Landsec, the FTSE 100 property company, has raised its earnings growth forecast for next year after rents rose faster than expected across its offices and shopping centres.
The group now expects EPRA earnings per share, its main measure of underlying profit, to grow by a high-single-digit percentage in the year to March 2028.
Like-for-like net rental income rose 6.2% in the six months to 30 September, ahead of its 3% to 5% guidance for the full year.
Underlying earnings were flat at £192 million, as rental growth and a 9% cut in overheads offset the loss of income from a large London property sold last year.
Pre-tax profit jumped to £243 million from £98 million, helped by an £88 million rise in property values.
The interim dividend rises 2.1% to 19.4p.
Sales at Landsec's shopping centres rose 3.7%, against a 1.4% fall nationally, and retail occupancy reached 97.8%, its highest level in more than 20 years.
Office income rose 5.4%, although occupancy slipped to 97.7% after leases expired at its Paddington building.
Its three recently completed London office developments are now 88% let or under offer, up from 54% in May.
Shortly after the period end, Landsec raised £500 million from shareholders to help fund the £611 million purchase of the Metrocentre in Gateshead and a further 10% stake in Bluewater in Kent.
Those deals, the new equity and £338 million of disposals cut net debt to 7.7 times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, down from 8.4 times.
Landsec still expects earnings per share for the current year to be flat and sees scope for them to reach about 62p by the year to March 2030.
It has also dropped plans for a residential redevelopment in Lewisham, south-east London, saying the returns were not attractive enough.
