Tag: Avenue Capital Group

Quabit Approves €110M Capital Increase To Finance Land Purchases

17 November 2017 – Expansión

On Wednesday, Quabit, the shareholders of the property developer chaired by Félix Abánades, approved several capital increases amounting to more than €110 million, which will be used to finance the purchase of land in Málaga, Costa del Sol, the Balearic Islands and the Corredor del Henares.

The purchase of these plots will be financed primarily by a line of credit amounting to €40 million, agreed with Avenue Capital Group, and by the delivery of new shares in Quabit issued at a price of €2 per share, which will represent a 27% increase in the company’s share capital. To this end, it will increase its share capital through non-monetary contributions amounting to €41.8 million, through the issue of approximately 20.9 million new shares.

Similarly, the shareholders of Quabit approved another monetary capital increase amounting to €70 million to prevent/avoid the dilutive impact of the non-monetary expansions. This increase will be completed through the issue and placement into circulation of 35 million new ordinary shares also with a maximum value of €2, recognising the preferential subscription right for all shareholders.

“The full subscription of all of the capital increases will result in the inflow of approximately €105 million and the strengthening of Quabit’s own funds, which will undoubtedly help to boost growth and to generate value for shareholders over the medium term”, explained the President, Félix Abánades.

The director added that the property developer currently has 18 developments under construction with 1,655 homes up for sale, and is working on the commercial launch of another five developments: “We will finish the year with around 2,100 homes on the market”.

According to Abánades, with all of these land operations and the portfolio of assets already owned by the company, Quabit will own almost 1 million m2 of land for the development of more than 6,700 homes. 70% of those properties will be handed over between 2017 and 2021.

The most recent acquisitions include a portfolio comprising developable land in Corredor del Henares, owned by Grupo Rayet – the main shareholder of Quabit – with a joint investment of €30 million and a buildable surface area of 131,000 m2 for the construction of 970 homes. These plots are located next to land in Alovera (Guadalajara), where Grupo Rayet is planning to build Alovera Beach, a leisure park that will soon be home to the largest artificial urban beach in Europe.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake

Quabit Buys 8 Plots Of Land For €52M

25 September 2017 – Quabit

Quabit Inmobiliaria is stepping on its investment plan accelerator, redoubling its strategic commitment to the Costa del Sol with the completion of nine operations involving residential land in Málaga, and opening a new area of growth in the Balearic market.

Specifically, the company chaired by Félix Abánades has closed 8 operations involving buildable land amounting to €52 million, with a buildable surface area of 123,000 m2 to construct between 720 and 740 homes.

Quabit is going to finance 70% of the purchase with financial support from funds advised by the investment firm Avenue Capital Group, and the remaining 30%, with shares in the company, through one or more non-monetary capital increases.

“For the second time” – explains the Chairman Félix Abánades – “Quabit is using this formula to secure new land, given that at the same time as barely diluting the shareholders’ stakes and helping to grow and strengthen the company, it allows us to consolidate our real estate assets and collaborate in the reinvigoration of the sector”.

Malaga and Costa del Sol: 178,500 m2 of buildable land for 1,600 homes.

Quabit has also just closed a new portfolio of 7 buildable residential plots of land, the majority of which are located in Malaga capital, with a combined investment of €31.3 million, and a buildability of 48,000 m2 for the construction of 450 homes.

That large operation comes just a week after another involving land in Mijas for the construction of 674 homes and is in addition to the purchases made by Quabit in Málaga capital and the Costa del Sol during the first half of the year.

Overall, Quabit has 178,500 m2 of buildable land in total in the province of Málaga for the construction of more than 1,600 homes.

Moreover, the company is already marketing Phases 1 and 2 of another promotion of 100 homes on the Casares Golf course and is preparing to launch 2 developments in Málaga capital later this month, in the Puerto de la Torre area.

New land in the Balearic Islands

The company has completed another operation amounting to €21 million in the Balearic Islands to build a tourist and residential development with a buildability of almost 75,000 m2.

Visibility of the Business Plan for 2017-2021

The execution of Quabit’s Business Plan is continuing to gain visibility and its portfolio of land is gaining in value through all these important purchases of high-quality buildable land.

