Assura PLC on Thursday noted opportunities in the UK healthcare sector amid a struggling National Health Service, as it said it will list in Johannesburg amid a swing to a profit.
The Altrincham, England-based property business said it swung to a pretax profit of £77.1 million in the six months to September 30, from a loss of £17.8 million a year ago.
Net rental income grew 8.3% to £76.7 million from £70.8 million. Rent-roll improved 19% to £179.1 million from £150.6 million.
Diluted EPRA net tangible assets per share ticked up 0.2% to 49.4 pence from 49.3p.
Notably, Assura’s investment property surged 15% on-year to £3.12 billion from £2.71 billion.
Assura announced an interim dividend of 1.66p per share, up 3.7% from 1.6p a year ago.
Looking ahead, the company noted opportunities from a struggling National Health Service in the UK: ‘The changes currently being seen in the UK healthcare market mean there are substantial and varied opportunities for Assura to explore. The NHS is in crisis. An ageing population, increasingly complex long-term medical conditions and cost inflation, all of which can be seen in the well-documented increase in waiting lists, mean the pressure and challenges faced by the NHS today are greater than ever. This has been highlighted extensively by senior politicians in the new Labour government.’
Separately, the company noted that the Johannesburg Stock Exchange granted it approval for a secondary listing on the main board of the JSE.
Trading in Johannesburg is expected to start next week Thursday.
The listing will enable Assura to give South African investors a local platform to more easily invest in its shares, broaden the company’s shareholder base, increase liquidity and diversify Assura’s shareholder base and position it for growth, the company said.
Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Murphy said: ‘We are delighted that our secondary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, which we believe will contribute to liquidity in our shares, has been approved. As the UK’s leading diversified healthcare REIT, Assura offers an attractive proposition to South African investors. We look forward to welcoming them onto our share register. Our high quality assets offer long-term secured and growing income, underpinned by the long-term structural demand for healthcare services.’
In late October, Assura said it completed the disposal of 12 assets for £25 million, in line with the book value at the time. It had added that it was in talks on further tranches of asset disposals with a total value of about £110 million.
Assura shares rose 1.4% to 38.40p each on Thursday morning in London.
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