Spanish retail REIT Lar España posted strong annual results, as a recovery in retail continues at pace.
The company, which owns shopping centres and retail parks across Spain, reported total revenues of €95m in the year to 31 December 2023, an increase of 14% over the €83.6m in 2022.
Recurring net profit, excluding the accounting effect of valuations, was €77.2m, 91.6% more than the €40.3m of the previous year.
EPRA net tangible assets (NTA) was down 1.7% over the year to €10.74 per share, while the value of its portfolio was down 2.4% to €1,313m.
The board has approved a dividend for the year of €0.79 per share, representing a total distribution of €66.2m and a dividend yield of 12.9% on share price at 31 December 2023. This is fully covered by EPRA earnings per share of €0.91.
The dividend is made up of an ordinary dividend of €58.7m, the largest in the history of Lar España, and a €7.5m special dividend from the profits from the sale of two assets during the year. If this remuneration is approved by shareholders, the company would have distributed a total of €391.2m since its creation in 2014.
Lar España’s net LTV was 31.0%, with an average financing cost of 1.8% and an average debt maturity of 3.8 years.
José Luis del Valle, chairman of Lar España, said: “The results obtained last year by the company strengthen our position for the next real estate cycle, in which retail is expected to be an especially attractive segment. Excluding the accounting effect of valuation changes, our recurring net profit follows a clear line of growth, from €27.1 million in 2021 to €40.3 million in 2022 and €77.2 million last year. Pending shareholder approval, this solidity will allow us to remain faithful to our mandate of optimizing returns, thanks to a record ordinary dividend to which we will add extraordinary income from the sales of two commercial parks in the context of our mature asset rotation policy.”