Threads makes strategic move with £75m retail park play

UK fund manager has agreed deals to acquire four retail parks.

What Columbia Threadneedle closing in on four retail warehousing deals, with an expected outlay of close to£75m.

Why Fund manager tempted by the tantalising yield profile on other compared to logistics

What next A number of large retail park portfolios are expected to be launched to tap into renewed demand for product

Columbia Threadneedle Investments has agreed deals to acquire a number of retail parks for close to £75m in a strategic move into the asset class, which is currently receiving an uptick in demand from mature capital, React News can reveal.

The manager, on the back of fresh fundraising last year, has highlighted the sector as an avenue to generate returns for investors in the face of challenging conditions in other asset classes.

Against a background of diminished returns in the logistics space and some investor apathy for office deals due to the current environment, Columbia Threadneedle has taken the decision to pull the trigger on four retail warehousing acquisitions.

The blended net initial yield for the acquisitions is north of 8.75%.

That equates to a 475 basis points yield spread to those on offer for prime logistics, where net initial yields are at an all-time low of sub 4% in the face of a huge weight of capital looking to access the sector on the back of heightened e-commerce demand.

The deals

Columbia Threadneedle has completed the acquisition of Flowerdown retail park, Weston-super-Mare for close to £23m –a 9% NIY. Savills sold the park on behalf BlackRock, which had launched the asset for sale as part of its five strong asset project  Carbon. The 105,000 sq ft park counts Aldi, B&Q and Sports Direct among its tenant line-up.

Columbia Threadneedle
Web: https://www.columbiathreadneedle.com/

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Threads makes strategic move with £75m retail park play - React News