Town Centre Share Discussion Threads

[ladywormer] 23/10/2012 16:53

Chairman - I don't understand what you mean by the dividend arrived? It has been declared but not payable until April.

[jonwig] 23/10/2012 15:20

Ch2 - yes, I saw the article. The position of TCSC in Leeds has been aired before. Hotel and car parks should keep them in the money. And the Council aren't likely to move out.

Anyway, that's one thing I want to raise at the AGM next month. Another is the NAV discount which is a bit wide, especially for a family-controlled business.

As for the divi, I'd expect at least last year's 10.44p - there's a forecast of 10.49p. It's not all a PID, as the car-parking side won't count in the REIT calculations (I think.)

[chairman20] 23/10/2012 14:17

the dividend arrived

and pretty paltry it was too

will they make it up fully netxt April?

somhow doubt it?

Unless the Ziffs need the money (always possible).

Meanwhile boards are dead but for any corpses
stil raising a flutter of interest I suppose some
will have seen this from yesterday's Telegraph??

[jonwig] 11/9/2012 17:59

lady - yes, I hadn't thought of that ... not being in that exalted state!

[ladywormer] 11/9/2012 17:05

Don't you think it is the reduction from 50% to 45% for anyone earning over £150k with effect from the next tax year? I imagine any company with a substantial family holding will be doing the same.

[jonwig] 11/9/2012 07:45

FY results have no great surprises, though they seem to be managing a second-rank property portfolio pretty well.

The final dividend is being deferred to next April to take advantage of a new tax regime. I've not heard about this but the answer might be here:



- benefits to a holder of 10% or more of the equity - ie. 'some' shareholders of TCSC.

[jonwig] 30/7/2012 11:49

IC has an article featuring eight small property companies for their yields:



Their out-and-out pick is redefine International [RDI] which at first sight looks a basket case, but who knows?

TCSC is in the list:

Town Centre Securities (Buy, 168p, 11 Jul 2012) has generated a total return of 14.4 per cent since December, mainly due to a 12.2 per cent rise in the share price. But it still trades at a huge discount to book value, which is at odds with an excellent long-term dividend record. We stand by our recent buy tip (160p, 16 Feb 2012).

[jeff h] 19/7/2012 09:06

There we go again, a view and insight from you backed up with another snippet of information - you're far too modest jonwig.

As for buying what you're keen on, well I always prefer to make my own buying mistakes!...but if you're a holder of the stock as well I reckon I'm less likely to come away with a loss.

[jonwig] 19/7/2012 08:51

Jeff, it's true that the Eastgate and Trinity developments will marginalise the Merrion Centre to some extent, but Merrion has one big advantage - it's touching both universities, so the low end 'Poundland' stuff will always thrive.

As for your last paragraph, flattered though I am, please don't buy anything I'm keen on!!

[jeff h] 19/7/2012 08:41

jonwig - here's the article I was referring to:-

Hammerson has put the wheels in motion to restart plans for a £600m development in Leeds.

Retail Week Knowledge Bank

The property firm has raised the cash to revive plans first tabled eight years ago for the Eastgate retail scheme in the north east of the city, The Independent reports.

Hammerson raised £518m through selling a number of London offices to Brookfield last month and the first phase of the development is expected to be completed by 2016.

The Eastgate development will include a new John Lewis at one end and the existing Harvey Nichols in the Victoria Quarter in the city. Hammerson has hired property agent DTZ to lease out the scheme.

The development comes as Land Securities is due to open the one million sq ft Trinity Leeds centre next spring.

Leeds City Council will purchase Millgarth police headquarters this week which is likely to free up land to build a car park for the Eastgate scheme.



Incidentally jonwig I always enjoy reading your knowledgable comments on various threads...I often come away feeling I've learnt a bit more about the various companies from them.

[jonwig] 19/7/2012 07:56

Jeff - the Merrion Centre is low-grade stuff (hotel, council and Morrisons are pretty secure tenants) and TCSC only need it to be fully-let, which I think is the case.
The likes of John Lewis and Harvey Nicks won't really have an impact, though TCSC do own some car parks!

