LondonMetric sells UK shopping park at 5.27% yield

LondonMetric Property has sold the Bishop Auckland shopping park in northeastern England to Standard Life Investments for £23.6 mln (€30 mln), reflecting a net initial yield of 5.27%.

The former Focus unit and adjacent land was acquired for £2.3 mln and developed by Metric Property Investments in two phases between 2012 and 2013 at a total cost of £15.8 mln.

The 76,500 sq ft (7,100 m2) Open A1 shopping park consists of 12 units and is anchored by M&S, Boots, TK Maxx and Next with a weighted average unexpired lease term of 9.4 years.

'The investment market remains competitive for well let assets and so we will look to monetise our investments where we have completed asset management and development initiatives, with deep confidence of deploying the capital into other opportunities that offer superior income and capital growth,' said Andrew Jones, CEO of LondonMetric.

BNP Paribas advised Standard Life on the purchase of Bishop Auckland.