UK property developer Quintain Estates & Development (LON:QED) saw its shares slide by 6% to 47p this morning on news that it was still in the red to the tune of £10.1m in the full year to March despite slashing losses from £129.1m in 2009. The company also saw its net asset value per share fall back by 1.5% to 133p as its current flagship development at Wembley City failed to enjoy the property price bounce enjoyed elsewhere in the capital.
Nevertheless, the fund management and urban regeneration group put a positive spin on its performance, pointing to last December’s £183.1m cash call which helped to reduce gearing to 46%. It said it had maintained momentum on major schemes with completion of key deals and developments. A three year business plan is also underway to increase income and reach critical mass on regeneration schemes.
On the cash front, Quintain managed to beat its target or repatriating £150m of cash, with £82.5m of receipts from assets sold during the year, including £11.8m from its stake in the O2 arena. Administrative costs were down by a further 12.4% and the company holds £248m of undrawn committed corporate facilities.
In its fund management arm, Quintain boosted assets under management to £1.01bn from £980m last year and is currently aiming to grow to £2bn under management within three years. During the period the company raked in £11.9m of fund management fees, which was down from £12.9m previously.
William Rucker, Quintain’s chairman, said: “Our three year business plan targets the increase of funds under management to £2bn and the delivery of critical mass at Wembley City. As the first step towards achievement of these 2013 targets, we have put in place a clear operational programme for the next twelve months that will bring further capital into the business, drive significant progress on our major schemes and increase the recurring income generated across the group. Whilst the continued uncertainty in the markets will no doubt present challenges, the business is now in a significantly stronger shape and we anticipate a year of real progress.”
Quintain owns the 90 acres of land surrounding Wembley Stadium and has started transforming the area with a combination of shops, restaurants, bars, offices, homes and entertainment called Wembley City. The first step was the £35m refurbishment of Wembley…
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Directorate change.
Qed down 4.5% to 36.75
