Wrap Text
Onterim Management Statement
Capital & Counties Properties PLC
(Incorporated and registered in the United Kingdom and Wales
with registration Number 07145041 and registered in South Africa as an external company with
Registration Number 2010/003387/10)
JSE code: CCO
ISIN: GB00B62G9D36
2 MAY 2014
CAPITAL & COUNTIES PROPERTIES PLC (“CAPCO”)
INTERIM MANAGEMENT STATEMENT FOR THE PERIOD 1 JANUARY TO 2 MAY 2014
Ian Hawksworth, Chief Executive of Capco, commented: “We have had a positive start to the year as
we create and grow value across our London estates. Covent Garden thrives as a world-class
destination, with strong leasing momentum and a number of acquisitions. The re-imagination of Earls
Court is moving forward following detailed planning consents and the establishment of the joint
venture with TfL. Lillie Square was launched successfully with over 200 units reserved or exchanged,
following strong demand for this premium residential development.”
Value growth through transformation at Covent Garden
- Leasing transactions completed at 3.6 per cent above December 2013 ERV
- 4 new retail and restaurant lettings including Orlebar Brown and Michelin-starred restaurant, Lima
- £46 million of acquisitions on the estate year-to-date
- ERV target of £75 million by December 2016
Value creation through achievement of key milestones at Earls Court
- Joint Venture with TfL established (Capco share 63 per cent)
- Detailed planning consent granted for Earls Court Village and a change of use to residential for
the Empress State Building
Successful launch of Lillie Square
- 204 of 237 flats in Phase 1 reserved or exchanged in the five weeks since launch in March
Transition of Venues business to Olympia London well progressed
- Over 80 per cent of Earls Court’s 2014 shows contracted to move to Olympia London for 2015,
including Ideal Home Show and The London Book Fair
Solid financial position
- LTV of 17 per cent and liquidity of £425 million as at 31 March 2014
- £665 million unsecured revolving credit facility completed for Covent Garden in March
- Weighted average cost of debt of 3.0 per cent as at 31 March 2014
Enquiries
Capital & Counties Properties PLC:
Ian Hawksworth Chief Executive +44 (0)20 3214 9188
Soumen Das Finance Director +44 (0)20 3214 9183
Michelle McGrath Head of Investor Relations +44 (0)20 7297 6093
Media enquiries:
Sarah Hagan Director of Communications +44 (0)20 3214 9185
UK: Michael Sandler, Wendy Baker, +44 (0)20 7796 4133
Hudson Sandler
SA: Frederic Cornet, +27 (0) 11 447 3030
Instinctif Partners
Sponsor
Merrill Lynch South Africa (Pty) Ltd
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is one of the most exciting retail destinations in London and continues to re-define
global luxury for the capital. Demand for space from brands is strong across the estate, and
occupancy of 98 per cent as at 31 March 2014. Footfall remains robust with 45 million customer visits.
Leasing transactions including new leases, renewals and rent reviews representing £3.6 million of
rental income were completed at 3.6 per cent above December 2013 ERV.
Retail, food & dining
Beachwear brand Orlebar Brown has opened a new store on Floral Street as part of the new ‘Floral
Street Goes Pop’ initiative to introduce pop-up brands to the street ahead of the Kings Court and
Carriage Hall developments.
lululemon athletica opened its UK flagship store on Long Acre and Moleskine is also due to open
shortly on King Street.
Lima, a Michelin-starred restaurant presenting Peruvian cuisine in a contemporary style, has
completed terms to open on Garrick Street.
Caprice Holdings has commenced fit-out of One South Piazza for its new flagship restaurant. The
team behind The Ivy, one of the most famous and successful restaurants in Covent Garden, will
develop the unit which will offer all-day dining from breakfast until after theatre.
Residential
The final apartment in The Russell has exchanged. The average sales price for the entire
development, which comprised five apartments, was in excess of £2,400 per square foot.
The residential conversions for seven apartments at The Southampton and nine apartments at The
Beecham are on track for delivery later this year.
Acquisitions
It has been an active period for acquisitions. 7 Garrick Street, 23-24 Henrietta Street and 22-23
James Street have been acquired for a total of £46 million.
Developments
Preliminary work for the Kings Court and Carriage Hall developments has commenced with
construction expected to start in autumn 2014.
