Helical buys shopping centre

1st Feb 2011 12:47

Helical Bar is increasing its investment in retail property while selling part of its industrial portfolio. Helical Bar is buying the 140,000 square feet Sutton-in-Ashfield Shopping Centre in Leicestershire from LaSalle Investment Management for £16.1m. The initial yield on the purchase price is 8.5%. Tenants include New Look, Argos and Superdrug. Last month. Helical Bar paid £17.75m for the Newmarket Shopping Centre in Suffolk. The initial yield on that investment was 8%. Helical Bar has raised £4.9m from selling the remaining units at the Southampton Industrial Estate and the Kidlington Industrial Estate. It has also completed the sale of a plot at S:Park Stockport. In December, Helical Bar raised £29m at 270p a share in December. The shares are currently trading at a premium to the placing price and net asset value of around 262p a share. Matrix reckons that cash and potential debt funding will give Helical Bar roughly £100m to invest by the end of March. More acquisitions and disposals are expected.