AGM Statement

RNS Number : 5843R

NewRiver Retail Limited

30 June 2015

 

NewRiver Retail Limited

("NewRiver" or the "Company")

AGM Statement

At today's Annual General Meeting of NewRiver Retail (AIM: NRR), Chairman Paul Roy will make the following statement:

NewRiver Retail has continued its progress as a specialist REIT focused on the UK retail market and in five years has become the UK's third largest owner and manager of shopping centres managing 5.5 million sq. ft. of retail real estate. The period under review was the most active to date. The Company increased its assets under management by 42 per cent. to £848 million and now has nearly 1400 occupiers across 29 shopping centres, ten retail warehouses, 16 high street assets and a portfolio of 202 public houses. Having started life with an initial seed capital of £25 million in 2009 NewRiver is now valued at over £400 million.

As announced at the Company's full year results on 14 May 2015, NewRiver Retail delivered an impressive fifth consecutive year of profit growth with EPRA adjusted profit increasing to £20.9 million.

Importantly, the full dividend for the year was fully covered by cash profits and increased by 6.25 per cent to 17 pence per share from 16 pence per share in 2014. During the period the Company introduced a quarterly dividend policy, with the first quarterly payment paid in October 2014. Total Shareholder Return for the year was 16 per cent.

During the period NewRiver completed a placing of new shares to raise a total of £75 million, which was immediately deployed through the acquisition of the remaining 90 per cent stake in Camel II, a major shopping centre portfolio, from Bravo I*. Over the course of the year the Company also successfully raised £278 million of new debt to provide new and replacement debt capital through a variety of longstanding banking relationships.

NewRiver successfully deployed £330 million of capital through targeted acquisitions at an attractive net initial yield of 8.12 per cent. The largest acquisition was the Swallowtail portfolio, acquired for £140 million equating to a net initial yield of 7.9 per cent funded through the Company's joint venture with Bravo II*. NewRiver also increased its investments into various other strategic acquisitions including £42.25 million of retail warehouse investments.

The Company also delivered on its proven business strategy successfully re-cycling its capital out of assets where it has completed its asset management strategy via disposals of eight properties for £40.2 million equating to a net initial yield of 7.03 per cent.

NewRiver's active asset management programme has continued with great success delivering a total of 216 leasing events for which all new long-term lettings or lease renewals were 10.1 per cent above estimated values, compared to 1.7 per cent in 2014, reflecting the quality and affordability of the Company's retail assets.

The Company is committed to driving forward its portfolio-wide risk controlled development programme and successfully submitted a total of 52 planning applications within the period, with 24 consents received.  

Significant progress was made on NewRiver's portfolio of 202 public houses acquired from Marston's, with the Co-operative Group signing an Agreement for Lease for 63 convenience stores. Development of the pub portfolio and convenience store programme was well-advanced with 39 of the 52 planning applications submitted during the period pertaining to the pub portfolio and the Company securing 10 consents by the financial year end.

On 19 June 2015 NewRiver announced the Placing of 50,000,000 new shares at 300 pence per Placing Share, which conditional upon resolutions being passed at an EGM on 14 July 2015, will raise gross proceeds of £150 million. The Placing, which was successfully oversubscribed, will fund two specific acquisitions from Bravo II: the approximate £29 million acquisition of the 50 per cent. stake not already owned by NewRiver in the Trent JPUT (the Marston's portfolio) at an implied net initial yield of 10.1 per cent; and the approximate £23 million acquisition of the 50 per cent. stake not already owned by NewRiver in the Camel III JPUT (a portfolio of five shopping centres) at an implied net initial yield of 7.2 per cent; as well as advancing the Company's near term acquisition and development pipeline.

NewRiver simultaneously announced its intention to move from AIM to the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, subject to meeting eligibility criteria.

The Board extends their gratitude to the management, staff and advisors for their hard work and enthusiasm and to our shareholders for their ongoing support and loyalty.

NewRiver has quickly established itself as one of the UK's leading value-creating property investment platforms. The Company is in an excellent position to further capitalise on opportunities to continue its impressive expansion and deliver strong returns for its shareholders. The Board is delighted with the significant progress to date and looks forward to the future with confidence.

*Bravo I and II refers to a fund advised or managed by the Pacific Investment Management Company LLC

-Ends-

For further information

NewRiver Retail Limited  David Lockhart, Chief Executive Mark Davies, Finance Director	Tel: [phone]
Bell Pottinger David Rydell/David Bass/James Newman	Tel: [phone]
Liberum Richard Crawley/Jamie Richards	Tel: [phone]

Peel Hunt LLP Capel Irwin / Alex Vaughan / Hugh Preston

Tel: [phone]

About NewRiver

NewRiver Retail Limited is an AIM listed REIT. The Company is a specialist real estate investor and asset manager focused solely on UK retail with a particular focus on food and value retailing. NewRiver Retail was named Property Company of the Year - Retail & Leisure at the Estates Gazette Awards at the close of 2014. 

The management team, with over 100 years combined experience in the UK commercial property market, actively engages with retailers, stakeholders and consumers. NewRiver Retail is one of the UK's largest shopping centre owner/managers with assets under management of £811 million principally comprising 29 UK wide shopping centres, further nationwide retail assets and a portfolio of 202 public houses principally suitable for conversion to alternative uses. The portfolio has 1,377 occupiers, a total of over 5.4 million sq ft, total annual footfall of over 121 million and a retail occupancy rate of 96 per cent.

The Company's activities include active and entrepreneurial asset management and risk-controlled development, utilising both its own balance sheet and co-investment joint venture structures.

Founded in 2009, NewRiver has become one of the UK's leading retail-focused property investment platforms. The Company's shares were admitted to London's AIM in September of the same year. For more information on NewRiver, please visit www.nrr.co.uk.

 

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