Half Yearly Report

RNS Number : 7793W

Helical Bar PLC

25 November 2010

 



25 November 2010

H E L I C A L   B A R   P L C

("Helical"/"Company"/"Group")

H a l f    Y e a r   R e s u l t s

For the Six Months to 30 September 2010

Financial Highlights:

§  Operating profit for the half year of £1.9m (2009: loss of £3.4m)

§  Diluted EPRA net assets per share of 261p (31 March 2010: 272p)

§  Gain on revaluation of investment portfolio £9.5m at the half year. After sales, purchases and capital expenditure - up 3.4%

§  Group's share of net rental income of £8.4m (2009: £8.6m)

§  Diluted EPRA loss per share of 9.1p (2009: loss of 6.4p)

§  Ratio of net borrowings to property portfolio of 47% (31 March 2010: 47%)

§  Cash and unused bank facilities of over £85m together with £39m of uncharged property on which funds could be borrowed ensure the Company is well positioned to capitalise on market opportunities

§  Reduced administration costs of £3.7m (2009: £4.0m)

§  Interim dividend maintained at 1.75p per share (2009: 1.75p)

Operational Highlights:

Active portfolio management to maximise income and preserve and enhance capital value growth potential:

§ Ongoing disposals programme, with £97m of sales of mainly non-income producing assets completed or in solicitors' hands in the year to date.

§ Successful letting programme, with over 40 new lettings or renewed leases increasing annualised income by £685,000, compared to £560,000 of rent lost through expiries or breaks. 

Establishing a substantial platform for future value creation, with timing of delivery dependent on prevailing market conditions and the securing of appropriate funding structures:

§ Over 1m sq ft of office developments in Central London

§ 1.2m sq ft portfolio of out of town retail development assets in Poland

§ Engaged in the promotion of up to 3,000 residential units in London in existing joint venture partnerships and consortia

§ 606 retirement units with planning consent, of which 150 units are already built or under construction.

Commenting on the results, Michael Slade, Chief Executive, said:

"We believe that the investment and trading deals that we are now finding will provide income surpluses, capital gains and trading profits. As the cycle unfolds, the development opportunities we are now pursuing should produce substantial profits. Old fashioned property skills will be to the fore and we believe that the market today offers us the opportunity to produce the outperformance in the future that our shareholders have come to expect."

For further information, please contact:

Helical Bar plc                                                                     020 7629 0113

Michael Slade (Chief Executive)                              

Nigel McNair Scott (Finance Director)

Address:         11-15 Farm Street, London W1J 5RS

Fax:                 020 7408 1666

Website:         www.helical.co.uk

Financial Dynamics                                                             020 7831 3113

Stephanie Highett

Dido Laurimore

Laurence Jones

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Income Statement	Notes	Half Year To 30 September 2010 £m	Half Year To 30 September 2009 £m	Year  To 31 March 2010 £m
Group's share of net rental income	1	8.4	8.6	14.9
Development property loss		(9.2)	(3.7)	(1.3)
Trading property loss		(0.4)	-	-
Share of results of joint ventures	2	0.6	-	3.7
(Loss)/profit before property write-downs, investment gains and tax		(0.9)	1.8	9.7
Provisions against trading and development stock		(10.2)	(6.2)	(10.0)
Gain/(loss) on sale and revaluation of investment properties		9.7	(4.4)	8.2
Impairment of available-for-sale assets	4	(1.8)	-	-
(Loss)/profit before tax		(3.2)	(8.8)	7.9
Earnings and Dividends Basic (loss)/earnings per share		pence (3.7)	pence (7.5)	pence 9.1
Diluted (loss)/earnings per share		(3.7)	(7.5)	9.1
Diluted EPRA loss per share	3	(9.1)	(6.4)	(0.1)
Dividends per share		0.25	2.75	7.25
Balance Sheet Value of investment portfolio Trading and development stock at directors' value Net borrowings Net assets Ratio of net borrowings to property portfolio Net gearing	6 6 7	At 30 September 2010 £m 254.5 188.1 209.0 230.4 47% 91%	At 30 September 2009 £m 205.3 245.0 191.0 229.5 42% 83%	At 31 March 2010 £m 219.9 215.6 203.0 242.6 47% 84%
Net Asset Values Diluted EPRA net assets per share at 1 April Gain/(loss) on sale and revaluation of investment       properties Trading and development property write-downs Reduction in trading and development surplus Impairment of available-for-sale assets Dividends Other items not separately identified above Diluted EPRA net assets per share at 30 September / 31 March	5	pence 272 9 (10) - (10) - - ___ 261	pence 286 (4) (6) - - (3) (2) ___ 271	pence 286 7 (9) (12) - (7) 7 ___ 272

Notes

1.      Includes Group's share net rental income joint ventures of £1.9m (2009: £0.1m).

2.      The Group's share of the results of entities controlled equally by the Group and its joint venture partners.

3.      Calculated in accordance with IAS 33 and the best practice recommendations of the European Public Real Estate Association ("EPRA"). See note 8 of Half Year Statement.

4.      Represents the impairment of the original cost of investment in Quotient Biosciences Group Limited, held as an available-for-sale investment. A further £8.3m (net of tax) write off has been taken through the Statement of Comprehensive Income in accordance with IAS 39, reducing diluted EPRA net assets per share by 10p. See note 11 of Half Year Statement.

5.      Calculated in accordance with the best practice recommendations of EPRA. See note 20 of Half Year Statement.

6.      Includes the trading and development stock surplus of £33.5m (31 March 2010: £33.0m).  See note 10 of Half Year Statement.

7.      Net gearing is the ratio of net borrowings to net assets excluding the surplus on fair value of trading and development properties.

C h a i r m a n ' s   S t a t e m e n t

Introduction

Helical has enjoyed a good six months both in terms of acquisitions and disposals undertaken during the period. We have been very disciplined in converting non-performing and, in particular, non-income producing assets into cash. Our existing cash funds and bank relationships have enabled us to remain active in the investment and development markets in our chosen sectors. We now see a number of very interesting schemes and investment opportunities being sold by the banks, institutions and over-geared private property companies and we regard the coming year as a 'buying' opportunity.

Basis of Preparation

In line with industry practice, Helical values its investment portfolio on a six monthly basis and, as part of the wider valuation process, the directors have also considered the current values of trading and development stock. In addition, and in accordance with IAS 39, the company values its available-for-sale investments on a fair value basis. This half year statement accounts for valuation movements in the investment portfolio and available-for-sale investments to 30 September 2010 and includes, in the diluted EPRA net asset value per share, unrealised surpluses on trading and development stock.

Results

In the six months to 30 September 2010, Helical incurred a loss before property write-downs, gain on sale and revaluation of investment properties and tax of £0.9m (2009: profit £1.8m).  An impairment in the carrying value of its development sites of £10.2m (2009: £6.2m), a gain on the sale and revaluation of investment properties of £9.7m (2009: loss £4.4m) and an impairment of the Group's available-for-sale investments of £1.8m (2009: nil) increased this loss before tax to £3.2m (2009: £8.8m). A further write-down of the Group's available-for-sale investments of £8.3m (net of tax) has been recognised in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. The Group's share of net rental income was £8.4m, including properties held in joint ventures, (2009: £8.6m) and there was a trading property loss of £0.4m (2009: £nil).  Administration costs reduced to £3.7m (2009: £4.0m) and the net financing charge was £3.5m (2009: £4.1m).

