Howard de Walden Estates has reported a pre-tax loss of £102.3m for the financial year ended 31 March 2023 – reversing a profit of £199.8m last year.
The great London estate, which owns and manages a portfolio of mixed-use property across Marylebone, blamed the loss on a significant fall in the value of its portfolio. It cited a £199.5m loss from revaluing investment properties and a £186.7m (4%) decline in investment property values from £4.636bn to £4.449bn. On a like-for-like basis, property values fell 4.3% and the company reported a £120m fall in the value of its net assets from £3.191bn to £3.071bn.
Howard de Walden posted profit after operating costs of £99.3m versus £88.4m in 2022 and revenue profit before tax increased 16.7% from £64.2m to £74.9m.
Rental income increased 9.2% to £147.8m due to a strong performance across all of Howard de Walden’s main sectors, underpinned by 10.7% income growth recorded in its office portfolios and 10.2% income growth in its residential portfolios.
Sir William Proby, chairman of Howard de Walden, said: “Our strong trading performance in 2023 reflected a return to everyday life as the Covid-19 pandemic waned in 2022, leading to a sustained recovery in commercial activity.
“Our growth in rental income and gross profit was impressive when set against a challenging geopolitical and economic backdrop, demonstrating the resilience of our location, our strategy, and the effort of our colleagues. Last year, like many businesses, we were impacted by wage inflation and rising costs. However, our teams have worked extremely hard to deliver a performance for which the board and shareholders are extremely thankful.”
Mark Kildea, chief executive of Howard de Walden, added: “After two years of pandemic disruption, this year has been one of continued recovery. The long-term decisions that were made during 2020 and 2021, including significant investment into refurbishing and redeveloping buildings, alongside carefully targeted support for our customers, has allowed the business to record its highest ever turnover. The positive impact is also reflected in our key metric of revenue profit returning near to pre-pandemic levels.
“Our efforts and strategy remain focused on growing long-term sustainable profits and meeting our sustainability requirements. We are confident that we are well positioned to meet these challenges, with significant financial capacity, high occupancy levels and a dedicated and motivated workforce in a unique and desirable part of London.”
