Hammerson buys mall in Paris

Hammerson plc, the western European invested mall owner, has bought a shopping centre in France for €81m as it looks to diversify its asset base.

Hammerson plc, the western European invested mall owner, has bought a shopping centre in France for €81m as it looks to diversify its asset base.

Hammerson, one of the largest property companies on the JSE with a market cap of R76.6bn, acts as a rand hedge for South African investors.

The shopping centre owner completed the acquisition of the 11,000m² shopping centre called Cergy 3 in Paris. The centre, which is connected to its existing shopping mall, Les Trois Fontaines, was bought from a private vendor.

Les Trois Fontaines was established as the leading shopping destination for the Val d’Oise region and was one of Hammerson’s flagship assets in France, CEO David Atkins said.

“This acquisition of the adjoining Cergy 3 centre strengthens Hammerson’s investment by increasing the scale of the retail platform and growing catchment share.

“It also supports an enhanced customer experience by providing the opportunity to manage leasing and consumer initiatives across both adjoining sites,” Atkins said.

He said Les Trois Fontaines had benefited from a recent refurbishment and Hammerson had made plans for a 33,000m² extension of the centre.

The proposed extension would take the total retail space to more than 95,000m² with 3,700 car-park spaces, 230 stores and an attractive restaurant and leisure offer.

Cergy 3, anchored by French retail chain Fnac, has 46 units let to retailers and restaurants, including Grande Récré and Foot Locker, producing €3.2m of rental income a year.

Stanlib’s head of listed property, Keillen Ndlovu, said Hammerson had “great growth prospects” and had a good acquisition track record.

“Earnings and dividends are projected to grow by a solid 6%8% a year over the next two to three years,” he said.