A corporation tax charge of £nil (2009: £0.7m) has been combined with a deferred tax charge of £0.7m (2009: credit of £1.6m) for a net tax charge of £0.7m (2009: credit £0.9m).

We are declaring a maintained Interim Dividend of 1.75p per share (2009: 1.75p), payable on 23 December 2010 to shareholders on the register on 3 December 2010.

Diluted loss per share, was 3.7p (2009: 7.5p) and diluted EPRA loss per share was 9.1p (2009: 6.4p).

Basic and diluted net assets per share fell to 217p per share (31 March 2010: 228p). The diluted EPRA net asset value per share, which includes the surplus on fair value of trading and development properties as at 30 September 2010 was 261p (31 March 2010: 272p).

Financing

Helical has repaid £30.2m of debt in the first half and a further £16.2m has been repaid since 30 September 2010 as a result of the sales of Fieldgate Street, Paignton, Watford, Crawley, Whitstable, Eastcheap and industrial units at Southampton, Southall and Kidlington.

At 30 September 2010 the Group had net borrowings of £209.0m (31 March 2010: £203.0m) and gross property values of £442.6m (31 March 2010: £435.5m).  The ratio of net borrowings to the value of the property portfolio (including the directors valuation of stock) was 47.3% (31 March 2010: 46.6%).  Net debt to equity gearing at 30 September 2010 was 91% (31 March 2010: 84%).

At 30 September 2010, the Group had £87m (31 March 2010 £93m) of fixed rate borrowings with an average effective interest rate of 6.6% (31 March 2010: 6.4%) and an average length of 1.75 years (31 March 2010: 2.25 years) and £34m of interest rate caps at 6% (31 March 2010: £34m at 6%).  In addition the Company has a £30m floor at 4.5% until 2013. The Group has over £85m of cash and agreed, unutilised, bank facilities, as well as £39m of uncharged property (at fair value) on which it could borrow funds.

As at 24 November 2010, Helical's average interest rate was 4.6%. 

Outlook

Despite the emergence from recession at the start of 2010, there remain a number of obstacles to continued economic growth, not least the potential impact of the Government's Comprehensive Spending Review and other actions needed to reduce the UK budget deficit. However, I am encouraged by the progress made by the Company in re-balancing its property portfolio and am optimistic that the many opportunities that Helical is pursuing will provide good growth in the coming years.

Giles Weaver

Chairman

25 November 2010

CHIEF EXECUTIVE'S STATEMENT

Over the last three years the downturn in the property market has presented many daunting obstacles. Throughout we have maintained the "Helical model" of a mix of investment, trading and development in a variety of sectors and we are beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel.

If there is a silver lining to these dark clouds it is that buying opportunities are starting to appear, both in Central London development plays and in the wider investment market. This is not surprising as many potential buyers are 'out on their feet', pre-occupied with sorting out legacy issues and unable to raise debt. The institutions and foreign investors are concentrating on the most secure, prime end of the market. By contrast real dangers still lurk for specific assets in the secondary/tertiary markets with rents still falling and voids getting worse.

Between these two extremes we are seeing opportunities for careful, disciplined stock picking of individual assets and development schemes, some of which are described in this announcement. Our existing cash resources, lenders willing to support our acquisitions and a hard won reputation for doing what we say we will do are leading to increasing deal flow and so we look forward to the next year or two with increasing excitement.

Aspects of our results for the last six months are disappointing, especially the continued write-downs in our trading and development portfolio. However, this is the inevitable result of our way of doing business - we have not sat and looked at those assets with limited potential, we have marked to market and thrown ourselves into selling them, placing a premium on recovering cash which we can recycle into new acquisitions with real potential upside. In total, we have sold circa £100m of trading and development stock since April 2009, and £61m since the year end in March. Of this latter sum, £45m is of non-income producing stock. I cannot guarantee that we will not suffer further losses as we continue to aggressively sell trading and development stock.

Equally, short term exceptional trading profits similar to our recent successes at Tideway, Battersea, and Riverbank House, Upper Thames Street have been hard to come by as a result of standing back from the development market since 2004/5. Moving forward we have planted many 'acorns' to build up an exciting and profitable development portfolio for this cycle including 200 Aldersgate, out of town retail in Poland, White City, Mitre Square and others, but we must wait for market forces, planners, funds and last but not least for our future tenants to perform on our stage before we receive the fruits of our labour.

In the shorter term, we believe that the investment and trading deals which we are now finding will provide income surpluses, capital gains and trading profits. As the cycle unfolds, the development opportunities we are now pursuing should produce substantial profits. Old fashioned property skills will be to the fore and we believe that the market today offers us the opportunity to produce the outperformance in the future that our shareholders have come to expect.

Michael Slade

Chief Executive

25 November 2010

PROPERTY PORTFOLIO

A complete list of the Group's ongoing projects is noted below but a summary of the more significant matters that have progressed since 31 March 2009 is as follows:

Trading and Development Stock

Our primary concern over the last 18 months has been to recover equity from those assets with limited potential (especially non-income producing) to re-invest in new opportunities. The only way to achieve sales in this market is to be competitive on pricing. This has involved write downs over the last two years, and even in the last six months. In effect we are putting a premium on having cash for new acquisitions and are accepting discounted prices on sales of certain properties to achieve this.

We have sold circa £100m of trading and development stock since April 2009 of which £80m has been non-income producing. Of this, £61m has been sold since the year end in March 2010, £45m of which was non-income producing. We have a further £6m in solicitors' hands or under offer to be sold and expect a further £44m will be sold by next March.

200 Aldersgate, London EC1

Helical has an Asset and Development Management Agreement with the owners of the building. Refurbishment works have been completed and the marketing of circa 360,000 sq ft NIA offices will commence in January at a time when the City is moving towards a shortage of quality office space.

Mitre Square, London EC3

A planning application for a new Grade A office building of 275,000 sq ft NIA was submitted in June and is expected to be decided by the planning committee shortly. Once planning consent is granted we will have a deliverable scheme able to commence with a pre-let or with a partner. 

Hammersmith, London W6

A planning application was submitted in November for circa 100,000 sq ft of new Council offices, 320 new private homes, a food store together with retail/restaurants around a new public square, and a bridge linking Hammersmith Town Centre with Furnival Gardens and the River Thames. Our joint venture company (which is 50/50 owned with Grainger plc) King Street Developments Limited, was selected as part of an OJEU process competition in 2007.

Fulham Wharf, London SW6

Helical Bar was appointed as development managers by J. Sainsbury plc to procure a planning consent for this site at Sands End in Fulham. An application was submitted in August for a 100,000 sq ft supermarket together with 472 residential units and associated car parking. Helical will benefit from a fee once planning permission is secured together with a profit share.

White City, London W12

The White City Opportunity Area Planning Framework is due out for public consultation in early 2011. The intention is therefore to work up a planning application during next year for submission at the end of 2011.

Poland

Helical currently hold three assets in Poland, a market with strong potential for growth.

Wroclaw - this scheme was completed in December 2008 and was fully let at completion. Since then it has been trading well, yielding over 8% on cost. Halfords is withdrawing from Eastern Europe to concentrate on the UK market so we are in the process of agreeing a surrender of its lease and a re-let to TK Maxx at a slightly higher rent. We are planning to market the property once the TK Maxx letting is completed.

