Key highlights for the three months to 31 March 2021
Performance and business highlights
• Continued strong tenant demand resulted in 9.4% rent uplifts on renewals and relettings over the past twelve months, with 59 deals signed in Q1 2021.
• EPRA vacancy rate at 31 March 2021 was 1.5%, down from 1.6% at 31 December 2020 and extending our long-term low vacancy record.
• Gross rental income for the quarter ending 31 March 2021 was €52.2 million compared with €51.5 million in the same period last year.
• Net earnings €0.50 (direct investment result) per depositary receipt for 3 months to 31 March 2021 compared to €0.59 per depositary receipt for the same period last year.
• Loan to value ratio (on the basis of proportional consolidation) reduced to 43.3% compared to 43.8% at 31 December 2020.
• €100 million long term financing extended to 2024 with three sustainability linked loans.
• Despite non-essential stores in our portfolio being closed on average for 28 days and restaurants for 39 days, rent collection was 73% for Q1 2021.

Management board commentary
High and persistent numbers of COVID-19 cases during the first part of 2021 have resulted in various degrees of government restrictions on retail trade which continue to impact our business in all our markets. During Q1 2021, non-essential stores in our portfolio were closed on average for 28 days and restaurants were shut for 39 days. In France, the government recently announced that retail and restaurant terraces can reopen from 19 May, although details of pledged government rent support are still awaited. Our shopping centres in Italy can currently trade on weekdays only including open air bars and restaurants, although there are promising signs for a broader reopening including indoor food & beverage and entertainment during early summer.
Following a four week lockdown in Belgium, Woluwe Shopping was able to fully reopen on 26 April, with food & beverage scheduled to follow during May. Our shopping centres in Sweden remain fully open as they have been throughout the pandemic.
Against this background, the strength and resilience of our shopping centres continues to be characterised by buoyant letting activity with 287 renewals and relettings completed over the last 12 months, producing a rental uplift of 9.4%. Our vacancies remain at their historically low levels and have reduced further to 1.5%.
Q1 rent collection has been steady and to date we have collected 73% of invoiced rent. We expect to recover shortfalls once dates are confirmed for full reopening together with details of government rent support initiatives. With vaccination rates now steadily increasing throughout Europe, we remain optimistic that normal trading patterns will resume during the summer and we expect to see strong rebounds in footfall and sales in all our markets as we experienced during the summer months last year in between lockdowns.

Financial & Operational Review
Direct investment result: €24.8 million (€0.50 per depositary receipt)
The direct investment result for the three months to 31 March 2021 was €24.8 million, compared to €29.2 million for the same period in 2020. The decline was due to COVID-19 related discounts granted and expected to be granted to retailers and bad debts. In Q1 2021, €3.5 million has been charged to the property expenses for Covid-19 rent concessions and €2.5 million for an impairment on rent receivable. Furthermore, €1.3 million was booked as amortisation of the rent concessions for the COVID-19 lockdown periods during 2020, reducing rental income. The amounts were more significant in Q1 2021 than Q1 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic and the related government restrictions affected more countries and for a longer period of time.
The direct investment result per depositary receipt decreased by 15% to €0.50 at 31 March 2021, from €0.59 for the three months to 31 March 2020.
The direct investment result is defined as net property income less net interest expenses and company expenses after taxation. In the view of the Board this more accurately represents the underlying profitability of the Company than IFRS “profit after tax”, which must include unrealised capital gains and losses.
The EPRA earnings result for the three months reporting period to 31 March 2021 was €24.8 million, or €0.50 per depositary receipt.

IFRS profit: €38.4 million
The IFRS profit after taxation for the three months reporting period to 31 March 2021 was €38.4 million (€0.76 per depositary receipt) compared to €17.6 million (€0.34 per depositary receipt) for the three months reporting period to 31 March 2020. This increase is largely explained by a €17.8 million positive impact on the fair value of the derivative financial instruments (€12.9 million negative in the three months reporting period to 31 March 2020) due to an increase in Euro and Swedish interest rates.
Gross rental income: €52.2 million Gross rental income for the first quarter (based on proportional consolidation) was at €52.2 million, slightly higher than the same quarter last year (€51.5 million). Net property income, including joint ventures (based on proportional consolidation), for the three months to 31 March 2021, after deducting net service charges and direct and indirect property expenses (branch overheads), however decreased to €38.1 million compared to €42.9 million for the three months to 31 March 2020, for reasons related to the COVID-19 pandemic and already described above.

EPRA Net Tangible Assets: €42.73 per depositary receipt
The EPRA Net Tangible Assets (EPRA NTA) at 31 March 2021 was €42.73 per depositary receipt compared with €42.55 at 31 December 2020. EPRA NTA includes only 50% of contingent capital gains tax liabilities and does not consider the fair value of financial derivatives.
No property valuations were undertaken at the end of the period, in accordance with the Company’s policy to only commission independent revaluations at the half-year and year-ends. The EPRA NTA per depositary receipt, therefore, has changed minimally since December 2020, reflecting only accrued income and currency movements. All properties will be externally valued at 30 June 2021 and reported in the half-year results.
The adjusted net asset value at 31 March 2021 was €43.05 per depositary receipt compared with €42.84 at 31 December 2020. Adjusted net asset values do not consider contingent capital gains tax liabilities nor do they consider the fair value of financial derivatives (interest rate swaps).
The IFRS net asset value at 31 March 2021, after allowing for contingent capital gains tax liabilities if all properties were to be sold simultaneously and the fair value of the interest rate swap contracts, was €38.74 per depositary receipt compared with €38.17 at 31 December 2020.

Rent collection
We continued to collect rents related to 2020 leading to an improvement of our 2020 rent collection figures which now stand at 87% of invoiced rent and 96% of collectable rents.
Q1 2021 collection rates as at 6 May are provided in the table below. Rent collection has been slower due to the uncertainty about shopping centre reopening dates and the timing and extent of government rent support initiatives in France, Italy and to a lesser extent, Sweden.
The figures reported in the table below exclude COVID-19 discounts and would be higher when including
discounts, the majority of which are still to be agreed.

% of invoiced rent collected for Q1
Belgium 93%
France 61%
Italy 66%
Sweden 88%
Total 73%

Renewals and relettings
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, strong leasing activity has continued over the past 12 months with 287 leases renewed or re-let, achieving an overall uplift in rent of 9.4%. Of these 287 transactions, 90 were relettings achieving a rental uplift of 12.3%, demonstrating strong demand from new retailers to open in our centres.
Tenant demand has been consistent throughout the period and, in Q1 2021 alone, 59 renewals and relettings were completed, producing an uplift in rent of 5.6%.

see & read more on
https://ml-eu.globenewswire.com/Resource/Download/5afca1ba-47b3-499e-ac5b-f5cf27af62cc