Earls Court Masterplan
Earls Court is a unique opportunity for urban re-imagination located in central London where
Kensington, Chelsea and Fulham meet.
Planning
Detailed planning consent has been granted for Earls Court Village which represents the majority of
the EC1 & EC2 area. The detailed proposals for this part of the Masterplan cover an area of 16 acres
and provide for 2.4 million square feet of residential-led, mixed-use space. This will include over 1,200
new homes, over 3 acres of publicly accessible park and the first phase of the new High Street.
Resolution to grant detailed planning consent was received for the Empress State Building for a
conversion from commercial to residential. The consent provides for the creation of 340 new homes,
as well as improvements to the facade of the existing building. The building will now be integrated into
the Earls Court Masterplan, adding 580,000 square feet of residential floor space to the overall
Masterplan area.
Land assembly
Earls Court Partnership Limited, the Joint Venture with Transport for London (“TfL”), was established
in March which will enable the development of EC1 & EC2 in line with the Earls Court Masterplan.
Capco is appointed exclusive Business and Development Manager and will lead the venture.
Lillie Square
The first phase of Lillie Square comprising 237 units was successfully launched in March 2014 with
the opening of the sales office on Lillie Road.
Demand has been strong in the five weeks since launch. 204 of the 213 units initially released are
reserved or exchanged totalling over £200 million of sales, with pricing on individual units achieving
up to £1,885 per square foot.
The initial launch was focused on standard units, with premium units to be released shortly. Overall,
the average sales price for phase 1 is expected to be between £1,400 - £1,500 per square foot.
Construction of phase 1 is on track to start in summer this year and a £130 million debt facility (Capco
share 50 per cent) to fund these costs is expected to be signed shortly.
Capco notes the on-going legal situation in Hong Kong regarding charges against certain members of
the Kwok family which have not affected the joint venture.
Venues
The Venues business has had a positive start to the year, with the transition of activities to Olympia
London very well progressed. The Venues team has now secured over 80 per cent of Earls Court’s
2014 exhibitions (by licence fee) to move to Olympia London in 2015, including major shows such as
The London Book Fair and the Ideal Home Show.
The Earls Court venue is currently taking bookings until December 2014.
Financial
The Group’s financial position remains strong with a loan to value of 17 per cent (based on 31
December 2013 property values) and liquidity of £425 million.
31 March 2014 31 December 2013
Gross debt £437m £374m
Cash balance £60m £45m
Net debt £377m £329m
Liquidity (cash and available facilities) £425m £287m
Property loan-to-value 17% 15%
Weighted average debt maturity 4.7 years 4.3 years
Weighted average cost of debt 3.0% 4.4%
Proportion of gross debt with interest rate protection 81% 100%
All figures quoted above are adjusted to include Capco’s share of joint venture interests.
As at 31 March 2014, Capco had capital commitments of £88 million.
- ENDS -
This press release includes statements that are forward-looking in nature. Forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the
actual results, performance or achievements of Capital & Counties Properties PLC to be materially
different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-
looking statements. Any information contained in this press release on the price at which shares or
other securities in Capital & Counties Properties PLC have been bought or sold in the past, or on the
yield on such shares or other securities, should not be relied upon as a guide to future performance.
About Capital & Counties Properties PLC (Capco):
Capital & Counties Properties PLC is one of the largest investment and development property
companies that specialises in central London real estate and is a constituent of the FTSE-250 Index.
Capco holds 3.6 million square feet of assets valued at £2.3 billion (as at 31 December 2013) in two
landmark London estates: Covent Garden, which has assets valued at £1.2 billion including the
historic Market Building, and Earls Court Properties including the Empress State Building with
aggregate property assets of £934 million. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and
the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
Date: 02/05/2014 08:00:00 Produced by the JSE SENS Department. The SENS service is an information dissemination service administered by the JSE Limited ('JSE').
The JSE does not, whether expressly, tacitly or implicitly, represent, warrant or in any way guarantee the truth, accuracy or completeness of
the information published on SENS. The JSE, their officers, employees and agents accept no liability for (or in respect of) any direct,
indirect, incidental or consequential loss or damage of any kind or nature, howsoever arising, from the use of SENS or the use of, or reliance on,
information disseminated through SENS.
Sharenet Sites 
