4th Jun 2014 07:35
LONDON (Alliance News) - Workspace Group PLC saw its shares jump to lead the FTSE 250 Wednesday after the company reported elevated pretax profit figures as it remains focused on redevelopment activity and its acquisition programme in London, which has boosted the value of its property portfolio to over GBP1 billion.
The manager of London office space said pretax profit for the year to March 31, 2014 rose to GBP252.5 million from the GBP76.4 million reported in 2013.
Workspace Group also increased its dividend per share by 10% to 10.63 pence per share, up from the 9.67 pence paid last year, resulting in a final dividend of 7.09 pence per share, compared to 6.45 pence per share in 2013.
Like-for-like rent roll was up 8.5% for the year to GBP47.4 million from GBP43.7 million the previous year. Total rent roll rose 10.6% to GBP58.3 million, said Workspace, up on the GBP52.7 million reported in 2013. On a like-for-like basis, rent per square foot rose 8.5% to GBP15.28 from GBP14.08.
The company also reported steady like-for-like occupancy at 90.0%, marginally higher than the 89.8% reported in March last year.
The FTSE 250-listed company said its underlying property valuation rose 27%, or GBP228 million, taking the value of its portfolio to GBP1.08 billion, with a 14% increase realised in its second-half.
Total property return came in at 34.7% compared to 13.4% for IPD UK Property Index, said Workspace. Full-year like-for-like initial yield was slightly lower at 6.4%, compared to 7.3% last year and like-for-like estimated rental values were up 12.3% to GBP16.13 per square foot from GBP14.36.
Over the last 18 months the company has completed seven refurbishments at a cost of GBP27 million and has eight further refurbishment projects currently underway at a total estimated cost of GBP74 million, it said.
The company also completed a refinancing programme during the year providing a diversified funding base with all debt unsecured and an average maturity of 6.8 years, compared to 2.9 years as of March 2013. The refinancing "gives us far greater operational flexibility to execute our capital expenditure programme to redevelop and refurbish existing assets and create buildings that complement our strategy," said the company.
Workspace Group is encouraged by its latest results, buoyed by the company's commitment to its strategy to supply London-based companies with properties in highly-desired locations with required facilities and services, it said, "Not only are we benefiting from our focused refurbishment and redevelopment programme but we have continued to strengthen the direct relationships we have with our customers by becoming an essential partner, thus helping their businesses to grow faster."
The market in London remains an attractive and opportunity-full area, supporting the company for the future, it said, "New areas are emerging and establishing, occupiers are generally more fleet of foot and modern communication channels have revolutionised the way businesses operate. Workspace is embracing this change via its refurbishment and redevelopment activity as well as making selective property acquisitions in strategic locations across the capital," said Jamie Hopkins, Chief Executive of Workspace.
Hopkins is confident for the firm's future growth, "Combining our knowledge of London and our customers' needs leaves us ideally placed to continue to grow our business."
Shares in Workspace Group were trading 5.82% higher at 618 pence per share Wednesday morning, the biggest gainer on the FTSE 250.
By Alice Attwood; [email protected]; @AliceAtAlliance
Copyright 2014 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
Workspace