7th Nov 2005 13:09
Wichford plc07 November 2005 The following replaces the acquisition announcement released at 7.00am on 7November 2005 under RNS number 6974T. The total spent by Wichford since its recent £100 million fundraising shouldread over £75 million, rather than the £46 million referred to in the originalstatement. All other details remain unchanged and the amended announcement appears below. 7 November 2005 WICHFORD PLC ACQUISITION OF PROPERTIES IN LEEDS, SOUTHAMPTON AND UXBRIDGE Wichford plc today announces that they have exchanged contracts for theacquisition of three office buildings let to the UK Government in the sum of£28,276,000. The buildings are located in Leeds, Southampton and Uxbridge and produce a totalcurrent rental income of £1,641,125 per annum. The blended net initial yield toWichford plc is therefore 5.6%. Castle House, Leeds The largest of the three acquisitions is Castle House, Lisbon Street, Leedswhich has been acquired from a private property company in the sum of£18,000,000. The property is let to the Secretary of State for the Environmentand fully occupied by the Inland Revenue until 2023. The current rent of£1,005,000 reflects a low rent of £12.84 per sq. ft. and Wichford believe thatthe property is reversionary. The next rent review is December 2008. The net initial yield on this acquisition is 5.28% but the directors of Wichfordbelieve that this will rise substantially at review in 2008. St. Cross House, Southampton In Southampton, Wichford have acquired St Cross House, Bernard Street which is acity centre office building of 42,983 sq. ft. It is let in its entirety to theSecretary of State for the Environment until 24/3/2014 at a current rent of£456,125 per annum which is £10.25 per sq. ft. The building is occupied by the Department for Social Security and Child SupportAgency. The purchase price of £7,400,000 reflects a net initial yield of 6%. The Grange, Hayes, Middlesex The final property is the Grange, Uxbridge Road, Hayes and is the UxbridgeCounty Court. Wichford plc have acquired the property from the Northern IrelandLocal Government Officers Superannuation Committee in the sum of £2,867,500.The building which is freehold is let to the First Secretary of State until 2018at a current rent of £180,000 per annum. The net initial yield is therefore5.9%. Summary Wichford plc have acquired three buildings totalling 132,897 sq. ft. for a totalconsideration of £28,276,000. The average unexpired lease term is 14.7 years andthe average rent per sq. ft. is £12.35. Michael Sheehan, Chairman of Wichford plc said, "We are very excited by these acquisitions. They take the total spent byWichford since the recent £100 million fundraising to over £75 million. Furthermore, in Leeds we have acquired an exciting asset with a long unexpiredterm which is very reversionary and located in a growth city where top rents arealready in excess of £20 per sq. ft". Enquiries: Citigate Dewe Rogerson Tel: 020 7638 9571Patrick Toyne-Sewell / George Cazenove Notes to Editors: Wichford plc listed on AIM in August 2004. The Company maintains a portfolio ofproperties across the UK with unit values usually between £3 million and £20million. Wichford's 45 strong portfolio has a current gross asset value ofalmost £270 million, of which £150 million worth has been acquired since theCompany's admission to AIM, and generates an annualised rental income of justunder £17.5 million. Wichford's properties are occupied by UK Central Government bodies and all areoutside Central London. Wichford is seeking to benefit from the Government'scommitment to act upon the recommendations of the Lyons Review (March 2004) thatabout 20,000 public sector jobs should be relocated outside London and theSouth-East of England over the next seven years. The Company's current portfoliohas a weighted average unexpired lease term in excess of 10 years. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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