Turawa - construction is well under way on this scheme of circa 40,000 sq m. It is fully forward funded with Standard Life who will buy out the income at 6.4% when fully let post completion. Reasonable progress is being made on lettings and we anticipate being fully let by summer 2011 following its opening next March.

Europa Centralna, Gliwice - The new motorway road network has been completed around the site and most of the enabling works have also been undertaken. The main construction work is due to commence in Q2 2011 and to enable this to happen, a €72m construction loan has been signed. Tenant interest is strong: nearly 50% of area is pre-leased and a number of tenants are due to sign before the end of the year.

Investment Portfolio

There was a valuation increase of 3.4% in six months to September including capex, sales and purchases which compares to the IPD monthly index of 2.4% over the same period.

The breakdown of the investment portfolio is as follows:

	Portfolio weighting	Initial Yield	Reversionary Yield	Yield on letting voids	Equivalent Yield (AiA)
	%	%	%	%	%
Industrial	17	7.5	9.5	9.5	8.8
London Offices	35	5.9	7.9	8.0	7.5
South East offices	6	6.4	8.7	8.1	8.6
Retail	42	6.6	8.0	7.9	7.6
Total	100	6.5	8.2	8.2	7.8

We hold 50% of our investment portfolio (£139m, our share) in three assets. 

The Morgans, Cardiff

A prime retail asset on the Hayes opposite St David's 2, let to White Stuff, Moss Bros, Schoon and TK Maxx. New lettings to Urban Outfitters, Joules and Dr Martens in the last six months have increased rental values from £135 psf to £171 psf. With current contracted rent of £3.1m versus ERV of £4.1m, we see many opportunities for asset management initiatives and further rental growth over the medium term.

Clydebank Shopping Centre, Clyde

In January 2010, we completed the acquisition of Clydebank Shopping Centre, North West of Glasgow for £68m (8.3% net yield) from AXA/CIS (£72.1m gross cost) in a joint venture with Prime Commercial Properties, with Helical taking a 60% equity stake. Value has increased 11% since acquisition. The current rent is £7.875m pa and there is a vacant ERV of £1.4m pa. There is considerable upside potential both by way of yield shift and letting vacant units.

Shepherds Building, London W14

151,000 sq ft refurbished office just south of Shepherds Bush Green and Westfield shopping centre. Following recent lettings the building is now 100% let, mainly to media related tenants, on an average rent of £22.70 psf. Ongoing tenant demand is strong with recent lettings at £25 to £30 psf depending on size, giving good prospects for rental growth over the next three to five years.

Acquisitions

We acquired a mainly industrial portfolio for £46.5m in June 2010 (£48.6m gross cost). The portfolio comprised nine assets, of which six are multi-let industrial units, one single let industrial and two offices (one of which is in Eastcheap in the City). Two of these assets were sold for £15.8m pre completion, leaving seven assets yielding 10.5% net. Following asset management initiatives, two further assets have been sold since completion for a profit of £2.7m and there are valuation gains on the retained assets of £4.2m. The remaining portfolio yields 11% on cost. One further asset is currently under offer for sale at above its book value.

Sales

Since the year end we have completed three sales in Witham (from the industrial portfolio), Crawley and Paignton for a total of £9.9m, 2% above the March 2010 valuation. Since the half year end we have sold a fourth property for £9.5m, 32% above the acquisition price in June.

Future Investment Acquisitions

We are currently seeing a three tier market in the UK, namely:

1.   Prime / trophy 'institutional' assets which have limited opportunities to add value, characterised by competitive bidding and, especially, by significant money flows from foreign investors.

2.   Well located 'institutional' assets, which would benefit from capex and value added initiatives.

3.   Weak secondary / tertiary assets, which will in many cases show dramatic falls in rents and increasing voids, a market which Helical is avoiding.

We believe that there is now is a rare opportunity to buy assets with substantial surplus rental income over the cost of debt and that historically these market windows do not last long. We are looking at multi-let properties in the "second tier", including good quality shopping centres, retail parks, industrial estates and inner-London offices, at yields of between 7.5% and 10.0% as well as portfolios offering opportunities for medium term trading profits (e.g. as with our recent industrial portfolio purchase), mainly higher yielding retail and industrial assets.

We continue to focus on careful, disciplined stock picking of active management opportunities which are temporarily below the institutional radar but out of reach of buyers who are unable to raise debt. Whilst some of these opportunities will come from banks selling distressed assets, we believe they are more likely to come from over-geared private property companies and from institutions and larger REITs looking to rebalance their portfolios.

PROPERTY PORTFOLIO
INCOME PRODUCING ASSETS
OFFICES
										Area		Helical							Average			Vacancy
Address					Region	Tenure		Acquired		Sq. Ft. (NIA)		Interest		Description					Passing Rent per sq ft			Rate
Shepherds Building, Shepherds Bush, London W14					London	Freehold		2000		151,000		100%		Media style offices refurbished in 2001					£22.70			0%
61 Southwark Street, London SE1					London	Freehold		1998		67,000		100%		Refurbished with added penthouse suite					£18.14			21%
200 Great Dover Street, London SE1					London	Leasehold		2008		36,000		100%		Fully let, re-development potential					£19.95			0%
80 Silverthorne Road, Battersea, London SW8					London	Freehold		2005		56,000		75%		Media style offices refurbished in 2006					£17.70			20%
82 Silverthorne Road, Battersea, London SW8					London	Freehold		2008		52,000		75%		Media style offices built in 2008					£20.57			91%
Fordham, Newmarket					South East	Freehold		2007		70,000		53%		R & D space and offices on 32 acres					£15.37			0%
St Andrews House, Woking					South East	Leasehold		2010		57,000		100%		Multi-let offices					£17.15			8%
										489,000
RETAIL - SHOPPING CENTRE
										Area		Helical							Average			Vacant
Address					Region	Tenure		Acquired		Sq. Ft. (NIA)		Interest		Description					Passing Rent per sq ft			Space
Clyde Shopping Centre, Clydebank					Scotland	Leasehold		2010		627,000		60%		Multi-let regional shopping centre					£13.98			6.8%
										627,000
RETAIL - IN TOWN
										Area		Helical							Average			Vacant
Address					Region	Tenure		Acquired		Sq. Ft. (NIA)		Interest		Description					Passing Rent per sq ft			Space
Morgan Department Store, Cardiff					Wales	Freehold		2005		246,000		100%		Refurbished store let as prime retail units + arcades					£13.68			7.2%
1 - 5 Queens Walk, East Grinstead					South East	Freehold		2005		37,000		89%		Retail units 95% let to Sainsbury's					£9.19			5.7%
										283,000
RETAIL - OUT OF TOWN
										Area		Helical							Average			Vacant
Address					Region	Tenure		Acquired		Sq. Ft. (NIA)		Interest		Description					Passing Rent per sq ft			Space
Otford Road Retail Park, Sevenoaks					South East	Freehold		2003		42,000		75%		Retail park let to Wickes, Currys & Carpetright					£17.37			0%
Stanwell Road, Ashford					South East	Leasehold		2004		32,000		75%		Solus unit let to Focus DIY					£17.76			0%
										74,000
PROPERTY PORTFOLIO
INCOME PRODUCING ASSETS
INDUSTRIAL
									Area		Helical										Average		Vacant
Address					Region	Tenure	Acquired		Sq. Ft. (NIA)		Interest		Description								Passing Rent per sq ft		Space
Standard Industrial Estate, North Woolwich E16					London	Freehold	2002		50,000		60%		Multi-let industrial estate								£7.63		4.98%
Westgate, Aldridge					Midlands	Freehold	2006		184,000		90%		Single-let refurbished industrial unit								£2.93		0%
Waterfront Business Park, Fleet, Hampshire					South East	Freehold	2000		54,000		100%		Multi-let industrial estate								£7.18		44%
Dales Manor Business Park, Sawston, Cambridge					South East	Freehold	2003		62,000		67%		Multi-let industrial estate								£7.28		0%
Hawtin Park, Blackwood					Wales	Freehold	2003		249,000		100%		Offices and industrial units								£2.04		0%
Winterhill Industrial Estate, Milton Keynes					Midlands	Freehold	2004		24,000		50%		Offices and industrial units								£4.00		54%
Golden Cross, Hailsham					South East	Freehold	2001		102,000		100%		Industrial units								£4.08		77%
Merlin Business Park					Greater Manchester	Leasehold	2010		62,000		100%		Single-let industrial unit								£5.50		0%
Motherwell Food Park, Bellshill					Scotland	Leasehold	2010		79,000		100%		Multi-let industrial estate								£4.98		16.57%
Sawston Trade Park, Sawston					South East	Freehold	2010		85,000		100%		Multi-let industrial estate								£5.37		6.53%
Crownhill Business Centre, Milton Keynes					Midlands	Leasehold	2010		108,000		100%		Multi-let industrial estate								£6.61		0%
									1,059,000

