Hammerson’s Arndale Deal and Guidance Pop Signal a Repositioning Inflection
Hammerson closed its half-year results with two headline moves: a 50% acquisition of Manchester's Arndale Centre and an upgrade to full-year guidance. The deal is notable because the company had previously walked away from the same asset in a competitive process. CEO Rob Wilkinson explained that the decision was process-driven, not asset-driven: “It was nothing to do with the asset at all. It was simply that the process was not one that we were comfortable participating in.” — Rob Wilkinson, CEO · 2026-07-30 Instead, Hammerson struck a bilateral, off-market deal with M&G, forming a joint management with M&G. This marks a clear shift toward selective capital deployment and a fresh acquisition of Arndale after years of deleveraging.
The results justified the optimism. CFO Himanshu Raja cited "strong underlying performance in leasing" as the driver for lifting underlying FY26 guidance from £120m to £125m, with Arndale adding £7m to reach £132m – a 27% year-on-year increase. He also reaffirmed the medium-term targets of 6-8% EPS and DPS CAGR and a ~10% total accounting return, now measured from the 2025 base. “Fundamentally, the upgrade is driven by strong underlying performance in leasing and that driving increased occupancy into the second half.” — Himanshu Raja, CFO · 2026-07-30 The operational gearing story remains central, as he noted the cost ratio compression should flow through to earnings and dividends.
The equity raising tied to Arndale has also strengthened the balance sheet. "It's a little bit of both in reality," Wilkinson said of reducing leverage while creating optionality, adding it gives "around GBP 200 million or so of additional capacity" within comfortable credit metrics. “It gives us some optionality on funding going forward.” — Rob Wilkinson, CEO · 2026-07-30 The CFO also flagged the need to refinance a Eurobond maturing next June, leveraging the EMTN program to time the market.
On valuations, the half-year marks were flat, with yields held by Middle East uncertainty. Wilkinson anticipates compression ahead:
He expects renewed activity to drive some yield compression in H2, and ERV spreads to feed into valuations. This ties to the keyword yield compression that has recurred in recent calls.We don't see decompression. They have flat-lined the yields to the first half.
Prior to this, Hammerson had been cautious on acquisitions. In February, Wilkinson said: “We will not sort of necessarily wait. If the right opportunity presents itself, we will act.” — Robert William Wilkinson, CEO · 2026-02-25 That statement now has concrete follow-through. The company's rental tension at flagship assets like Bullring and Oracle remains a key growth driver, even as Westquay faced a tough comparable. The next question is whether yield compression materializes and whether further acquisitions follow.