London-listed shopping centre and outlets specialist Hammerson has revealed that its chief financial officer (CFO), Timon Drakesmith, is stepping down after eight years in the role.
According to the firm, Drakesmith will continue to be a board member until his departure, which is inked for 'later this year'.
Hammerson said it would begin to search immediately for a new CFO.
The retail-focused REIT has conceded the headlines to peers Intu, British Land and Landsec in recent months after taking the spotlight last year following a series of market shocks.
Hammerson's withdrawal of its takeover bid for Intu a year ago depressed the shares of its peer by 40%, but also proved a wake-up call for the pan-European REIT, itself the target of a failed Klepierre takeover. Hammerson's shareholder revolt, which had prompted the Intu u-turn, resulted in a strategy shift including significantly elevated disposals targets.
As the UK retail environment detoriated, the disposals strategy was cristallised to include a complete exit of UK retail parks and a target £1.1 bn of asset sales by the end of 2019.
Results 'steady'
Hammerson released 'steady' full year results for 2018, according to analyst Goodbody, with its dividend yield at 7.0% - one of the top UK payers.
However, the valuation declines of its portfolio - down 9.3% in the second half of 2018 - saw the firm's shares slip to trade at a discount of 50% to NAV.
Yet, according to Goodbody, this decline could have been worse and underlines the fact that 54% of Hammerson's portfolio is now non-UK, with holdings in France and Ireland buffering the company's performance overall.
Hammerson's flexibility on further sales has also pleased analysts, with the company stating in February it was open to nearly doubling planned disposals this year - although success depends on investor demand for UK retail, which Goodbody called 'thin'.
Future plans
Last month, Hammerson appointed a new senior leasing manager for F&B and leisure, Abby Hughes, as it reiterated evolution plans for its portfolio.
The firm has managed to attract several new F&B concepts to its shopping centres and outlets over the past 12 months, including @pizza and Herman Ze German at Grand Central, Birmingham, Brewdog at Union Square, Aberdeen, and plant-based fast food operator Miami Burger at The Oracle, Reading.
'It’s a really exciting time to be working in F&B and leisure, as there’s an incredible range of new concepts and brands coming through, and we’re seeing lots of demand for space in our flagship destinations,' commented Kate Orwin, UK leasing director.
Despite Hammerson's active management approach, Goodbody calculates that the troubled UK retailer environment is in any case likely to wipe another 6% off the value of the company's portfolio this year.