PROPERTY PORTFOLIO

DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

OFFICES

Area

Helical

Address

Region

Sq. Ft.

Interest

Fund/Owner

Type of development

200 Aldersgate Street, London EC1

London

360,000

Dev. Man.

Deutsche Pfandbriefbank

Refurbishment to be completed in Nov 2010

Mitre Square, London EC3

London

275,000

100%

Helical

New office building

The Hub, Pacific Quay, Glasgow

Scotland

60,000

100%

Helical

New office building completed 2009

Forest Gate, Crawley

South East

63,000

100%

Helical

Refurbished and new offices

758,000

INDUSTRIAL

Area

Helical

Address

Region

Sq. Ft.

Interest

Description

Type of development

Scotts Road, Southall, West London

London

167,000

100%

Industrial units

New build

Millbrook Trading Estate, Southampton

South East

110,000

100%

Industrial and trade counter

New build

Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford

South East

72,000

100%

Industrial units

New build

Tiviot Way, Stockport

North West

189,000

100%

Industrial, trade counter etc

New build

Watlington Road, Cowley, Oxford

South East

71,000

100%

Industrial and offices

New build

Ropemaker Park, Hailsham

South East

70,000

90%

Industrial and food store/rest

New build

679,000

RETAIL - OUT OF TOWN

Area

Helical

Address

Region

Sq. Ft.

Interest

Fund/Owner

Description

Type of development

Wroclaw

Poland

103,000

50%

Helical

Completed development, fully let

New build

Opole

Poland

440,000

50%

Standard Life

Under construction

New build

Europa Centralna, Gliwice

Poland

720,000

50%

Helical

To commence 2011

New build

1,263,000

CHANGE OF USE POTENTIAL

Area

Helical

Address

Region

Sq. Ft.

Interest

Fund/Owner

Description

White City, London W12

London

3,500,000

Consortium

Consortium

Commercial and residential

Cawston, Rugby

Midlands

-

100%

Helical

32 acre greenfield site with residential potential

Arleston, Telford

Midlands

-

100%

Helical

19 acre greenfield site with residential potential

3,500,000

DEVELOPMENT  PROGRAMME RETIREMENT VILLAGES

Helical

Description

Address

Region

Units

Interest

Bramshott Place, Liphook, Hampshire

South East

151

100%

33 units sold, 28 under offer

Lime Tree Village, Rugby

Midlands

154

33%

153 units sold

St Loye's College, Exeter

South West

206

100%

Resolution to grant planning consent for a retirement village granted in October 2009

Maudsley Park, Great Alne

Midlands

150

100%

314,000 sq ft industrial estate on a 20 acre site with potential for a retirement village

Ely Road, Milton, Cambridge

South East

101

100%

Planning consent for a retirement village granted in 2009

Cherry Tree Yard, Faygate, Horsham

South East

148

100%

Planning consent for a retirement village granted in May 2009

910

MIXED USE DEVELOPMENTS

Helical

Address

Region

Interest

Description

C4.1, Milton Keynes

Midlands

50%

110,000 sq ft Sainsbury's, 440 residential units and 35,000 sq ft retail and offices

King Street, Hammersmith, London

London

50%

Planning application to be made for new council offices, foodstore and residential

Fulham Wharf, London SW6

London

Dev. Man.

100,000 sq ft foodstore and 472 residential units

Leisure Plaza, Milton Keynes

Midlands

50%

Consent for 165,000 sq ft retail store, 65,000 sq ft casino, 75,000 sq ft other leisure

Parkgate, Shirley, West Midlands

Midlands

50%

80,000 sq ft Asda supermarket, 70,000 sq ft retail, 100 residential units

Bluebrick, Wolverhampton

Midlands

75%

Refurbished railway station with permission for casino use

                                      Independent Review Report to the Members of Helical Bar Plc

 

Introduction

We have been engaged by the Company to review the condensed set of financial statements in the half-yearly financial report for the six months ended 30 September 2010 which comprises the consolidated income statement, the consolidated statement of comprehensive income, the consolidated balance sheet, the consolidated cash flow statement, the consolidated statement of changes in equity, and the related notes. We have read the other information contained within the half year statement: Chairman's Statement, Chief Executive's Statement, Financial Highlights and Property Portfolio and have considered whether it contains any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the information in the condensed set of financial statements.

This report is made solely to the Company in accordance with guidance contained in ISRE (UK and Ireland) 2410 "Review of Interim Financial Information performed by the Independent Auditor of the Entity."  Our review work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Company those matters we are required to state to them in a review report and for no other purpose.  To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the Company, for our review work, for this report, or for the conclusion we have formed.

Directors' Responsibilities

The half-yearly financial report is the responsibility of, and has been approved by, the directors. The directors are responsible for preparing the half-yearly financial report in accordance with the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Services Authority.

As disclosed in note 1, the annual financial statements of the group are prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the European Union. The condensed set of financial statements included in this half-yearly financial report has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34, ''Interim Financial Reporting,'' as adopted by the European Union.

Our Responsibility

Our responsibility is to express to the Company a conclusion on the condensed set of financial statements in the half-yearly financial report based on our review.

Scope of Review

We conducted our review in accordance with International Standard on Review Engagements (UK and Ireland) 2410, ''Review of Interim Financial Information Performed by the Independent Auditor of the Entity'' issued by the Auditing Practices Board for use in the United Kingdom. A review of interim financial information consists of making enquiries, primarily of persons responsible for financial and accounting matters, and applying analytical and other review procedures. A review is substantially less in scope than an audit conducted in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland) and consequently does not enable us to obtain assurance that we would become aware of all significant matters that might be identified in an audit. Accordingly, we do not express an audit opinion.

