Empiric Student Property is predicting a return to pre-pandemic growth, with occupancy ahead of 2019.
Chief executive Duncan Garrood said: “We are now two-thirds of the way through our booking cycle for the academic year 2022/23, and to date we have achieved revenue occupancy of 68%.”
The last pre-Covid academic year, 2019/20, saw bookings at 62% at the same stage.
Garrood added: “We remain confident of achieving our guidance for revenue occupancy for the forthcoming academic year of 85% to 95%, with a target of delivering at the upper end of that range, assuming no further market disruption.”
Empric has also continued to recycle capital, with £80m of non-core property remaining to sell.
In the first quarter of 2022, it sold five sites for £26.5m. Since the disposal programme began it has sold nine sites for £44.6m, all above book value.
Empiric used the funds to acquire the 92-bed Market Quarter in Bristol city centre, for £19m in February, which was fully booked within weeks of being bought, with an 18% increase in rent.
It added that its two construction projects at St Mary’s in Bristol and South Bridge in Edinburgh were on track, while there was a “good pipeline of potential high-quality investments” that could be activated once the proceeds from further disposals are received.
Garrood added: “We are increasingly encouraged by the continued return to normal levels of activity in our markets and by the outlook for our business.”
The company also announced that Lynne Fennah will be stepping down from her role as chief financial and sustainability officer to pursue other interests. She will remain in her position until May 2023 to help handover to her successor.
Fennah joined Empiric in June 2017 as CFO. She also took on the role of COO and, following Tim Attlee’s departure in 2020, additional responsibilities prior to the arrival of Duncan Garrood as CEO in September 2020.
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