Sirius Real Estate (LON:SRE), the leading owner and operator of branded business and industrial parks providing conventional space and flexible workspace in Germany and the UK, has provided an update on trading for its financial year ended 31 March 2023.
In what has been a more challenging economic backdrop during the year, the Group has achieved an 8.1%* increase in overall rent roll (7.7%* on a like for like basis), reflecting management’s ability to capture rental growth in the current inflationary environment. For the ninth consecutive year, the Group has achieved like for like rent roll growth in excess of 5%. Cash collection has remained robust at above 98.5% on a rolling 12-month basis. The Group expects to deliver full year results in line with market expectations.
In Germany, our rental rates grew largely in line with our rent roll, reflecting the stable occupancy rates in the country. Our in-house asset management platform continues to manage product mix and occupancy carefully alongside rate to yield the best overall returns from our space.
In our recently acquired UK business, BizSpace, we have successfully firmed rates to position our assets for better returns in the long term. Rent roll growth in the UK was in line with the Group level and rental rates have increased well in excess of inflation. We have been comfortable ceding a small amount of occupancy in return for these higher rates and we believe this positions the business well to take advantage of any recovery in the macroeconomic climate.
The Group’s balance sheet remains strong with cash reserves of €123 million with around 90% of the Group’s debt maturing in excess of three years. During the year the Group successfully re-financed its Berlin Hyp AG €170 million facility at a 4.26% interest rate for a 7-year term, which from commencement in November 2023 will take the overall weighted average Group cost of debt to 1.9%. Whilst the Group is mindful of the probable higher interest expense arising from future re-financings, it is also confident that the leverage levels will continue to have a positive overall effect on shareholder returns, given the relatively high yielding nature of the Group’s assets and the continued growth in the rent roll which will help to offset future increases in financing costs.
During the past twelve months, the Group’s acquisitions and disposals were largely matched, at approximately €45 million of each. Acquisitions largely completed in the first half of the year, and focused on Germany, where we have utilised our operating platform to continue to drive value.
Our disposals strategy remains opportunistic and fixed on non-core or mature assets with little upside, where we can achieve returns in excess of book value, as evidenced through the 25% combined premium to book value achieved on the six disposals completed during the last 12 months. This efficient recycling of capital will continue to be a mainstay of Sirius’s strategy.
Commenting on trading during the period, Andrew Coombs, Chief Executive Officer of Sirius Real Estate, said: “Against a challenging market backdrop during the year, Sirius has delivered another period of strong operational performance. The Group expects to deliver results for the financial year ended 31 March 2023 in line with market expectations, and I look forward to the announcement of our fully audited results on Monday June 5th.”
Full Year Results
Sirius Real Estate will announce results for the financial year ended 31 March 2023 on Monday, 5 June 2023, at which time there will be an in-person presentation and virtual webinar for analysts and investors.
The financial information on which this trading update is based has not been reviewed or reported on by the Company´s external auditors or a reporting accountant.
*Group rent roll has been translated utilising a constant foreign currency exchange rate of GBP:EUR 1.1374, being the closing exchange rate as at 31 March 2023.
