Successful launch of £350 million 2025 bond

RNS Number : 8914C

Hammerson PLC

21 October 2015

 

Hammerson plc ('Hammerson')

Bond

21 October 2015

Successful launch of £350 million 2025 bond

Hammerson announces the successful launch and pricing of a ten year, £350 million bond maturing 2025. The bond was priced at 173 basis points over the reference gilt and has an annual coupon of 3.5%.  The issue was more than two times oversubscribed. Hammerson subsequently swapped the sterling bond nominal amount and coupon payments into euros resulting in a net coupon cost to Hammerson of 2.5%.

The new coupon, post swaps, of 2.5% is in line with our target financing costs and the proceeds of the issue will be used to enhance liquidity following the recent investment in Dublin.  The tenor of ten years is longer than Hammerson's recent euro bond issues and will extend the weighted average maturity of debt by approximately one year.  Following this new issue the overall loan to value ratio of the Group will remain in line with our previously stated guidelines.

Hammerson is rated Baa1 (stable) by Moodys and A- (stable) by Fitch. BNP PARIBAS, HSBC, Lloyds Bank, Barclays, MUFJ and Santander Global Banking & Markets acted as joint bookrunners.

Timon Drakesmith, CFO of Hammerson, said: "This transaction is the first sterling bond issue by Hammerson for almost ten years and represents a welcome return to a home funding market.  We are appreciative of the support shown by our key bond investors and our relationship banks have assisted in swapping the coupon to a low 2.5% level in euros."

For more information please contact:

Timon Drakesmith, Chief Financial Officer
Tel: [phone]

Richard Sharp, Group Treasurer
Tel: [phone]

 

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