Intu Properties has exceeded expectations with an 8% rise in rental income across its £9.6bn portfolio.
Rental income across the group was £428m per annum by the end of December 2015, a like-for-like growth rate of 1.8%. In the second half of 2015 the growth rate was 4.5%.
Valuations rose through both yield compression and ERV growth, said chief financial officer Matthew Roberts.
The 250 new lettings across the group were boosted, said Roberts, because of client demand and through investment in shopping centres which has created new units.
The company has set aside £2bn for investment in the portfolio, including some possible acquisitions. While the UK remains the key focus of the company, most development activity in the UK is now focused on the portfolio in Spain.
Gross profit for the year was down on the previous year at £518m as the capital revaluation rate slowed through 2015. Underlying earnings, however, were up to £187m.
Roberts said of the overall performance: “The business operationally is in very good shape, it has taken us a few years to recover from the issues of 2008-10 but the business is performing strongly in many directions.”
Earnings per share exceeded analyst expectations at 14.2p per share and the company expects to pay a dividend of 13.7 p per share, the same as in 2014.
