Intu is exploring a sale of all or half of its ownership in its 1.3m sq ft Derby shopping centre.
The shopping centre REIT has appointed CBRE to review a potential sale and joint venture options.
Pricing has not yet been determined, but the mall was valued at £458m at the end of last year according to the company’s annual report. At the time it generated £28.9m of income, reflecting a 6% net initial yield.
Intu Derby hosts 212 stores, occupied by retailers including Marks & Spencer, Debenhams, Sainsbury’s and Next. Intu acquired the Derby asset in 2014 from Westfield, which traded as Westfield Derby under the Australian company’s ownership.
Both intu and Hammerson have begun reconfiguring their portfolios following the collapse of their proposed merger in April. It had been intended that once the deal had completed that £2bn of disposals would be made.
Hammerson is starting a programme of £500m of sales and yesterday EG revealed that the company was in talks to sell a 50% stake in its Highcross shopping centre in Leicester for £240m to a Japanese bank fronted by M&G Real Estate.
Shopping centre investment – something’s got to give
Intu’s assessment of options for the future of the Derby centre is a further sign of a slight uptick in confidence in the retail investment market that has recently seen depressed activity on the back of a swathe of store closures, company voluntary arrangement processes and retailer administrations.
Earlier this month, EG revealed that specialist investment and asset manager Ellandi had raised £100m of capital from Deutsche Finance International to target the struggling asset class.
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