Grainger ups dividend as rental growth accelerates

Grainger has boosted rental income by 12% over the six months to the end of March, to £48m. The rise has allowed the £3.2bn listed residential landlord to increase its dividend by 10% to 2.28p per share. Chief executive Helen Gordon said: “Rental growth momentum has continued to accelerate, which has broadly offset yield movements and the net asset value of our portfolio was resilient.” She added that Grainger’s £1.6bn pipeline of around 6,000 homes would enable it to double EPRA earnings over the next four years. The majority – £890m – of that pipeline is committed and under construction, she added, “with our build-to-rent projects secured, financing in place, and both construction and debt costs fixed over that period”. Gordon confirmed that plans to convert to a REIT were still on track, adding: “This will enable us to convert to a REIT in 2.5 years.” EPRA earnings grew by 49% year-on-year to £21.9m, up from £14.7m. IFRS pretax profit plunged to  £5.7m, down from £98.8m for HY22, due to valuation declines. Like-for-like rental growth of 6.8% was up from 3.5% this time last year. This has mostly offset valuation yield movements, with EPRA net tangible assets down 2% over the six months to 310p per share. This is up 2% on the 12 months since the 2022 half-year point, when it stood at 305p. Gordon added: “We are confident in the outlook for our business. With positive expectations for the occupational market and rental growth, resilience in valuations backed by strong active investor demand, and an institutional-landlord-friendly investment landscape, the outlook for Grainger remains strong as we continue to lead the sector.” To send feedback, e-mail piers.wehner@eg.co.uk or tweet @PiersWehner or @EGPropertyNews Photo from Grainger