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Picton Property Income Ltd on Thursday said it has sold its most valuable office asset for £34.5 million, continuing its push to reduce exposure to the office market and reinvest capital into higher-yielding areas such as logistics properties. The real estate investment trust announced the completion of the sale of Stanford Building, a Grade II-listed property in London’s Covent Garden comprising offices, a retail unit, and a residential flat. The building was acquired in 2010 for £17.5 million as part of the Rugby REIT acquisition and underwent a full repositioning in 2020 to become an all-electric property. It is fully leased, and Picton will continue to use part of it as its head office. The sale was agreed at a net initial yield of 4.6%, representing a 1% premium to the March 2025 external valuation and a 1% discount to June’s valuation. Proceeds will be used to fund Picton’s £12.5 million share buyback programme and to pursue new investment opportunities. Following the disposal, Picton’s pro forma office exposure falls to 20% of its portfolio by value, down from 24% in June. Industrial, warehouse and logistics assets now account for 68%, up from 64%, while retail and leisure remain at 12%. Chief Executive Michael Morris said: ‘This disposal crystallises value from our largest office asset and enables us to redeploy proceeds into our share buyback programme and investment opportunities. Over the last 18 months we have reduced our office exposure by a third, realising gross proceeds of £85 million, which have been redeployed to create more value for shareholders.’ Shares in Picton were down 0.7% at 77.59 pence in London on Thursday morning. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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