Admission to AIM and First Day of Dealings

RNS Number : 1423P

Circle Property PLC

16 February 2016

 

NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A CONTRAVENTION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF SUCH JURISDICTION.

16 February 2016

Circle Property plc

("Circle" or the "Company" or the "Group")

Admission to AIM and First Day of Dealings

Circle Property plc, a specialist regional UK property investment, development and management company, today announces that admission will take place and dealings in its ordinary shares is expected to commence at 08.00am on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange under the ticker "CRC".

Introduction to the Group

Circle's operations were established in the UK in 2002 with the intention of acquiring a portfolio of UK commercial properties for investment purposes. Since 2006, the Group's portfolio has been held by Circle Property Unit Trust (CPUT), a closed-ended, unlisted unit trust.

The Company's board is chaired by Ian Henderson, the former Chief Executive of Land Securities, who heads a strong board which includes Jamie Hambro and The Duke of Roxburghe, among others.

The management team comprises John Arnold and Edward Olins as Chief Executive and Chief Operating Officer respectively, who have over 50 years of experience in the commercial real estate market between them. They have a strong track record of creating value through the acquisition of well located, but often under managed properties at close to vacant possession values, and subsequently refurbishing, redeveloping and/or reletting them to create superior quality, income producing assets.

The Group has an existing portfolio with significant reversionary potential through development opportunities, asset management initiatives, rent reviews and lease renewals. Currently, the Group owns a freehold and leasehold portfolio of 16 real estate assets. The Group's portfolio has been independently valued at approximately £73.9 million.

The Company's aim is to build a portfolio of prime regional offices by adding value to under-utilised buildings, securing lettings swiftly and ahead of competition, thereby generating attractive initial yields. Property let on short-dated leases and part vacant properties will be also considered where the initial income covers the interest costs.

The Company is targeting annual total returns in excess of 12 per cent on acquisition and between 15 to 20 per cent on costs of development expenditure including acquisition costs.

The number of ordinary shares in issue immediately after admission will be 28,283,340 ordinary shares of which 255,034 will be held in treasury giving a total number of voting rights in the Company of 28,028,306. This would give the Company a market capitalisation of approximately £42 million at the placing price of £1.49 per ordinary share.

Reason for admission

The Directors believe the benefits of the Company's admission to trading on AIM include:

·      Enhancing the Group's reputation, credibility and profile with acquisition targets, introducers and clients, by virtue of its status as a quoted company;

·      Supporting the continuation and expansion of the Group's investment portfolio to pursue further growth opportunities;

·      Providing greater liquidity for shareholders;

·      Providing the Company with the flexibility to use its shares as currency, if and when it seeks acquisition opportunities; and

·      Access to capital markets.

Ian Henderson, Chairman of Circle Property plc, commented: 

"Utilising our expert team, we believe we are extremely well placed to successfully create value, through both the asset management of our current portfolio and sourcing deals for future acquisitions at a time when there is an increasing demand for high quality regional assets."

John Arnold, CEO of Circle Property plc, commented:

"The successful completion of Circle's IPO is a significant step forward in the evolution of the Company. Not only does it provide greater liquidity for shareholders, it also provides us with greater flexibility with which to successfully grow the business. First and foremost we look forward to signing up to a credit committee-approved facility with RBS which is triggered by this admission."

Peel Hunt LLP is the nominated adviser and sole broker to the Company.

Circle Property plc	[phone]
John Arnold, CEO
Edward Olins, COO
Peel Hunt (Nominated Advisor to the Group)	[phone]
Capel Irwin Hugh Preston George Huntley
FTI Consulting	[phone]
Richard Sunderland Giles Barrie Clare Glynn

For further information on Circle Property PLC and to download the Company's Admission Document please visit www.circleproperty.co.uk

Notes to Editors

Circle's existing portfolio

1. Park House, Northampton Business Park, Northampton

2. Units A & B, Chapel Lane, Great Blakenham

3. Baildon Bridge Retail Park, Shipley

4. Solstice Park Avenue, Amesbury

5. Winwick Road, Warrington

6. 141 Moorgate, London

7. Power House, Knowhill, Milton Keynes

8. Week Street, Maidstone

9. Victory House, Northampton Business Park, Northampton

10. Cheltenham House, Temple Street, Birmingham

11. Elizabeth House, London Road, Staines

12. One Castlepark, Bristol

13. Kents Hill Business Park, Milton Keynes

14. 36 Great Charles Street, Birmingham

15. 135 Aztec West, Bristol

16. Somerset House, Temple Street, Birmingham

The board

On Admission, the Board will consist of two executive Directors and five non-executive Directors. The

Directors will be responsible for the management and operations of the Group.

