According to the company, the decrease is justified by the "lower earnings made with property sales in 2018", during which EBIT reached €27 million, 8% more, "as a result of the positive performance of the European growth of turnover and margins in the activity of providing services”.
In the period under review, shopkeeper sales grew by 5.2% and 5.7% in the European portfolio, with a focus on the 4.8% increase in Portugal and 17.6% in Spain, the latter influenced by the acquisition of the Zona Sur Shopping Center in June 2017. The overall occupancy rate of the portfolio done down to 95.6%.
Fernando Guedes de Oliveira, CEO of Sonae Sierra, explains that "the first three months of 2018 confirmed the recovery trend, namely in Europe, where the company registered a positive performance. In addition, we have also increased our exposure to projects development by establishing a partnership for a new project in Parma (Italy), and further extended our service delivery activity", he explains in a statement.
Ores Socimi continued the purchases in 2018
In the first three months of 2018, Sonae Sierra continued its strategy of capital recyclingl, namely through Ores Socimi, an investment vehicle created in partnership with Bankinter, which acquired several assets in the Iberian Peninsula.
Ores acquired 2 lots in Spain, 3 urban buildings in Portugal leased to the Continent, in Sesimbra, Loures and Sintra, and 4 stores in LeiriaShopping.
On the other hand, the Sierra Fund completed the purchase of the hypermarket of Valle Real Shopping Center in Spain and sold its share in SerraShopping to a new joint venture (5% / 95%) composed by Sonae Sierra and Armórica Portugal.