Hammerson PLC's (LSE:HMSO) streak of asset disposals has continued with the £111 million sale of the Union Square shopping centre in Aberdeen.
Tipped for completion in the current quarter, the city centre property was sold to an affiliate of Lone Star Real Estate Fund VI.
This price tag represented an 8% discount to the December 31 book value of £121m and a net initial yield of 11%.
Hammerson said the sale marked the completion of a £500 million “non-core disposal programme” first outlined in early 2022.
This initiative was aimed at reducing balance sheet risk and debt.
Hammerson’s annual results are expected this Thursday, following a “painful transition” period following the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, through these non-core disposals of underperforming assets, Hammerson has been narrowing its losses “and the signs are that it’s moving in the right direction with leasing momentum improving over the first 6 months of 2023”, according to Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Hammerson shares opened 1% higher at 25.98p on Monday.