MAS REAL ESTATE Cashing in on European recovery

A stock likely to appear increasingly on property punters’ radars this year is Western European-focused MAS Real Estate, which completed its move from the AltX to the JSE’s main board in December.

The rand hedge counter, founded by a group of SA investors and listed on the AltX and Luxembourg Stock Exchange in 2009, has until recently maintained a fairly low profile.

Management went on an aggressive acquisition trail in the second half of 2014, trebling the property portfolio from the equivalent of around R900m to close to R3bn in the six months to December. The company’s market cap surged from less than R1bn 12 months ago to the current R5,7bn.

The recent growth spurt followed a successful private placement among mostly SA institutional investors in February Edinburgh city centre, Scotland Artist’s impression of mixed-use precinct under way last year in which R2,7bn was raised, nearly double the R1,5bn originally envisaged.

Interest among larger fund managers was no doubt piqued by the fact its main shareholder is JSE-listed developer Attacq, which has been one of the early backers of MAS. Attacq last year raised its stake in MAS from 21% to around 47%. The Pretoriabased technology group Mertech and life insurer Sanlam also have holdings in MAS.

The company owns a mix of retail, industrial and office properties in the UK, Switzerland and Germany. The flagship asset is a large development in the historic city centre of Edinburgh in Scotland that spans 6,4 ha.

The site is in the process of being turned into a mixed-use precinct including various office buildings, retail properties, three hotels, 180 residential units and a new public square. The value of the completed project is estimated