Assura Share News (AGR)

(Sharecast News) - Medical property developer Assura is to raise over £190m, it announced on Thursday, as it looks to bolster its development and acquisition pipeline.
The firm intends to raise gross proceeds of around £190m via a share placing. It will also make a conditional offer for subscription through PrimaryBid, a trading app targeted at retail investors, of 10p each.

The proceeds will be used to fund the company's short-term pipeline of £193m, which is split into three elements: £102m on acquisition opportunities, all of which are expected to complete with the next three to six months; £72m of onsite developments; and £19m of asset enhancement capital projects.

Jonathan Murphy, chief executive, said: "The NHS has been put under significant strain by Covid, which has highlighted capacity constraints in hospitals, increased waiting lists and exposed older buildings as inadequate for current healthcare requirements.

"Assura's market-leading development capabilities allow us to access a growing pipeline of development opportunities, including in emerging areas such as diagnostic treatment centres, mental health support and with providers of primary care at scale."

The announcement came as the firm posted results for the six months to 30 September. Pre-tax profits rose 58% to £69.4m, while earnings per share came in at 2.6p, compared to 1.7p a year previously. EPRA earnings rose 7% to £40.9m.

Net rental income was ahead 12.3% at £61.1m.

As at 30 September, the loan-to-value was 39%, compared to 37% in March 2021, while net debt stood at £1bn. The cost of debt was 2.3%, which Assura said was the lowest ever.

The portfolio grew by 6% to £2.56bn by the period end. Assura - an NHS "partner of choice" - currently has 625 medical properties.

The quarterly dividend was 0.74p, compared to 0.71p in March 2021.

Murphy said: "Assura has continued to make strong progress over the past six months. We expanded our portfolio with 27 new additions, and grew [our] development pipeline to a record £480m.

"This is Assura's eight year of dividend growth, testament to our successful strategy, which continues to drive resilient cash flows, strong growth and a positive outlook for the company."

As at 1030 GMT, shares in the real estate investment trust were trading 4% lower at 69.7p.