Specialist retail property fund Hyprop Investments, which owns retail assets in SA and Eastern Europe, has continued to grow tenants’ turnover and trading density.
Releasing an update for the four months ended October, the group cited management’s ongoing repositioning initiatives and leasing strategies, combined with better consumer sentiment as reasons for the growth.
Given the improvement in the overall risk environment, that Hyprop has caught up on historic capital underspending in SA, that the sub-Saharan portfolio has now been sold and Hyprop’s balance sheet strength, the board intends to review the dividend policy and payout ratio. It would announce any changes when its interim results were released in March 2025, it said.
The group owns popular shopping malls such as Clearwater Mall, Rosebank Mall, Table Bay Mall, Hyde Park Corner and Canal Walk in SA, assets in Croatia, Macedonia and Bulgaria.
The company’s pre-close operational update showed a pro forma improvement in the loan-to-value ratio (LTV) to 35.2% at end-October from 36.4% at end-June, it said in a statement on Wednesday.
This follows the completion of the disposal of the Sub-Saharan Africa portfolio to Lango Real Estate.
At the end of the period, Hyprop held R575m cash in hand and R1.2bn of available bank facilities, after paying the 2024 dividend, it said.
In the group's nine centres in SA — four in the Western Cape and five in Gauteng — the key trading metrics continued to improve, other than foot count which was in line with the comparative period.
The Eastern Europe portfolio continued to achieve strong operational results, notably in tenants' turnover and trading density. Its asset management initiatives and investments in upgrades have distinguished the group from competitors, allowing it to benefit from the overall growth in retail within the region, it said.
At end-October, the Eastern Europe portfolio’s retail vacancy rate was 0.2%.
“The pleasing performance reflects our investments over the last few years, not only in centre and tenant upgrades and improvements but also in energy and water projects at all our centres,” Hyprop CEO Morné Wilken said.
“We have given particular attention to areas most affected by infrastructure decay, to ensure our tenants and shoppers can continue to trade without disruption.”
As a result of the continued improvements in its centres’ operational performance both in SA and Eastern Europe, the implementation of the sale of the Sun-Saharan Africa portfolio, the renewed optimism in SA after the establishment of the government of national unity, stable electricity supply as well as the recent reduction in interest rates by central banks, Hyprop was well-placed for growth, it said.
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