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Property company LondonMetric raised its dividend after swinging to an annual profit as on higher rental income.
For the year ended 31 March 2021., pre-tax profit was £257.3 million compared with a loss of £5.7 million year-on-year as net rental income increased 8% to £119.7 million.
Over the year, the portfolio delivered a strong total property return of 13.4%, 'significantly outperforming the IPD All Property index of 1.2%,' the company said.
Occupancy remained high at 98.7% and rent collection during the year was strong, with 98.1% of rent demanded in the year collected, it added.
The company declared a Q4 dividend declared of 2.35 pence per share, taking the total dividend to 8.65p, up 4% on last year.
The Q1 dividend was also guidance higher to 2.2 pence, up 4.8% from last year.
'For the time being, we think that pricing has further to travel and therefore, together with its strong income characteristics, we are optimistic about the portfolio's future performance,' the company said.