LondonMetric Property has acquired three urban logistics warehouses for £35.4m in separate transactions, reflecting a blended net initial yield (NIY) of 4.4% and a reversionary yield of 4.9%.
The properties generate a combined rent of £1.7m a year with 83% of the income benefiting from RPI or CPI linked rent review. The warehouses have a WAULT of 15 years.
The assets are:
- a 130,000 sq ft property in Worthing, acquired for £19.0m through a sale and lease back transaction with Bowers & Wilkins, a global leader in high performance audio technology. The occupier has agreed a new 15 year lease with rent reviews linked to CPI. The building serves as its headquarters, main manufacturing centre and distribution warehouse;
- a 50,000 sq ft property in Uckfield, acquired for £10.3m and let to John Lewis for a further 15 years with RPI linked rent reviews. The building is located on the A22 / A272 junction and has a low site density of 32%; and
- a 47,000 sq ft property in Exeter acquired for £6.1m and let to Jewson for a further 17 years. The building has strong reversionary and redevelopment potential and benefits from open market rent reviews with the next review in March 2022. It is located next to the M5 / A30 junction with the majority of the investment value supported by the residual land.
The acquisitions are part of LondonMetric’s strategy to build its urban logistics portfolio, a sub-sector of the booming logistics sector that is perceived to have the strongest growth characteristics due to large occupier demand and tight supply. The company has been selling its mega warehouses and ploughing the proceeds into urban logistics warehouses, last month selling a Primark-let warehouse for £102m.
Andrew Jones, chief executive, said: “These urban logistics assets are in good locations and let on long leases with certainty of income growth. We are continuing to find attractive opportunities for redeploying capital into our preferred sectors of urban logistics and grocery-led long income.”
LMP : LondonMetric buys trio of urban logistics warehouses