What the other papers say this morning – 29 January 2014 January 28, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES AO.com aims for £1bn valuation AO.com, the online electricals retailer, is aiming for a £1bn valuation when it floats on the London Stock Exchange later this year – more than treble the market capitalisation it was hoping to achieve just four months ago. Several investors have told the Financial Times that the retailer, [...]
New tenant for British Land’s Cheesegrater January 28, 2014 BRITISH Land said yesterday it has secured another tenant at the Cheesegrater skyscraper as the property giant reported growing demand for London office space. Australian serviced office provider Servcorp has signed a deal to take the whole of the 30th floor of British Land and Oxford Properties’ development on Leadenhall Street, which is due to [...]
Analyst Views: Did British Land perform in line with your expectations? January 28, 2014 JOHN CAHILL | ORIEL SECURITIES Good performance over the third quarter, with rents on new lettings and renewals improving in both London and the regions. Development completions are due into favourable market conditions, and with a dividend yield ahead of peers, British Land remains our preferred large exposure to the London market. BART GYSENS | [...]
We’re seeing respectable growth for a New Normal but real risks still remain January 28, 2014 UK ECONOMIC growth is looking up. The 0.7 per cent GDP increase in the fourth quarter of 2013 might not have been as strong as some commentators were expecting, but it means economic activity is up a full 2.8 per cent on a year ago. It’s not as strong as the 3.3 per cent growth [...]
Buoyant property market brings good news for British Land January 28, 2014 Property giant British Land has reported like-for-like occupancy up 0.3 percentage points to 97.1 per cent and overall occupancy including recently completed developments at 96.5 per cent, according to its interim management statement for the quarter to 31 December 2013. British Land saw £405m of sales since the end of the half year (£122m since [...]
Gimme 5 January 26, 2014 …STARTUPS CROWDFUNDING THIS MONTH Films of London Target: £125,000 for 25 per cent equity Film production and development company specialising in low to medium budget feature films. Raised: £61,200 via Seedrs 18 days left Lawbit Target: £120,000 for 6.48 per cent equity Online legal service providing plain English contracts for small companies. Raised: £64,040 via [...]
PayPoint tops up sales after ATM use booms January 23, 2014 UK PAYMENTS service PayPoint, a fixture at many corner shops across London, yesterday said year-on-year revenues rose four per cent in the third quarter to £57m, thanks to strong bill and general payment growth. The FTSE-250 listed group, which was founded in 1996 to help people pay bills at the local shop, said increased use [...]
Analyst Views: Has Land Securities’ update changed your outlook for the group? January 22, 2014 ALISON WATSON | LIBERUM This is a solid statement. Management reports further pre-letting progress within its development pipeline, a rise in central London occupational demand and positive trends in its retail portfolio. Whilst this supports our expectation of a gradual recovery in the retail market, we forecast a return to only benign growth. KEITH CRAWFORD [...]
London to see bigger property deals this year after City’s record quarter January 22, 2014 Not long ago there used to be a thing as too large a scheme in London, even for overseas investors and risk-takers in the property sector. But size, as demonstrated by Kuwaiti firm St Martins’s £1.7bn acquisition of More London last month, is no longer a hurdle. And this will become an even more apparent [...]
Walkie Scorchie owner rides development boom January 22, 2014 The owner of the Walkie Talkie tower (aka Walkie Scorchie), Land Securities, has reported strong activity in developments and occupancy, according to its third quarter interim management statement. The UK's largest commercial property owner also said it expects to submit a planning application next month for its solution to "the solar glare issue" afflicting the [...]