Lar, Aedas and Árima Invest More than €5 Million in the Stock Market to Curb the Covid Crisis

The Socimis Lar España and Árima, and the property developer Aedas Homes have boosted their share buyback programs following the outbreak of the health crisis.

It is just one of the measures implemented by the real estate companies as part of their anti-Covid plans. Several of the large listed companies in the sector have resorted to expanding their treasury stock to curb the collapse suffered by the stock markets worldwide, and, specifically, in Spain.

In the case of share purchases, the property developer Aedas Homes and the Socimis Lar España and Árima Real Estate have opted for this formula, with programs for the acquisition of their own securities that have totalled more than €5 million in the two months of the pandemic to date.

Lar España Launches a Plan to Reduce Costs in its Shopping Centres

The Socimi has explained that its specific plan to minimise expenses at its shopping centres has reduced the amount by 35%.

The Socimi has explained that its specific plan to minimise expenses at its shopping centres, following the situation caused by the pandemic crisis, has reduced the amount by 35%.

In a statement sent to the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), Lar España has explained that it has applied the principle of austerity to its ongoing activities and has adapted its expenses to the new situation.

Large Shopping Centre Owners Ask for a Rescue Plan for the Sector

The request has come from Merlin Properties, Unibail, Klepierre, Lar España, Carmila, General de Galerías Comerciales and Castellana Properties.

The large owners of shopping centres in Spain are asking the Government for a rescue plan for the retail sector. Their activity has been shut down since the State of Emergency was decreed on March 14 and they are asking the Executive for a series of measures, including: access to the ICO financing fund; to make sales without VAT for a month; to open on Sundays until 2021; to receive aid for the payment of business rent; and to be granted tax exemptions, amongst other measures, according to Cinco Días.

The request is coming from owners such as Merlin Properties, Unibail Rodamco, Klepierre, Lar España, Carmila, General de Galerías Comerciales and Castellana Properties. These companies point out that the retail sector, which is made up of more than 500,000 companies and 1.8 million professionals across the country, is one of the hardest hit by the Covid-19 crisis – along with tourism and hotels.

Vukile Goes Quiet After Reports of Takeover Bid for Lar España

31 October 2019 – On September 9, the Spanish daily Expansión published a report stating that the South African fund Vukile, which owns Castellana Properties, was preparing a takeover bid for Lar España. News of the more than €700-million bid led the socimi’s shares to soar by 10.29%, from 6.80 euros to 7.50 euros. Since then, however, Vukile has remained mum on the subject.

Lar España is an attractive asset, with a portfolio of fifteen shopping centres with close to 600,000 square meters of gross leasable area. The portfolio is worth approximately €1.5 billion and includes the Las Huertas shopping centres in Valladolid, Portal de la Marina (Benidorm), Ànecbalu (Castelldefells), Megapark Barakaldo, As Termas (Lugo) and the Lagoh in Seville.

Original Story: Merca2 – Javier Rosell

Adaptation/Translation: Richard D. K. Turner

Vukile Looking to Launch Takeover of Lar España

10 September 2019

The South African firm, Vukile Property, is looking to take a stake in Socimi Lar España, a major investor in shopping centres, with 16 assets valued at 1.462 billion euros.

Vukile, which operates in Spain through Castellana Properties, has already arranged financing for the deal. UBS will represent the firm, while Lar España has hired Lazard.

Lar España was the first socimi to list on the continuous market and currently has a capitalisation of €615 million, a 36% discount to net asset value. Lar España’s largest shareholders, Pimco and Grupo Lar, are expected to insist on a 30% premium to the share price. The socimi ended the first semester with sales of €39 million and a net profit of 29 million euros.

Lar España has been focusing its investments on shopping centres, selling the office buildings it had in its portfolio, as well as logistic assets. In the last 18 months, the firm has raised €425 million, including the €120-million sale of a logistics portfolio to Blackstone and the €190-million sale of four office buildings in Madrid and Barcelona.

Lar España currently has fourteen assets in its portfolio, with a gross rental area of ​​580,000 m2 and a market value of €1.462 billion (June 30, 2019).

Original Story: Expansión – Rebeca Arroyo / Nicolás Sarriés.

Adaptation/Translation: Richard D. K. Turner

Colonial, Merlin and Lar Rotating Assets Worth €2.5 Billion

20 August 2019

Spain’s largest socimis have all been taking advantage of the benign economic climate to implement a strategy of asset rotation, selling off non-strategic assets to raise funds for further investments. Colonial, Merlin and Lar España have completed more than 2.5 billion euros in divestments over the past two years.

Of the four, Colonial has been most active in this regard. The socimi has sold assets worth approximately €1.5 billion in the last two years, more than half stemming from its acquisition of Axiare. In October 2018, Colonial sold seven office buildings to Tristan Capital Partners and Real IS, as well as a development under construction in Madrid to Grupo Catalana Occidente, for 441 million euros. Of the seven properties sold, five originated with Axiare.

