Grainger's interim profits improve as rental income grows

(Sharecast News) - Residential landlord Grainger saw first-half profits improve on the back of increased rents and its acquisition of GRIP back in December.Grainger saw net rental income grow 33% to £29.1m for the six months ended 31 March, pushing pre-tax profits ahead 7% to £54.3m as a result.Grainger also upped its interim dividend per share 10% to 1.73p.However, adjusted earnings were down 6% to £38.3m due to the timing of certain sales and the reduced development of profits.The FTSE 250 constituent revealed the integration of real estate investment trust GRIP was "ahead of plan and delivering results" - with the group already achieving £4m worth of overheads savings, 3.4% rental growth and a portfolio valuation uplift of £4.1m on its purchase price.Net debt rose 24.7% to £1.08bn, reflecting Grainger's continued investment into PRS assets, including the consolidation of 100% of GRIP's debt post the acquisition.Looking forward, Grainger told investors it was in a "strong position" to deliver a good performance in the second half of the year and a positive overall result"The acquisition of GRIP significantly accelerated our growth strategy to enhance shareholder returns and we have repositioned the income profile of the business," said Grainger"We expect our pipeline to more than double our net rental income over coming years and will directly lead to sustainable dividend growth."As of 0840 BST, Grainger shares had crept forward 0.62% to 259.80p.