Conclusion

Based on our review, nothing has come to our attention that causes us to believe that the condensed set of financial statements in the half-yearly financial report for the six months ended 30 September 2010 is not prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34 as adopted by the European Union and the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Services Authority.

Grant Thornton UK LLP

Chartered accountants

London

25 November 2010

Consolidated Income Statement

For the Half Year to 30 September 2010

		Half Year To 30 September 2010 £000	Half Year To 30 September 2009 £000	Year To 31 March  2010 £000
	Notes
Revenue	3	69,339	22,753	67,354
Net rental income	4	6,459	8,516	14,151
Development property loss		(9,217)	(3,700)	(1,293)
Trading property loss		(420)	(10)	(10)
Share of results of joint ventures		637	(13)	3,745
Other operating income		160	161	26
Gross (loss)/profit before gain on sale and revaluation of investment properties		(2,381)	4,954	16,619
Net gain/(loss) on sale and revaluation of investment properties	5	9,733	(4,397)	8,195
Impairment of available-for-sale assets	11	(1,817)	-	-
Gross profit		5,535	557	24,814
Administrative expenses		(3,653)	(3,988)	(8,680)
Operating profit/(loss)		1,882	(3,431)	16,134
Finance costs	6	(3,313)	(6,537)	(9,328)
Finance income		861	835	1,039
Change in fair value of derivative financial instruments	16	(1,078)	1,576	1,157
Foreign exchange losses		(1,509)	(1,275)	(1,127)
(Loss)/profit before tax		(3,157)	(8,832)	7,875
Tax on (loss)/profit on ordinary activities	7	(723)	878	1,711
(Loss)/profit after tax		(3,880)	(7,954)	9,586
- attributable to non-controlling interests		-	(33)	(33)
- attributable to equity shareholders		(3,880)	(7,921)	9,619
(Loss)/profit for the period		(3,880)	(7,954)	9,586
(Loss)/earnings per 1p share	8
Basic		(3.7p)	(7.5p)	9.1p
Diluted		(3.7p)	(7.5p)	9.1p

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income

For the Half Year to 30 September 2010

	Half Year To 30 September 2010 £000	Half Year To 30 September 2009 £000	Year To 31 March 2010 £000
(Loss)/profit for the period	(3,880)	(7,954)	9,586
Fair value movements and impairment of available-for-sale investments	(11,508)	4,333	2,962
Associated deferred tax on fair value movements	3,222	(1,291)	(829)
Exchange difference on retranslation of net investments in foreign operations	(41)	(141)	(131)
Total comprehensive income and expense for the period	(12,207)	(5,053)	11,588
-    attributable to equity shareholders	(12,207)	(5,020)	11,621
-    attributable to non-controlling interests	-	(33)	(33)
	(12,207)	(5,053)	11,588

Consolidated Balance Sheet

At 30 September 2010

	Notes	At 30 September 2010 £000	At 30 September 2009 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Non-current assets
Investment properties	9	254,526	205,328	219,901
Owner occupied property, plant and     equipment		1,548	1,678	1,638
Available-for-sale investments	11	-	15,900	13,325
Investment in joint ventures		25,116	3,985	26,384
Derivative financial instruments	16	774	-	1,944
Goodwill		16	30	16
Deferred tax asset	7	5,715	3,792	3,169
		287,695	230,713	266,377
Current assets
Land, developments and trading properties	10	154,609	199,790	182,576
Available-for-sale investments	11	11,182	9,705	10,959
Trade receivables and other receivables	12	26,271	34,017	38,691
Corporation tax receivable		1,170	54	1,098
Cash and cash equivalents	13	30,512	51,068	39,800
		223,744	294,634	273,124
Total assets		511,439	525,347	539,501
Current liabilities
Trade payables and other payables	14	(31,100)	(44,219)	(43,651)
Borrowings	15	(52,742)	(35,682)	(72,459)
		(83,842)	(79,901)	(116,110)
Non-current liabilities
Borrowings	15	(186,763)	(206,373)	(170,299)
Derivative financial instruments	16	(10,450)	(9,558)	(10,485)
		(197,213)	(215,931)	(180,784)
Total liabilities		(281,055)	(295,832)	(296,894)
Net assets		230,384	229,515	242,607

Consolidated Balance Sheet (continued)

At 30 September 2010

	Notes	At 30 September 2010 £000	At 30 September 2009 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Equity
Called-up share capital	17	1,339	1,336	1,339
Share premium account		70,828	70,378	70,828
Revaluation reserve		10,331	-	-
Capital redemption reserve		7,478	7,478	7,478
Other reserves		291	291	291
Retained earnings		139,993	149,908	162,547
Equity attributable to equity holders of the parent		230,260	229,391	242,483
Non-controlling interests		124	124	124
Total equity		230,384	229,515	242,607

Consolidated Cash Flow Statement

For the Half Year to 30 September 2010

	Half Year To 30 September 2010 £000	Half Year To 30  September 2009 £000	Year To 31  March 2010 £000
Cash flows from operating activities
(Loss)/profit before tax	(3,157)	(8,832)	7,875
Depreciation	163	164	334
Revaluation surplus on investment properties	(9,502)	(102)	(13,104)
Net interest payable	1,738	5,702	8,289
(Gain)/loss on sales of investment properties	(231)	4,499	4,909
Impairment of available-for-sale assets	1,817	-	-
Change in value of derivative financial instruments	1,078	(1,576)	(1,157)
Share based payment charge	249	392	1,151
Share of results of joint ventures	(637)	13	(3,745)
Foreign exchange reserves	1,248	(812)	(1,153)
Other non-cash items	-	(18)	2
Cash flows from operations before changes in working capital	(7,234)	(570)	3,401
Change in trade and other receivables	12,420	6,461	358
Change in land, developments and trading properties	28,288	11,209	30,707
Change in trade and other payables	(12,341)	(8,962)	(11,555)
Cash flow generated from operations	21,133	8,138	22,911
Finance costs	(5,213)	(7,287)	(12,345)
Finance income	861	948	1,231
Tax received	-	810	834
Tax paid	(67)	-	(77)
	(4,419)	(5,529)	(10,357)
Cash flows from operating activities	16,714	2,609	12,554
Cash flows from investing activities
Purchase of investment property	(34,349)	(2,850)	(4,192)
Sale of investment property	9,284	35,868	36,704
Sale of investment	-	6	-
Cost of acquiring derivative financial instruments	-	-	(1,437)
Cost of cancelling interest rate swap	57	(3,202)	(3,202)
Investment in joint ventures	-	-	(18,641)
Return of investment in joint ventures	1,155	-	-
Dividends from joint ventures	750	3,926	3,926
Sale of plant and equipment	-	28	28
Purchase of leasehold improvements, plant and equipment	(84)	(108)	(237)
Cash flows from financing activities	(23,187)	33,668	12,949
Issue of shares	-	-	453
Borrowings drawn down	27,602	7,895	13,739
Borrowings repaid	(30,152)	(62,984)	(67,923)
Equity dividends paid	(265)	(2,896)	(4,748)
	(2,815)	(57,985)	(58,479)
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents	(9,288)	(21,708)	(32,976)
Cash and cash equivalents at start of period	39,800	72,776	72,776
Cash and cash equivalents at period end	30,512	51,068	39,800