Ian Henderson - Non-Executive Chairman

Mr Henderson, aged 72, is the Non-Executive Deputy Chairman and Senior Independent Non-Executive

Director of Capital & Counties Properties plc, the Chairman of the Dolphin Square Foundation and the

Chairman of the Estate and Advisory Committee of The National History Museum. Mr Henderson was formerly Chief Executive of Land Securities Group plc and has been widely involved in the UK property industry, including being a past president of the British Property Federation. Mr Henderson is a Fellow of The RICS.

John Arnold - Chief Executive

Mr Arnold, aged 60, left St Quintin Chartered Surveyors (now CBRE) after seven years in the management department and joined Hambros plc in January 1986. He became a Director of Berkeley Hambro plc, its property subsidiary, in 1991, where he remained until Investec's acquisition of Hambros Bank in 1998, when he was appointed Managing Director of Investec Property plc. He left Investec at the end of 1999 and founded CPML in April 2002. Mr Arnold is a Fellow of The RICS.

Edward Olins - Chief Operating Officer

Mr Olins, aged 42, joined DE & J Levy LLP as a graduate surveyor and became a salaried partner in 2000. He left the partnership in 2003 to join London & County Estates Limited as Investment Director. In 2006, he joined CPML to take control of new business acquisitions and assist Mr Arnold in the running of CPML. Mr Olins is a Member of The RICS,

The Duke of Roxburghe - Non-Executive Director

The Duke of Roxburghe, aged 61, was previously non-executive director of Townhouse Hotel Investments Limited and The Sport Entertainment & Media Group Limited. The Duke of Roxburghe is involved in the day-to-day running of the Roxburghe Estates including the opening of Floors Castle to the public in 1977 and opening The Roxburghe Golf course in 1997.

James Hambro - Non-Executive Director

Mr Hambro, aged 66, is Chairman of James Hambro & Partners. He was an Executive Director of Hambros Bank from 1982 to 1985, co-founder of the original J O Hambro Group and Managing Director of J O Hambro Magan before going on to found J O Hambro Capital Management. He is Chairman of Hansteen Holdings plc and a director of Primary Health Properties plc. Mr Hambro recently stepped down as Chairman of The Henry Smith Charity, a large grant-making charity, after almost 25 years of service. He holds a Diplome d'Etudes en Langue Francaise from the University of Grenoble and completed the Advanced Management Programme at Harvard Business School. More recently he became chairman of "the Guide Dogs for the Blind" charity.

Michael Farrow - Non-Executive Director

Mr Farrow, aged 61, is a founding director of Consortia Partnership Limited, a Jersey licensed trust and fund services company. He heads their institutional business which, amongst other services, provides property and private equity fund administration. He is currently the Senior Independent Director of Redefine International plc (a FTSE 250 property company), the Chairman of Bellzone Mining plc (AIM listed), the Chairman of STANLIB Funds Limited (a Jersey regulated open-ended investment company), and a non-executive director of RedT Energy plc (formerly Camco Clean Energy plc) (AIM listed).

Between 1997 and 2004, Mr Farrow was an executive director and trustee of a substantial family office

which held diversified investment and trading portfolios, primarily focused on real estate in Europe and

California. He has also been group company secretary of Cater Allen Jersey, a banking, fiduciary and investment management group, and formerly a regular Army officer. Mr Farrow holds a Master of Science in Corporate Governance, and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Secretaries and Administrators.

Richard Hebert - Non-Executive Director

Mr Hebert, aged 53, has 30 years' experience in the trust and corporate services sector in Jersey, working in the trust departments of several large firms associated to law practices and banks. This included being a member of the management team of one of the largest independent trust businesses in Jersey and on the integration project team for two major acquisitions. He is a director of Consortia Partnership Limited.

Mr Hebert is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered and Certified Accountants, a Fellow of the Association of Accounting Technicians and an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Secretaries and Administrators.

 

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