Hammerson reported a “strong” performance and announced a return to a cash dividend in its half-year results.
Its adjusted earnings for the period were up 15% to £56m (HY 2022: £48m) and the company reported strong footfall and like-for-like sales growth across its portfolio. It posted an IFRS loss of £1m in the period compared with a £50m profit in the half-year 2022.
Hammerson reduced its net debt 24% to £1,318m (FY 2022: £1,732m) and completed £215m of disposals in the first half of 2023. It said it was on track to complete its £500m programme by the end of the 2023 financial year.
The value of Hammerson’s portfolio fell to £4.7bn (FY 2022: £5.1bn), which it principally attributed to the disposals it made during H1. The company announced it would pay an interim cash dividend per share of 0.72p.
Rita-Rose Gagné, chief executive of Hammerson, said: “We are pleased to have delivered a strong first half and announce a return to a cash dividend as we look to the future with confidence. Our leasing momentum in 2022 has continued into the first half of 2023 and we have a strong pipeline for the second half. Our core portfolio continues to attract the best occupiers which, combined with our emphasis on commercialisation and placemaking, is creating exceptional destinations for customers. At the same time, we continue to transform our operating model and platform, bringing more integrated and efficient ways of working while reducing costs.
“We have further simplified our portfolio with the exit from minority stakes in France, our standalone development interests in Croydon, and other non-core land, generating £215m in disposal proceeds, further strengthening the balance sheet whilst bringing a sharper focus to investment opportunities in the core portfolio.
“Our strategy is driven by the repositioning of our unique city centre destinations in some of Europe’s fastest-growing cities from traditional retail-anchored footprints to a broader mix of uses. Today we are a more agile, market facing, asset-centric Hammerson that continues to reshape our urban destinations to be fit for future lifestyles.”
