In QuotedData’s morning briefing 27 July 2021:
- HICL Infrastructure has reaffirmed its 8.25p dividend target for the year ended 3 March 2022. traffic volumes on its toll roads are recovering but international traffic on High Speed 1 (the Channel tunnel rail link) is running at 15% of normal levels. The company says that discussions with lenders to the project are “ongoing and remain constructive”. Demand for infrastructure assets is such that it could benefit HICL’s NAV (with a reduction in discount rates). In addition, the value of Affinity Water may rise to reflect recent transactions in that sector. The new tax plans of the G7 countries are not expected to impact the next NAV (as at 30 September – to be published in November).
- SME Credit Realisation (SCRF) says that, at the end of March 2021, its NAV was £119m or 88.87p per share. The shares were trading at a 29% discount at that date. The fund paid an unchanged dividend of 5.25p for the year to the end of March. About 124m shares were redeemed for about £105.5m over the period and the company no longer has any borrowing facilities. Some loans that had been written down in value in response to the COVID-19 outbreak were revalued higher at the year end.
- Bankers Investment Trust (BNKR) has agreed to issue £37m fixed rate 24 year unsecured private placement notes at an annualised coupon of 2.28% and €44m fixed rate 20 year unsecured private placement notes at an annualised coupon of 1.67%. The weighted average interest payable on the company’s fixed rate borrowings will decrease from 4.68% to 3.23% as at the date of funding (3 August 2021) and will further decrease to 2.66% following the repayment of £15m of 8% debenture stock due on 31 October 2023.
- Hibernia REIT (HBRN) has agreed heads of terms for a pre-let of the majority of its 337,000 sq ft office development at Harcourt Square, Dublin, with KPMG Ireland at an initial net effective rent slightly below €50 per sq ft per annum.
- Unite (UTG) has posted half-year results in which it forecasts 95% to 98% occupancy of student beds in the 2021/22 academic year with rents up 2%-3% on this year. EPRA earnings was up 8% to 22.2p per share, while EPRA net tangible assets (NTA) was up 2% to 837p per share. First half profit was £130.4m. The group also revealed the cost of removing unsafe cladding from 22 of its towers over next 12-18 months will be £96.4m.
- Capital & Counties (CAPC) also reported half-year results. The value of its Covent Garden estate was down £85m (4.9% like for like) to £1.7bn since December 2020, with EPRA NTA down 6% to 199p per share. Its stake in Shaftesbury, which cost £501m, is now worth £552m.
In other news, RTW Venture has made an investment in Artios