To date in 2017, the company has closed operations in Madrid, Corredor del Henares, Málaga and the Balearic Islands amounting to €114.7 million, with a buildable surface area of 321,500 m2 for the construction of almost 2,500 homes.

Altogether, adding to this figure the 1,226 homes to be developed in the portfolio, Quabit now has a portfolio of residential land on which to build 3,700 homes, which represents 90% of its target development between now and 2021 (4,090 homes) and demonstrates its vocation for growth and its commitment to take advantage of the opportunities currently available in the Spanish residential market.

Original story: Quabit

Translation: Carmel Drake

Quabit Buys Land In Málaga For €23.7M To Build 674 Homes

6 September 2017 – El Economista

Quabit is pushing ahead with its plans to purchase land by signing of a major operation in Málaga, where it has acquired several plots of land for €23.7 million, with the capacity to build 674 homes.

30% of the operation will be paid for using shares through a non-monetary capital increase and the remaining 70% will be financed through support from funds advised by the investment firm Avenue Capital Group.

The US company granted Quabit a financing line of up to €60 million for the acquisition of buildable land, which represented a major boost for the property developer, one of the few entities that managed to survive the severe crisis that hit the sector.

Altogether, the new plots have a buildable surface area of 79,000 m2, which will allow Quabit to construct 674 homes (147 detached family homes, 91 terraced family homes and 436 homes in “city garden” type blocks), according to a statement issued by the real estate company chaired by Félix Abánades.

Quabit’s new plots of residential land, which also include a retail plot, account for the majority of the Las Lomas del Flamenco sector, where urbanisation work has already started.

The product that the firm will construct in this area will focus mainly on second homes, aimed at foreigners for the most part, the star segment of the growth in the real estate sector in the province of Málaga, according to the most recent statistics published.

Las Lomas del Flamenco is located in the Malagan municipality of Mijas, 30 km away from Málaga capital, with views over the Mediterranean Sea and the Bay of Málaga towards Marbella and very close to Mijas Golf, one of the most popular and prestigious golf complexes on the Costa del Sol.

This operation follows a wave of purchases already carried out by the company during the first half of this year. In this way, between January and June, Quabit acquired residential land worth €39.1 million, with a buildable surface area of 119,518 m2 to construct 1,097 homes.

2017 is proving to be a key year in the expansion process of the company, which plans to construct 4,000 homes in total between now and 2021, to fulfill its business plan. For the time being, the evolution of the company’s sales rate is supporting the execution of its plan, given that at the end of June, it was selling between 40 and 60 homes per month, which represents a pre-sales figure that is more than 20% higher than the total commercial portfolio.

Original story: El Economista (by Alba Brualla)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Quabit Invests €455M In Land & Prepares €40M Capital Increase

23 January 2017 – El Economista

Quabit is planning to invest €455 million buying up urban land between now and 2020 and is also preparing to carry out a new capital increase amounting to €40 million.

The real estate company chaired by Félix Abánades (pictured above) has published an update to its business plan, which reflects the new financing line that it signed with the fund Avenue Capital in December.

According to the company, it will focus its purchases on land located primarily in Madrid, the metropolitan area and the Corredor de Henares corridor, as well as in other strategic areas with high potential demand, such as Cataluña, the Community of Valencia, Andalucía (with a special emphasis on the Costa del Sol) and also in regional capitals such as Zaragoza, La Coruña and Santander.

In this sense, the real estate company explains that the agreement with Avenue Capital together with its bank financing offers the company potential financing of up to €130 million in 2017 to acquire land.

On the other hand, the development and marketing of the portfolio of own assets included in the Business Plan is expected to generate cash flow of €145 million, equivalent to more than 50% of the forecast operating cash flow during the period 2017-2021.

The real estate company also said that it plans to raise another €40 million in financing “soon” through a capital increase.

Dividend payment

The Group’s Business Plan forecasts the payment of dividends, both in cash and shares, amounting to €68 million in total. “In 2016, 1 new share was distributed for every 20 existing shares through a capital increase performed in April, which represented a milestone following the interim dividend in 2006”. Thus, the company explained that “with this and the profits forecast in the Business Plan, it has set itself two objectives. On the one hand, to achieve a return on investment of more than 5% in terms of dividends and on the other hand, to triple the book value of the company.

Original story: El Economista (by Alba Brualla)

Translation: Carmel Drake