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HICL Infrastructure PLC on Monday said it showed ‘resilience’ in the past few months, and noted the sale of Northwest Parkway which will fund a future buyback. Shares in HICL were up 1.0% at 125.00 pence in London on Monday morning. The London-based closed-ended investment company said it is on track to deliver its target 8.25p dividend for the financial year ending March 31, unchanged from financial 2023. Cash generation also should be in line with expectations. HICL said its portfolio ‘performed in line with expectations’ overall during the period from October 1 to February 29, and that this ‘solid operational performance’ demonstrates ‘the resilient nature of the underlying assets’. HICL said a highlight of the period was completing the sale of its entire stake in Northwest Parkway, a toll road in Colorado, US, for net $232 million or about £184 million. As announced in February, HICL intends to reserve up to £50 million of the Northwest Parkway proceeds for a share buyback programme, which will commence ‘in due course’ and run for up to one year. It also expects to use the disposal proceeds to fully repay its revolving credit facility. Looking ahead, HICL believes that the market for core infrastructure assets ‘remains in good health’, and remains ‘focused on responsible capital allocation’. ‘HICL’s high-quality portfolio continues to demonstrate its resilience amidst broader macro volatility, supported by significantly accretive asset rotation announced in the period,’ commented Chair Mike Bane. ‘Effective capital allocation remains crucial, and the board has deployed disposal proceeds to reduce the balance on the company’s revolving credit facility, make a highly accretive incremental investment and launch a share buyback programme.’ Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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