Insights & News

Hadley, our JV partner that focuses on Greater London residential regeneration projects has just received unanimous approval for two new schemes in Goodmayes (568 residential units) and Canary Wharf (900 units).

As we enter the third quarter, investors are greeted with both optimism and concern. Optimism because there is still a strong case for above-average growth in the years ahead, but concern because the nature of this growth is likely to change. The tailwind of the fiscal and monetary-fuelled pandemic recovery is shifting to a lower but perhaps more sustainable trajectory, led by the consumer and corporate sectors. We are calling this switch: Slowing and More Uncertain Macro to Vibrant and More Dynamic Micro.

LXi Reit was launched in 2016, aiming to give bond-like regular income to its backers. The plan was to buy buildings and hotels on long leases or to fund pre-let sites where high-quality tenants have agreed to move in. Many of its purchases have leases of at least 20 years, with rental uplifts index-linked to inflation.

Having suffered an almost-inevitable share price slump during the pandemic, long-income specialist LXi REIT has been given something of a caffeine boost during recent months – fitting given the investor’s new-found focus on drive-through coffee outlets. An equity issuance in March – its fourth since a 2017 initial public offering – was a roaring success, raising the company £125m compared to a target of £75m and bringing a raft of new investors onto its share register. Its share price is now close to its post-IPO high from late 2019.

As we close the first quarter, we remind ourselves of the extraordinary performance of equity markets from the bear market lows of last year. One year on, most global markets are up 50-60% on average, with an even stronger performance in the US, with the S&P 500 Index up 75% from its March 2020 low and with many technology and more growth-oriented shares up over 100%.