Capital unties Properties : Audited Preliminary Results For The Year Ended 31 December 2019

Audited Preliminary Results For The Year Ended 31 December 2019

Ian Hawksworth, Chief Executive, commented:

'Capco looks forward to the next phase of growth, with a strategic focus on the West End and Covent Garden, where we have created a world-class estate. As a strongly capitalised REIT, with access to substantial liquidity, Capco is well-positioned to take advantage of investment opportunities whilst also offering resilience during periods of economic uncertainty. Our creative approach to leasing and asset management continues to contribute to increased footfall and tenant sales at Covent Garden, giving us confidence in the long-term prospects of the business to deliver superior total returns to our shareholders.'

Capco is positioned as a strongly capitalised prime central London REIT

Key financials

• Equity attributable to owners of the Parent of £2.5 billion (2018: £2.7 billion)
• EPRA NAV 293 pence per share, a decrease of 10 per cent (2018: 326 pence per share and Jun 2019: 315 pence per share), driven primarily by Earls Court and Covent Garden valuation movement
• Total property value £2.8 billion, a decrease of 1.7 per cent (like-for-like) (2018: £2.8 billion adjusted for the sale of Earls Court interests)
• Underlying EPS 1.0 pence per share (2018: 0.9 pence per share)
• Proposed final 2019 dividend of 1.0 pence per share resulting in a full-year dividend of 1.5 pence per share
• Total shareholder return of 14 per cent in 2019

Strong balance sheet with significant financial flexibility

• Sale of Capco's interests in Earls Court for £425 million, enhancing financial flexibility and positioning Capco to capitalise on investment opportunities
• Current group loan to value of 16 per cent, before receipt of Earls Court deferred consideration (2018:18 per cent)
• Group cash and undrawn facilities £895 million (2018: £854 million)
• Group net debt £442 million (2018: £573 million), with capital commitments of £14 million (2018: £53 million)
• Weighted average debt maturity of 4.9 years (2018: 6 years) and weighted average cost of debt of 2.97 per cent (2018: 2.92 per cent)
• Intention to grow dividend distributions in line with progression in underlying earnings
• Return of capital of up to £100 million through share buyback programme this year

Covent Garden

An active year across the estate; average sales and footfall continue to trend upwards

• Continued growth in net rental income, up 1.8 per cent (like-for-like) and 7.0 per cent in absolute terms
• Robust demand across all uses; 92 new leases and renewals, representing £17.4 million contracted income transacted at 1.3 per cent above 31 December 2018 ERV
• 13 new brands opened across the estate including Lacoste, Polo Ralph Lauren, VyTA and Glossier
• Expansion and investment by global brands, including upsizing of Bucherer and extension of Apple lease
• High occupancy, renewal rates and strong demand for offices and residential

Resilient performance

• London's West End has proved to be more resilient than the wider UK market but is not unaffected
• Total property value of £2.6 billion, a decrease of 1.4 per cent (like-for-like) (2018: £2.6 billion) driven by positive performance across the estate, offset by negative adjustments at Long Acre and James Street
• ERV broadly stable, -0.1 per cent (like-for-like) to £108 million (2018: £108 million)
• Equivalent yield up 6 basis points to 3.65 per cent (2018: 3.59 per cent)
• Initial yield moved from 2.4 per cent to 2.5 per cent as the reversionary potential continues to be captured
• EPRA vacancy remains stable at 3 per cent (2018: 3 per cent) with a small number of units available for letting

Strong track record of investment activity

• Accretive investment and aggregation of ownership of Covent Garden estate generating £1.2 billion of value since 2010
• Award winning Floral Court residential new-build apartments fully sold for £100 million of cumulative proceeds
• Over £70 million invested in 2019 through targeted acquisitions on the southern side of the estate and pipeline of additional opportunities under review

Other investments

• Sale of Capco's interests in Earls Court for £425 million, in line with long-term strategy
• Deferred consideration of £210.4 million from the sale of Earls Court to be received over the next two years
• Lillie Square Phase 2 completion and handover on track for 2020, over 80 per cent pre-sold representing approximately £100 million of sales proceeds (Capco share)

KEY FINANCIALS

	2019	2018
Equity attributable to owners of the Parent	£2,478m	£2,736m
Equity attributable to owners of the Parent per share	£290.0p	£321.6p
-9.6% Total return in 2019 (2018: -2.0%)
EPRA net asset value	£2,506m	£2,777m
EPRA net asset value per share	292.9p	325.7p
Dividend per share	1.5p	1.5p
-5.4% Total property return in 2019 (2018: -0.4%)
Property market value1	£2,774m	£3,268m
Net rental income from continuing operations2	£61.2m	£57.5m
Loss for the year attributable to owners of the Parent	£(253.6)m	£(56.9)m
Headline loss per share3	(2.2)p	(0.8)p
Basic loss per share3	(29.7)p	(6.7)p
Underlying earnings per share3	1.0p	0.9p

1. On a Group share basis. Refer to Property Data for the Group's percentage ownership of property.
2. On a Group share basis. Refer to the Financial Review.
3. From continuing and discontinued operations. Refer to Consolidated Underlying Profit Statement.

ENQUIRIES

Capital & Counties Properties PLC:

Ian Hawksworth	Chief Executive	[phone]
Situl Jobanputra	Chief Financial Officer	[phone]
Sarah Corbett	Head of Investor Relations	[phone]

Media enquiries:

Director of Communications	Sarah Hagan	[phone]
UK: Hudson Sandler	Michael Sandler	[phone]
SA: Instinctif	Frederic Cornet	[phone]

A presentation to analysts and investors will take place today at 08.15am at the offices of UBS, 5 Broadgate, London, EC2M 2QS. The presentation will also be available to international analysts and investors through a live audio call and webcast and after the event on the Group's website at www.capitalandcounties.com.

A copy of this announcement is available for download from our website at www.capitalandcounties.com and hard copies can be requested via the website or by contacting the Company ([e-mail] or telephone [phone]).