UK REIT Hammerson has exchanged contracts and completed the sale of Thurrock Shopping Park, Essex, to TH Real Estate for £93 min (€119.7 mln).
The sale price represents a net initial yield of 5.3% and is moderately below the book value as at end-December 2015.
Hammerson purchased the property for £64 mln in 2012 as part of the Junction Fund Portfolio. Since then the company has carried out £3 mln of capital expenditure to redevelop the cinema site into three new retail units and upgraded the tenant line-up to a more fashion-led retail mix. As part of this programme, it has secured the UK’s first Nike Outlet on a retail park and achieved planning consent on the development site.
The ownership of a 26 acre site is being retained for development by Hammerson with planning consent for 320 residential units over 18 acres and 7,600 m2 of retail and leisure.
Commenting on the sale, CEO David Atkins said he was pleased to announce a further step in the company's £300 mln disposal programme. 'This highlights our continued focus on rotating Hammerson’s retail platform towards our higher growth assets. Thurrock has shown excellent returns during our ownership and this transaction provides a good opportunity to crystallise a £26 mln profit on cost with further upside expected from the retained development opportunity.'
Thurrock Shopping Park comprises two retail schemes with net internal area of 25,500 m2 and is situated next to junction 31 of the M25. Tenants include M&S, Gap, Pets at Home, Decathlon, Boots, Evans Cycles and Dunelm.
Hammerson is a FTSE 100 owner, manager and developer of retail properties in Europe with a value of around £9.1 bn. The portfolio includes 20 prime shopping centres, 21 convenient retail parks and investments in 15 premium outlet villages, through our partnership with Value Retail and the VIA Outlets joint venture. Key investments include Bullring, Birmingham, Bicester Village, Kildare Village and Les Terrasses du Port, Marseille.