Consolidated statement of changes in equity

At 30 September 2010

	Share capital £000	Share premium £000	Revaluation reserve £000	Capital redemption reserve £000	Other reserves £000	Retained earnings £000	Own shares held £000	Non-controlling interest £000	Total £000
At 31 March 2009	1,336	70,378	529	7,478	291	158,494	(1,597)	157	237.066
Total comprehensive income	-	-	-	-	-	11,588	-	-	11,588
Revaluation  surplus	-	-	13,104	-	-	(13,104)	-	-	-
Realised on disposals	-	-	(13,633)	-	-	13,633	-	-	-
Non-controlling interest	-	-	-	-	-	33	-	(33)	-
Performance share plan	-	-	-	-	-	1,151	-	-	1,151
Issue of shares	3	450	-	-	-	-	-	-	453
Dividends paid	-	-	-	-	-	(7,657)	-	-	(7,657)
Purchase of shares	-	-	-	-	-	-	6	-	6
Own shares held	-	-	-	-	-	(1,591)	1,591	-	-
At 31 March 2010	1,339	70,828	-	7,478	291	162,547	-	124	242,607
Total comprehensive expense	-	-	-	-	-	(12,207)	-	-	(12,207)
Revaluation  surplus	-	-	9,502	-	-	(9,502)	-	-	-
Realised on disposals	-	-	829	-	-	(829)	-	-	-
Performance share plan	-	-	-	-	-	249	-	-	249
Dividends paid	-	-	-	-	-	(265)	-	-	(265)
At 30 September 2010	1,339	70,828	10,331	7,478	291	139,993	-	124	230,384

The charge against retained earnings of £249,000 (2010: £1,151,000) adds back the share based payments charge in accordance with IFRS 2 Share Based Payments. 

	Share capital £000	Share premium £000	Revaluation reserve £000	Capital redemption reserve £000	Other reserves £000	Retained earnings £000	Own shares held £000	Non-controlling interest £000	Total £000
At 31 March 2009	1,336	70,378	529	7,478	291	158,494	(1,597)	157	237,066
Total comprehensive  expense	-	-	-	-	-	(5,053)	-	-	(5,053)
Revaluation  surplus	-	-	102	-	-	(102)	-	-	-
Realised on disposals	-	-	(631)	-	-	631	-	-	-
Non-controlling interest	-	-	-	-	-	33	-	(33)	-
Performance share plan	-	-	-	-	-	392	-	-	392
Dividends paid	-	-	-	-	-	(2,896)	-	-	(2,896)
Purchase of shares	-	-	-	-	-	-	6	-	6
Own shares held	-	-	-	-	-	(1,591)	1,591	-	-
At 30 September 2009	1,336	70,378	-	7,478	291	149,908	-	124	229,515

Unaudited notes to the Half Year Statement

1.         Financial Information

The financial information contained in this statement does not constitute statutory accounts within the meaning of section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. The full accounts for the year ended 31 March 2010, which were prepared under International Financial Reporting Standards and which received an unqualified report from the Auditors, and did not contain a statement under Section 498 of the Companies Act 2006, have been filed with the Registrar of Companies.

These interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting. The principal accounting policies have remained unchanged from the prior financial period to 31 March 2010.

They do not include all of the information required for full annual financial statements, and should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements of the Group for the year end 31 March 2010.

The Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Company will continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future and have, therefore, used the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements.

Principal risks and uncertainties

The responsibility for the governance of the Group's risk profile lies with the Board of Directors of Helical. The Board is responsible for setting the Group's risk strategy by assessing risks, determining its willingness to accept those risks and ensuring that the risks are monitored and that the Group is aware of and, if appropriate, reacts to, changes in those risks. The Board is also responsible for allocating responsibility for risk within the Group's management structure.

The Group considers its principal risks to be:

-      strategic risk

-      operational risk

-      market risk

-      liquidity risk, and

-      credit risk.

There have no significant changes to these risk areas in the period.  A further analysis of these risks is included within the consolidated financial statements of the Group for the year ended 31 March 2010.

The half year statement was approved by the Board on 25 November 2010 and is being sent to shareholders and will be available from the Company's registered office at 11‑15 Farm Street, London W1J 5RS and on the Company's website at www.helical.co.uk.

2.         Statement of directors' responsibilities

The directors confirm that, to the best of their knowledge, this condensed set of financial statements has been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 as adopted by the European Union, and that the interim management report herein includes a fair review of the information required by DTR 4.2.7R and DTR 4.2.8R.

Balances with related parties at 30 September 2010 and 31 March 2010 are disclosed in note 21.

A list of current directors is maintained at 11-15 Farm Street, London W1J 5RS and at www.helical.co.uk.

On behalf of the Board

Nigel McNair Scott

Finance Director

25 November 2010

3.         Segmental information

The Group divides its business into the following segments for internal management purposes:

·    investment properties, which are owned or leased by the Group for long-term income and for capital appreciation, and trading properties, which are owned or leased with the intention to sell; and,

·    development properties, which include sites, developments in the course of construction, completed developments available for sale, and pre-sold developments.

	Investment and trading Half Year to 30.9.10	Develop-ments Half year to 30.9.10	Total Half year to 30.9.10	Investment and trading Half year to 30.9.09	Developments Half year to 30.9.09	Total Half year to 30.9.09
Revenue	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000
Rental income	8,563	334	8,897	9,441	963	10,404
Trading property sales	15,915	-	15,915	525	-	525
Development income	-	44,348	44,348	-	11,663	11,663
	24,478	44,682	69,160	9,966	12,626	22,592
Other revenue			179			161
Revenue			69,339			22,753

				Investment and trading Year to 31.3.10	Develop- ments Year to 31.3.10	Total Year  to 31.3.10
Revenue				£000	£000	£000
Rental income				16,689	2,192	18,881
Trading property sales				525	-	525
Development income				-	47,822	47,822
				17,214	50,014	67,228
Other revenue						126
Revenue						67,354

All sales were external sales. All revenue is attributable to continuing operations. There were no inter-segmental sales.

	Investment and trading Half Year to 30.9.10	Developments Half year to 30.9.10	Total Half year to 30.9.10	Investment and trading Half year to 30.9.09	Developments Half year to 30.9.09	Total Half year to 30.9.09
Profit before tax	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000
Net rental income	7,001	(542)	6,459	7,926	590	8,516
Development property loss	-	(9,217)	(9,217)	-	(3,700)	(3,700)
Trading property loss	(420)	-	(420)	(10)	-	(10)
Share of results of joint venture	616	21	637	12	(25)	(13)
Gain/(loss) on sale and revaluation of investment properties	9,733	-	9,733	(4,397)	-	(4,397)
	16,930	(9,738)	7,192	3,531	(3,135)	396
Other operating (expense)/income			(1,657)			161
Gross profit			5,535			557
Administrative expenses			(3,653)			(3,988)
Net finance costs			(3,530)			(4,126)
Foreign exchange losses			(1,509)			(1,275)
Loss before tax			(3,157)			(8,832)

				Investment and trading Year to 31.3.10	Develop-ments Year to 31.3.10	Total Year to 31.3.10
Profit before tax				£000	£000	£000
Net rental income				12,904	1,247	14,151
Development property loss				-	(1,293)	(1,293)
Trading property loss				(10)	-	(10)
Share of results of joint venture				3,158	587	3,745
Gain on sale and revaluation of investment properties				8,195	-	8,195
				24,247	541	24,788
Other operating income						26
Gross profit						24,814
Administrative expenses						(8,680)
Finance income						1,039
Finance expense						(8,171)
Foreign exchange losses						(1,127)
Profit before tax						7,875

	Investment and trading At 30.9.10	Develop-ments At 30.9.10	Total at 30.9.10	Investment and trading At  31.3.10	Develop-ments At  31.3.10	Total At 31.3.10
Balance sheet	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000
Investment properties	254,526	-	254,526	219,901	-	219,901
Land, development and trading properties	158	154,451	154,609	273	182,303	182,576
	254,684	154,451	409,135	220,174	182,303	402,477
Other assets			102,304			137,024
Total assets			511,439			539,501
Liabilities			(281,055)			(296,894)
Net assets			230,384			242,607

The segmental information has been provided in respect of the two main divisions of the Group, the investment and trading department and the development department.

