31st Aug 2006 13:22
British Land Co PLC31 August 2006 31 August 2006 £110 MILLION CITY DEAL AGREED The British Land Company PLC has disposed of 133 Houndsditch in the City ofLondon to the Henderson Central London Office Fund for £110 million. The net initial yield is 4.0% and reversionary yield is 6.5%. The Houndsditch site extends to an area of 1.02 acres with office, retail andancillary accommodation accounting for 210,046 sq ft. Income receivable from theproperty, which is 60 per cent occupied, totals £4.5 million per annum. Bob Bowden, Property Investment Director, British Land said: "The sale hasdelivered a strong investment price for us and is at a premium to the March 2006book value. It reflects our on-going programme to reshape the portfolio andrecycle capital into other projects, particularly developments, which havebetter prospects for enhanced returns." Commenting on the deal, Clive Castle, Fund Manger of Henderson's Central LondonOffice Fund said: "The property offers the Fund significant exposure to the Citymarket which we believe will continue to strengthen in the short to medium term,driven by a limited supply of good quality floorplates and healthy tenantdemand. The Fund will undertake a major refurbishment of the building including80,000 sq ft of floorspace over the coming year." British Land was advised by DTZ on the Houndsditch sale. Henderson was advisedby Nelson Bakewell. Notes to Editors •British Land also concludes the disposal of 51 Eastcheap, at the heart of London's financial and insurance services district, for £55 million this month. The sale delivers a 7 per cent gain above the March 2006 valuation. •In the financial year to date, British Land has carried out more than £500 million of value enhancing disposals and acquired £820 million of new assets as it continues to tighten its focus on London Office and Retail Parks while recycling capital within advantages sectors. •British Land's office assets are valued at £5.5 billion and represent 36 per cent of the £15.2 billion property portfolio. About Henderson's Central London Office FundA closed ended Jersey Property Unit Trust, the Central London Office Fund waslaunched in March 2004. Principally investing in the City, West End and MidTown, the fund offers investors the opportunity to access the Central Londonoffice markets. The current portfolio includes 23 assets with a combined valueof £766 million (August 2006). The portfolio is largely multi-let, offeringopportunities for asset management initiatives. The Fund Manager is Clive Castle. About Henderson PropertyHenderson is one of Europe's leading property asset managers with over €8.7billion of property funds managed pan Europe. The property team comprises 129employees in London, Frankfurt, Milan, Paris and Amsterdam. It also hasadditional asset management capabilities through joint venture partners inHamburg and Vienna. The property business manages pooled and segregated accounts, which invest inproperties offering core and value-added returns. In addition to investingacross all commercial sectors, it also manages funds with sector specialist and/or regional themes. Henderson's property business includes a market-leadingresearch capability. Every month it carries out analysis and forecasting forover 400 individual pan-European towns, assessing opportunities in order tomaximise returns and deliver out performance. About Henderson Global InvestorsEstablished in 1934, Henderson Global Investors is a leading independent globalasset management firm. The company provides its institutional, retail and highnet-worth clients with access to skilled investment professionals representing abroad range of asset classes, including equities, fixed income, property andprivate capital. Headquartered in London, Henderson is one of Europe's largestinvestment managers, with £67.7 billion assets under management (as at December2005) and employs around 900 people world-wide. Contacts The British Land Company PLCLaura De Vere, Director Corporate Communications 020 7467 2920 HendersonRichard Acworth 020 7818 4222Henderson Press Office [email protected] Finsbury:Ed Simkins 020 7521 3801 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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