Helical enjoyed a “good” first half of its financial year, securing multiple lettings at “significant premiums” to March ERVS. Its NAV was up 0.8% to the end of September 2022 and its interim dividend increased by 5.2% to 3.05p per share.
Gerald Kaye, Helical chief executive, said: “We are seeing strong demand from tenants for best-in-class office space, as evidenced by the Partners Group letting at The JJ Mack Building, EC1 (pictured). We believe there is an intrinsic shortage of this top quality space as demand exceeds supply over the short and medium term.
“The bifurcation that has been evident for a few years in the leasing market, between the best-in-class most sustainable buildings and the rest, has now appeared in the investment market, accentuated by rising bond yields and interest rates. We anticipate this will accelerate, with yields stabilising and rents continuing to grow for the best-in-class most sustainable buildings, such as those that comprise the Helical portfolio, and yields moving outwards and rents falling for the rest.”
He added: “Price discovery will continue for the poorer quality less sustainable second-hand buildings as they decouple from the rest of the market. In time, these assets will provide Helical with the opportunity to turn these tired office buildings into market leading and highly sustainable new spaces providing amenity rich and technologically enabled offices which will appeal to discerning tenants seeking the best environment for their staff. This will enable us to continue to provide strong returns from our developments over the medium term.”