 4.        Net rental income

	Half Year To 30 September 2010 £000	Half Year To 30 September 2009 £000	Year To 31 March 2010 £000
Gross rental income	8,897	10,404	18,881
Rents payable	(21)	(9)	(12)
Property overheads	(1,982)	(1,565)	(3,732)
Net rental income	6,894	8,830	15,137
Net rental income attributable to profit share partner	(435)	(314)	(986)
Group share of net rental income	6,459	8,516	14,151

5.         Net gain on sale and revaluation of investment properties

	Half Year To 30 September 2010 £000	Half Year To 30 September 2009 £000	Year To 31 March 2010 £000
Net proceeds from the sale of investment properties	9,911	35,868	36,704
Book value (note 9)	(9,053)	(38,911)	(40,438)
Other costs	(627)	(1,456)	(1,175)
Profit/(loss) on sale of investment properties	231	(4,499)	(4,909)
Revaluation surplus on investment properties	9,502	102	13,104
Net profit/(loss) on sale and revaluation of investment properties	9,733	(4,397)	8,195

6.         Finance costs

	Half Year To 30 September 2010 £000	Half Year To 30 September 2009 £000	Year To 31 March 2010 £000
Interest payable on bank loans and overdrafts	(4,854)	(6,228)	(10,956)
Other interest payable and similar charges	60	(463)	(696)
Finance arrangement costs	(340)	(708)	(872)
Interest capitalised	1,821	862	3,196
Finance costs	(3,313)	(6,537)	(9,328)

7.         Taxation on (loss)/profit on ordinary activities

		Half Year To 30 September 2010 £000		Half Year To 30 September 2009 £000	Year To 31 March 2010 £000
The tax charge is based on the profit for the period and represents: United Kingdom corporation tax at 28%. -   Group corporation tax		-		(762)	-
-   Adjustment in respect of prior periods		-		(6)	1,152
-   Overseas tax		4		-	-
Current tax (charge)/credit		4		(768)	1,152
Deferred tax                              - capital allowances -  tax losses                         - other temporary differences		(85) (282) (360)		341 2,889 (1,584)	(52) 2,121 (1,510)
Deferred tax		(727)		1,646	559
Total tax (charge)/credit for period		(723)		878	1,711
Deferred tax provision	At 30 September 2010 £000		At               31 March 2010 £000
Capital allowances	(3,342)		(3,257)
Available-for-sale assets	(1,564)		(4,782)
Tax losses	7,373		7,704
Other temporary differences	3,248		3,504
Deferred tax provision	5,715		3,169

Under IAS 12, deferred tax provisions are made for the tax that would potentially be payable on the realisation of investment properties and other assets at book value. 

If upon sale of the investment properties the group retained all the capital allowances, the deferred tax provision in respect of capital allowances of £3.3m would be released and further capital allowances of £11.7m would be available to reduce future tax liabilities. 

The deferred tax asset in respect of other temporary differences (income statement) arises from the recognition of tax relief available to the Company on the mark to market valuation of financial instruments and the future vesting of share awards, calculated at the 30 September 2010 share price of 297.6p (31 March 2010: 337.9p) per share.

8.         Loss per 1p share

The calculation of the basic loss per share is based on the earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders divided by the weighted average number of shares in issue during the period. Shares held by the ESOP, which has waived its entitlement to receive dividends, are treated as cancelled for the purpose of this calculation.

The calculation of diluted loss per share is based on the basic loss per share, adjusted to allow for the issue of shares and the post tax effect of dividends on the assumed exercise of all dilutive options.

The loss per share is calculated in accordance with IAS 33 and the best practice recommendations of the European Public Real Estate Association ("EPRA"). The prior year's EPRA earnings per share has been recalculated following EPRA's revision of their best practice recommendations.

Reconciliations of the loss and weighted average number of shares used in the calculations are set out below.

					Half Year to 30 September 2010  000s	Half Year to 30 September 2009  000s
Ordinary shares in issue					107,408	107,087
Weighting adjustment					(1,292)	(1,821)
Weighted average ordinary shares in issue for calculation of basic loss per share					106,116	105,266
Dilutive effect of share options					-	-
Weighted average ordinary shares in issue for calculation of diluted loss per share					106,116	105,266
Loss used for calculation of basic and diluted loss per share					(3,880)	(7,921)
Basic loss per share					(3.7p)	(7.5p)
Diluted loss per share					(3.7p)	(7.5p)

Loss used for calculation of basic and diluted earnings per share Net (gain)/loss on sale and revaluation of investment properties Trading property loss Fair value movement on derivative financial instruments Share of fair value movement on derivative financial instruments in the results of joint            ventures Impairment of available-for-sale asset Deferred tax on adjusting items	(3,880) (9,733) 420 1,078 814 1,817 (217)	(7,921) 4,397 10 (1,576) - - (1,601)
Loss used for calculation diluted EPRA earnings per share	(9,701)	(6,691)
Diluted EPRA loss per share	(9.1p)	(6.4p)

9.         Investment properties

	Valuation £000	Cost £000
Fair value at 1 April 2010	219,901	218,893
Additions at cost	34,349	34,349
Disposals	(9,053)	(11,899)
Revaluation	9,502	-
Revaluation deficit attributable to profit share partner	(173)	-
As at 30 September 2010	254,526	241,343

All properties are stated at market value as at 30 September 2010, and are valued by professionally qualified external valuers except for investment properties valued by directors - representing £4.4m (1.7%) of the portfolio. The following external valuers valued the investment properties: Cushman & Wakefield LLP (£245.0m) and Drivers Jonas Deloitte (£5.1m).

Interest capitalised in respect of the refurbishment of investment properties at 30 September 2010 amounted to £5,767,000 (31 March 2010: £5,767,000).  Interest capitalised during the period in respect of the refurbishment of investment properties was £nil

10.       Land, developments and trading properties

		At 30 September 2010 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Development properties		154,451	182,303
Properties held as trading stock		158	273
		154,609	182,576

The directors' valuation of trading and development stock shows a surplus of £33.5m (31 March 2010: £33.0m) above book value.

Total interest to date in respect of the development of sites is included in stock to the extent of £6,402,000 (31 March 2010: £8,482,000).  Interest capitalised during the period in respect of development sites amounted to £1,821,000.

