International retail real-estate company Sonae Sierra has reported net profits of €15.9 million in the first quarter of 2017.
This figure represents a decrease of 4.2%, compared to the same period last year, which the company (part of the same group that operates the Continente retail chain) says is due to the partial disposal of assets in 2016.
However, total tenant sales increased by 4% in the first three months of 2017, and the global occupancy rate of the company's portfolio rose to 96.3%, compared with 95% in the same period last year.
Performance
In the first quarter of the year, the company presented a direct profit of €15.1 million – 2% higher than the same period in 2016. This was due to higher EBIT from shopping centres in Europe and better financial results.
“Tenant sales, rents and occupancy rates all rose in the first three months of the year, reflecting our successful management approach and the quality of our shopping centres," said Fernando Guedes Oliveira, CEO of Sonae Sierra.
"The centres under development are progressing well, and our capital recycling strategy continues to drive further growth opportunities," he added.
Investments
Sonae Sierra is currently developing two shopping centres, in Morocco and Colombia, and carrying out several expansion projects on existing centres in Portugal and Spain.
Ores Socimi, Sonae's business venture with Spanish finance company Bankinter, also began trading this year, making its first investments in Forum Sport stores in Bilbao and Pamplona.
Ores plans to invest around €400 million in commercial assets in Spain and Portugal's biggest cities, including hypermarkets, supermarkets, retail parks, and high-street assets.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
