 it achieved £8m in lease transactions above its September 2019 ERV. It added that EPRA’s vacancy rate shrank from 3.7% to 3.6% between September and December, of which 1.3% was below. Offer.
Additionally, it said 211,000 square feet of real estate, representing 10.3% of its portfolio, is being renovated and repurposed. The group concluded its summary by saying that half of the commercial space in the 72 Broadwick Street scheme is pre-leased, with “increasing interest” in the remaining space.
Shaftesbury comments
CEO Brian Bickel commented:
“Traditionally, the period leading up to and during Christmas and New Year has always been the busiest and most active trading period, and this year was no exception.Early data shows that across the country In contrast to reports of flat or declining revenue and foot traffic, our occupiers in general, and our restaurants in particular, have shown an increase in sales over this period.”
“Although there are early signs of increased activity in the institutional real estate investment market, individual owners in our locations remain reluctant to sell their assets and, as with our portfolio, and the potential for both income and value growth.”
“Our proven strategy and unreplicable portfolio continue to give us confidence in the long-term prospects of our business.”
Memo for investors
The company’s share price increased by 0.78% or 7.00 pence to 907.00 pence per share as of 14:47 (Japan time) on January 31, 2020. Peel Hunt analysts have reiterated their ‘hold’ stance on Shaftesbury. The group’s P/E ratio is 50.56 times and the dividend yield is 1.95%.
