In line with its stated strategy, Pangbourne Properties Limited has acquired a portfolio of 18 industrial properties and 1 office building valued at R86-million.  The properties are all located in Gauteng, with 14 in an industrial park in Jet Park, two in Linbro Village, one in Aeroport and a further building in Bryanston.

“In line with our asset management strategy of continually upgrading the portfolio, the new properties, which are less than 10 years old and well maintained, will further enhance the quality of our portfolio. The transaction also enables Pangbourne to sell properties that no longer meet the investment criteria, without affecting distributions,” said Craig Hutchison, CEO of Pangbourne Properties Limited.

“The portfolio is currently 90.2% occupied and a one year rental guarantee has been obtained for the vacant space. The transaction will be funded from Pangbourne’s current available facilities. It is subject to Competition Commission approval and the due diligence exercise is expected to confirm the required investment criteria,” he said.

Pangbourne’s business model is founded on two key principles:

property management is linked to ownership, since no-one manages assets better than the owner; and
specialist knowledge is required for different property types and hence assets must be split into uniquely focused portfolios, a principle in line with international trends.

The Pangbourne portfolio is predominantly located in Gauteng and KwaZulu Natal. Some 74% of rentals come from industrial properties, 17% from commercial and 9% from retail. Pangbourne’s market capitalisation has grown from R250-million in 1998 to the current level of over R2,0-billion, which gives fund managers the opportunity to have increased investment exposure in Pangbourne.

“This latest acquisition will boost our asset base and support our objective of sustainable growth in earnings,” concluded Hutchison.

Ends…
 

Issued on behalf of Pangbourne Properties Limited
Contact:       Craig Hutchison
                Chief Executive Officer
  Tel (011) 889 8500 or 083 630 8683

For further information, please contact Corporate Communications Consultants:

Contact:   Rosemary Renton/Anne Vicente
  Tel:  (011) 783 8926
  5 October 2005

About Pangbourne

Pangbourne was the first loan stock company to be listed on the JSE in 1987 with income earning assets of R146 million. It continued to set the pace by taking its property management in-house and also became the first to take over another listed loan stock, RMS Properties. This was followed by the takeover of Grove Properties, Pioneer Properties and CBD Properties. Assets currently under management are in excess of R4 billion.

Pangbourne’s vision is to create a property company that can produce sustainable growth in distributions to investors over the long term. This will be achieved in part by capitalising on the management expertise and experience gained over the years and by expanding its property management activities.

Pangbourne’s market capitalisation has increased from R250 million in 1998 to the current level of R2,0 billion.  Total return to unitholders of 19% per annum over the past 10 years is well ahead of the JSE ALSI.  Core to these achievements was the decision to change to own management of the properties, which effectively aligns management’s objectives with those of unitholders.