Intu Properties agrees trio of disposals for £25m

A day after revealing that a consortium led by its deputy chairman had pulled its £2.9bn takeover offer for the shopping centre owner, Intu Properties announced a trio of property disposals for £25.3m.

The company, which said on Thursday that the consortium led by John Whittaker had abandoned its pursuit due to Brexit uncertainties, has agreed terms for the sale of all three properties at above book value.

As part of its ongoing disposal and capital recycling programme, some of the proceeds of which will be reinvested into the ongoing pipeline, Intu has agreed to sell off a freehold investment in Brierley Hills in the West Midlands, freehold and leasehold interests in York House in Nottingham and a former BHS store in Derby.

According to a Press Association report, the Derby store has been purchased by Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley, who threatened earlier this week to close all 17 of his stores in Intu shopping centres in a row over rent.

Chief executive officer David Fischel said: "These three deals, all successfully sold at above book value, are further evidence of our commitment to dispose of non-core assets and recycle capital into our exciting development programme. All three sites will continue to benefit from being in the vicinity of hugely popular Intu shopping centres which welcome millions of shoppers every year."

Intu shares tumbled on Thursday as it emerged that the takeover bid had collapsed.

"Given the uncertainty around current macroeconomic conditions and the potential near-term volatility across markets, the consortium is not able to proceed with an offer within a timeframe which is manageable,” it said in a statement.

The consortium included Peel Group, Saudi Arabia’s Olayan Group and Canadian property investor Brookfield Property Group.

Intu said that in order to facilitate its capital investment programme, it would continue to manage its loan-to-value ratio and financial headroom, which could involve "further disposals, part disposals and other corporate initiatives in due course".

At 1040 GMT, the shares were up 1% at 115.50p.