12th Jun 2020 08:00
(Alliance News) - Real estate investment trust Stenprop Ltd on Friday reported a fall in annual net rental income, though its net asset value inched higher.
Net asset value per share at March 31 edged 0.7% higher year-on-year to GBP1.37 from GBP1.36.
Stenprop's net rental income slipped 2.7% to GBP33.0 million from GBP33.9 million.
The company held its total payout at 6.75 pence per share.
Chief Executive Officer Paul Arenson said: "The new financial year is likely to be challenging with Covid-19 and Brexit headwinds but we are well positioned to meet these challenges with exposure to resilient assets, a strong balance sheet and free cash of approximately GBP70 million."
During the year, its assets in the industrial sector were the best performers. Total return there was 7.6%, topping the market average of 2.2%.
"Due to the current macroeconomic volatility, making assumptions for the forthcoming year is difficult at this time. We anticipate that the industrial sector is well placed to re-open with more scope for social distancing in the work place due to lower employee volumes and lack of ability to work from home. If investors can get comfortable with the changes in the occupational market, then their ability to underwrite deals with confidence will lead to some increase in transaction volume," Stenprop said.
The stock was up 0.4% in Johannesburg early Friday at ZAR24.21.
By Eric Cunha; [email protected]
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