Great Portland enjoying the London-effect

Great Portland Estates, the FTSE 250 property company, saw its net asset value (NAV) rise 2.1% in the three months to the end of December compared to the previous three months. The main reason behind the uplift was the portfolio valuation rising by £45.9m on pre-lettings at 33 Margaret Street and 240 Blackfriars Road.The only major blackspot was provision for a revenue share arrangement with German outfit Eurohypo of £12.1m. Overall, however, the NAV grew to £1.191bn , up from £1.166bn at the end of September.The yield on the portfolio was stable at 5.3%.By sector, the main drivers of the valuation uplift were West End offices, up 1.6% and new development schemes which rose by 9.1%.One notable acquisition during the period was ITN's headquarters, 200 Gray's Inn Road, for £132.7 million. The deal was a joint venture with the BP pension fund, with Great Portland taking a 50% stake.Portland's Chief Executive, Toby Courtauld said: "Whilst macro-economic conditions for the UK as a whole remain challenging, London and its property markets continue to fare relatively well; investor demand, particularly from overseas, remains strong whilst tenant take-up has increased over the quarter to the long run average level."The stock had dropped 1.17% by 11:06am.BS