11.       Available-for-sale investments

	Non- current £000	Current £000
Fair value at 1 April 2010	13,325	10,959
Impairment in the period	(13,325)	-
Revaluation to fair value	-	223
As at 30 September 2010	-	11,182

Included in non-current available-for-sale investments is an investment of 18% in the ordinary shares of Quotient Biosciences Group Limited, a private bioscience company. During the period trading conditions and its financial position deteriorated and, accordingly, the investment has been assessed as, having a fair value of £nil (31 March 2010: £13.3m). Of the fall in value £1,817,000, representing the cost of our investment, has been written off through the Income Statement. The remaining £11,508,000 (£8,286,000 net of deferred tax), which represents prior period fair-value increases from cost, was reversed in the Statement of Comprehensive Income.

12.       Trade receivables and other receivables

	At 30 September 2010 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Trade receivables	8,087	12,316
Other receivables	10,992	11,728
Prepayments and accrued income	7,192	14,647
	26,271	38,691

13.       Cash and cash equivalents

		At 30 September 2010 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Rent deposits and cash held at managing agents		2,946	1,274
Cash secured against debt and cash held at solicitors	301		1,295
Cash allocated to dividend		-	2,909
Cash deposits		27,265	34,322
		30,512	39,800

Included within cash deposits is £559,000 of restricted cash which can be called by a third party under defined terms of a guarantee.

14.       Trade payables and other payables

	At 30 September 2010 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Trade payables	5,352	4,635
Other payables	5,541	9,857
Accruals and deferred income	20,207	29,159
	31,100	43,651

15.       Borrowings

	At 30 September 2010 £000			At 31 March 2010 £000
Bank overdraft and loans - maturity
Due within one year	52,742			72,459
Due after more than one year	186,763			170,299
	239,505			242,758
Current borrowings :- less than one year		52,742	72,459
Bank loans repayable within :-  one to two years                                                   two to three years                                                   three to four years                                                   four to five years                                                   after five years		16,751 137,282 10,120 23,547 -	29,644 72,725 68,878 - -
		187,700	171,247
Deferred arrangement costs		(937)	(948)
		186,763	170,299

Net Gearing	At 30 September 2010 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Total borrowings	239,505	242,758
Cash	(30,512)	(39,800)
Net borrowings	208,993	202,958
The Group's share of borrowings in joint ventures is £29,877,000 (31 March 2010: £29,752,000).
	£000	£000
Net assets	230,384	242,607
Gearing	91%	84%

16.       Derivative financial instruments

		At 30 September 2010 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
At 1 April		(8,540)	(14,337)
Change in fair value in the period	(1,078)		1,157
Cancelled in the period		(58)	3,202
Purchased in the period		-	1,438
At 30 September / 31 March		(9,676)	(8,540)
Derivative financial instruments asset		774	1,945
Derivative financial instruments liability	(10,450)		(10,485)
	(9,676)		(8,540)

17.       Share capital

	At 30 September 2010 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Authorised	39,577	39,577
	39,577	39,577
The authorised share capital of the Company is £39,576,626.60 divided into ordinary shares of 1p each and deferred shares of 1/8p each
Allotted, called up and fully paid  - 107,407,522 ordinary shares of 1p each	1,074	1,074
- 214,145,300 deferred shares of 1/8 p each	265	265
	1,339	1,339

As at 1 April 2010 and 30 September 2010, the Company had 107,407,522 ordinary 1p shares in issue.

Share options

At 30 September 2009 there were no unexercised options over new ordinary 1p shares in the Company (31 March 2010: nil) and no purchased ordinary 1p shares held by the ESOP had been granted to directors and employees under the Company's share option schemes (31 March 2010: nil).  During the period no new options were granted. 

18.       Dividends	Half Year To 30 September 2010 £000	Half Year To 30 September 2009 £000	Year To 31 March 2010 £000
Attributable to equity share capital
Ordinary -    First interim paid 1.75p per share -    Second interim paid of 2.75p per share -    prior period final paid 0.25p (2009: 2.75p) per share	- - 265	- - 2,896	1,852 2,909 2,896
	265	2,896	7,657

The interim dividend of 1.75p (30 September 2009: 1.75p per share) was approved by the board on 24 November 2010 and will be paid on 23 December 2010 to shareholders on the register on 3 December 2010.  This interim dividend, amounting to £1,857,000 has not been included as a liability as at 30 September 2010.

19.       Own shares held

Following approval at the 1997 Annual General Meeting the Company established the Helical Bar Employees' Share Ownership Plan Trust (the "Trust") to be used as part of the remuneration arrangements for employees.  The purpose of the Trust is to facilitate and encourage the ownership of shares by or for the benefit of employees by the acquisition and distribution of shares in the Company.

The Trust purchases shares in the Company to satisfy the Company's obligations under its Share Option Schemes and Performance Share Plan.

At 30 September 2010 the Trust held 1,291,844 (31 March 2010: 1,291,844) ordinary shares in Helical Bar plc.

At 30 September 2010 options over nil (31 March 2010: nil) ordinary shares in Helical Bar plc had been granted through the Trust.  At 30 September 2010 awards over 6,249,364 (31 March 2010: 4,870,283) ordinary shares in Helical Bar plc, made under the terms of the Performance Share Plan, were outstanding.

20.       Net assets per share

	30 September 2010 £000	Number of shares 000's	30 September 2010 pence per share
Net asset value Less:   own shares held by ESOP                    deferred shares	230,384 (265)	107,408 (1,292)
Basic net asset value	230,119	106,116	217
Add: unexercised share options	-	-
Diluted net asset value	230,119	106,116	217
Adjustments for
fair value of financial instruments	11,369
deferred tax	1,465
Adjusted diluted net asset value	242,953	106,116	229
Adjustment for
Fair value of trading and development       properties	33,518
Diluted EPRA net asset value	276,471	106,116	261
Adjustment for
fair value of financial instruments	(11,369)
deferred tax	(1,465)
Diluted EPRA triple NAV	263,637	106,116	248

The adjustment for the fair value of trading and development properties represents the surplus as at 30 September 2010.

	31 March 2010 £000	Number of shares 000's	31 March 2010 pence per share
Net asset value Less: own shares held by ESOP	242,607 -	107,408 (1,292)
deferred shares	(265)	-
Basic net asset value	242,342	106,116	228
Add: unexercised share options	-	-
Diluted net asset value	242,342	106,116	228
Adjustment for - fair value of financial instruments	9,978
- deferred tax	3,257
Adjusted diluted net asset value	255,577	106,116	241
Adjustment for - fair value of trading and development properties	32,991
Diluted EPRA net asset value Adjustment for - fair value of financial instruments - deferred tax	288,568 (9,978) (3,257)	106,116	272
Diluted EPRA triple net asset value	275,333	106,116	259

The net asset values per share have been calculated in accordance with the best practice recommendations of the European Public Real Estate Association ("EPRA").

21.       Related party transactions

At 30 September 2010 and 31 March 2010 the following amounts were due from the Group's joint ventures.

	At 30 September 2010 £000	At 31 March 2010 £000
Abbeygate Helical (Leisure Plaza) Ltd	2,471	2,212
Abbeygate Helical (Winterhill) Ltd	(12)	(12)
Abbeygate Helical (C4.1) LLP	(598)	(598)
King Street Developments (Hammersmith) Ltd	1,850	1,634
Shirley Advance LLP	4,487	4,372
The Asset Factor Ltd	102	600
PH Properties Limited (BVI)	-	-

 

END

 

 

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