Broker snap: Standard Life Prop. Income upgraded

19th Mar 2010 13:18

If it is dividend growth you are after then Singer Capital Markets thinks you could do worse than Standard Life Property Income Trust, which has committed to a 10% increase in the 2010 dividend.The stock is already yielding 6.7% based on historic dividend payments, and that calculation excludes the special dividend of 0.25p the company announced on 3 February.'The fund was very successful investing in early 2009 and just about doubled its money on an Uxbridge office property sold in early 2010. The fund has £25m of cash available for investment and a low net gearing level of 39.2% so expect continued activity,' Singer analyst Ian Wild predicts.The broker has upgraded the stock to 'buy', noting that 'the shares are on a 9.9% discount (11% upside) to our end 2010 NAV [net asset value] of 66.1p and a prospective yield of 7.4% implying a total return of 17.7%.'