Another acquisition:



Current yield is over 8.9% which is high for that bit of Leeds. So either they got it cheap (which they imply) or the new lease will have some breaks. Possibly a combination of these.
Anyway, I can't see Lloyds abandoning the property.

[jeff h] 17/7/2012 15:05

I read about a new shopping centre development in Leeds...don't know if that has had an effect.

[jonwig] 17/7/2012 14:37

sscr - considering the recent deal, they'd have had to declare any such news. From my experience, this is so thinly traded that a few hundred shares sometimes are too many for online dealing and can move the price. (Though volume toady is pretty large.)

The circular is on the website, it's all a bit more complicated than the RNS led me to assume.

[sscrabble] 17/7/2012 13:29

big drop today !! bad news due ?

[inki] 11/7/2012 10:58

Thanks Jonwig - your perspective is encouraging. I thought though even a REIT would have a capital gain, and effectively the property is already company owned so there is little difference on that point. Their ability to borrow is relevant as TCSC is likely to have more clout, than a modest privately owned company with one major asset.
It also depends on how the Barratts HO is intended to be re-housed, as there must be considerations on that score.
Attendance at the Leeds AGM may provide further insight. Here's hoping you can make it. Work prevents me from attending.

[jonwig] 11/7/2012 09:05

inki - keeping it private would crystallise capital gains at the personal level on development or planning permission.
Plus the fact that they would need to borrow in order to pursue the development.

That's my reading, anyway!

The AGM is in November, and I'm hoping to get there (Leeds) - I'll ask.

[inki] 11/7/2012 08:50

Jonwig
Logic questions this deal why should they sell a property which they have 100% control over when now they only have 50% ownership as a family, unless your views are based on a personal knowledge of their ethics, or business objectives.

[jonwig] 10/7/2012 12:50

A pretty good deal announced this morning, buying the Barratts HQ from the directors. The fact that they are also controlling directors of TCSC might put some off, but the Ziff family have generally dealt responsibly with conflicts.

Conversion to residential use should be no problem, as there are blocks of flats and houses opposite.
The site is a pretty upmarket part of Bradford and there's a popular private school nearby.

[pjl1973] 13/4/2012 16:23

Well, they're doing rather better than Land Securities (who are down on their opening today), and TCSC is nearing it's 52 week high, unlike the former.

[inki] 13/4/2012 16:12

In tandem with British Land and Land Securities.

[sscrabble] 13/4/2012 14:17

recovering well !!

[pjl1973] 22/2/2012 09:28

Thanks for the info, looks the the IC are recommending it due to it still being an undervalued company right now.

[jonwig] 21/2/2012 08:31

PJL -

After a review of the numbers, this conclusion...

Town Centre's £140m debt pile is less risky than it looks. Three-quarters of it comprises debenture bonds that don't mature until 2031. With refinancing risk limited to the remaining quarter, Town Centre can afford to regenerate the Merrion Centre. The council is building a 13,500 seat arena behind Town Centre's site, and Mr Ziff sees this as an opportunity to re-front his mall with bars and restaurants, which will boost rental income from 2013.
SHARE TIP SUMMARY:

Net asset value and net rental income may well both be lower by the end of the current financial year. But the half-year figures were re-assuring, showing net asset value down just 4p to 284p per share in the first six months. So the 42 per cent discount to expected book value at which the shares trade is still too pessimistic. Buy.

[pjl1973] 20/2/2012 21:30

Can someone tell me why the IC tipped it on Friday? The half year report published last week wasn't exactly stellar, especially since profits were down. Surprised that they have decided to keep the dividend at the same rate. I was almost going to sell, but decided to let my trailing stop loss do that, since I had only bought this a couple of weeks ago, before the IC recommended it.

Ironically I bought these on the back of my stop loss being too tight and kicking me out on another stock which I had bought prior to an IC recommendation (Laura Ashley, which I still think is a good buy).

[soi] 20/2/2012 18:05

Sold out just before the close, like the company but it`s had a fair rise now.

I`ll look for another property company to replace it.