Colonial also recently sold a portfolio of 18 logistics assets, covering an area of 473,000 square meters, to Prologis for an estimated €425 million. What’s more, the socimi sold an office building in Paris for €450 million in mid-2017. The firm is investing the proceeds of some of its sales, allocating €468 million in twelve projects under development in Madrid, Barcelona and Paris, the three markets where the company operates.

Merlin, for its part, sold its 17% stake in Testa to Blackstone last September for €321 million. The firm also sold its portfolio of hotels to Foncière des Regions for €535 million. Lar has also sold €425 million of assets in the last 18 months. Of that, €120 million stemmed from the sale of a logistics portfolio to Blackstone, while another €190 million resulted from the sale of four office buildings in Madrid and Barcelona and some small retail assets.

Original Story: Expansión – Rebeca Arroyo

Adaptation/Translation: Richard D. K. Turner

Lar to Invest €200M Buying Retail Assets After Divesting Other Assets Worth €425M

25 April 2019 – El Economista

Lar is entering a new phase in which it will specialise in retail after divesting all of its offices and logistics assets. The Socimi has received total proceeds of €425 million from its recent sales, of which it intends to dedicate around €200 million to new purchases over the next three years.

According to José Luis del Valle, President of Lar España Real Estate, the Socimi is now going to focus on operations in the commercial segment only, including both asset purchases and new developments, to continue to expand its €1.5 billion portfolio.

Lar is coming to the end of the development of Vilanova Park in Sagunto (Valencia), Lagasca 99 in Madrid and Lagoh in Sevilla and so it has the capacity to take on more promotion projects in the future, according to Miguel Pereda, CEO of the Socimi.

Following its recent asset sales, Lar has approved the distribution of an extraordinary dividend amounting to €25 million, charged against the accounts for 2018, equivalent to €0.80 per share. This represents the largest dividend in the Socimi’s history and is 67% higher than last year’s payout.

On Wednesday, the Socimi completed the sale of the last office building left in its portfolios – the property located at Calle Eloy Gonzalo in Madrid, which is now in the hands of Swiss Life.

In addition to its forecast new operations, Lar is also working on the repositioning of its assets, with plans to invest €40 million in total.

Original story: El Economista (by Alba Brualla)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Socimi Lar Sells its Last Office Building in Madrid to Swiss Life for €40M

24 April 2019 – Idealista

Lar España has sold the last office building left in its portfolio as it continues its strategy to specialise in the retail sector.

The Socimi has sold the property located at number 27 Calle Eloy Gonzalo, in the centre of Madrid, to the manager of the Swiss insurance company Swiss Life for €40 million. The building spans a surface area of 6,300 m2, distributed over 9 floors with various retail premises on the ground floor. The upper floors are leased in their entirety to the US coworking specialist WeWork.

Lar España acquired the property, which was constructed in the 1960s, for €12.7 million at the end of 2014.

Following this sale, the Socimi can now focus on the 14 assets in its retail portfolio (shopping centres and retail parks), which will become 15 after the summer, once the Lagoh shopping centre has been opened in Sevilla.

This represents the Swiss manager’s second purchase in Spain, following its acquisition of 13 retail premises from Corpfin Capital Prime Retail Assets in July 2018 for more than €83 million.

Various high-profile consultancy firms participated in the operation, with Cushman & Wakefield advising on the buy side and JLL and Knight Frank on the sell side.

Original story: Idealista (by Ana P. Alarcos)

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Lar España Launches a €42M Share Buyback Program

25 March 2019 – Eje Prime

Lar España has launched a program to repurchase a maximum of 5% of the listed company’s share capital. The program will last for nine months and could amount to up to €42 million, according to the Socimi.

The aim of the capital reduction, which will involve 4.66 million shares is “to continue strengthening the return on investment for our shareholders”.

It is the second time that the Socimi has undertaken an operation of this kind. On 28 February, it completed its first program, which saw it repurchase 3.31% of its share capital.

Lar España owns 17 real estate assets with a combined value of €1.5 billion. Shopping centres account for the majority of those assets (€1.4 billion).

Original story: Eje Prime 

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Lar España’s Profits Fell by 4.6% in 2018 to €129.3M

1 March 2019 – Expansión

Lar España recorded a net profit of €129.3 million in 2018, which represented a decrease of 4.6% with respect to the previous year, whilst its revenues grew by 0.3% to €77.8 million.

According to explanations provided by the company, this result includes a charge of €17.9 million in the first quarter, to comply with the Grupo Lar management contract, as it achieved divestments of €100 million.

Without that negative effect, which is only going to be recorded in 2018 (…), the resulted would have amounted to €155.7 million, 7% more than in the previous year. Meanwhile, the EBITDA amounted to €55 million, up by 0.3%.

The firm completed divestments amounting to €272.5 million in 2018 and invested €75.6 million in the renovation of its asset portfolio.

In terms of dividends, the sale of the luxury homes at Lagasca 99 (Madrid) will allow the company to increase its remuneration to shareholders from €0.49 in 2017 to €0.80 in 2018, a rise of 63.2%.

At the end of 2018, the firm’s financial debt amounted to €621.7 million. Last year, its assets appreciated in value by 12.1% (…).

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake