FY losses triple at Helical Bar

4th Jun 2009 07:35

Real estate specialist Helical Bar said annual pre-tax losses almost tripled after property write-downs but says it is extremely well positioned for the next twelve months. Loss before tax swelled to £71.9m in the year ended 31 March 2009 from a loss of £24.3m the year before. Net rental income for the period rose to £17.7m from £16.4m. Commenting on future trading chairman Giles Weaver said, "With a strong balance sheet, well-established partnerships and the broad expertise and skills of our management team, we are extremely well positioned to take advantage of opportunities in the market to create future shareholder value when the market stabilises." Profit before property write-downs, investment gains and tax rose to £16.2m from £8.9m in 2008. The final dividend has been maintained at 2.75p per share.