# NewRiver REIT plc To acquire Sprucefield Retail Park, Lisburn for £40.0 million

- Link: https://www.directorstalkinterviews.com/newriver-reit-plc-to-acquire-sprucefield-retail-park-lisburn-for-40-0-million/412798872
- Published: 2019-11-25T07:30:57+00:00
- Author: Giles Arbor

**NewRiver REIT** (LON: NRR) has today announced that it has exchanged contracts
to acquire Sprucefield Retail Park, Lisburn from Intu Properties plc for £40.0 million,
representing a net initial yield of 8.7%. Once completed, the acquisition will generate
an additional £3.7 million of annualised Net Property Income for NewRiver.

Sprucefield Retail Park is one of Northern Ireland’s leading out-of-town retail 
destinations and is located just one mile south of Lisburn city centre, adjacent
to the main junction between Northern Ireland’s M1 motorway and the A1 road, which
is the main route connecting Northern Ireland to the Irish Republic. The 47-acre
site comprises a five-unit retail park providing 231,000 sq of retail space, a 1,200-
space free car park and 18 acres of development land. The retail park is anchored
by Sainsbury’s and B&Q, and has an affordable average rent of £16.11 per sq ft, 
with a weighted average unexpired lease term of 7.5 years.

In addition to benefiting from an attractive entry price with a yield of 8.7% and
a capital value per sq ft of £19 across the site, NewRiver has identified significant
opportunities to extract value from the asset, through active asset management and
the disposal of parcels of land for development. Proposed asset management initiatives
include letting a vacant unit at the asset, for which negotiations have already 
begun with prospective tenants, and right-sizing units to increase the [sustainability](https://www.directorstalkinterviews.com/sustainability-green-stocks-news)
of income and diversify the retail offer. The gross asset value subject to this 
transaction is £40.0 million, and this will be satisfied from existing resources
and available credit facilities.

> **Allan Lockhart, NewRiver REIT plc Chief Executive commented: **
> “We are pleased to announce that we have exchanged contracts to acquire Sprucefield
> Retail Park. This high-quality asset will generate £3.7 million of annualised 
> Net Property Income, which will be highly accretive to Underlying Funds From Operations
> and significant in improving our dividend cover, which is our key priority. In
> addition to an attractive long-term income return, the development land offers
> the opportunity to deliver significant capital growth, leading to a very attractive
> total return. Our successful disposal programme in this financial year places 
> us in a position to take advantage of current market dislocations and make highly
> accretive acquisitions such as Sprucefield Retail Park and the recently-acquired
> Poole Retail Park.”

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