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Workspace Group PLC on Wednesday said there was ‘still a long way to go’ in its repositioning, but urged shareholders to back management, rather than activist-investor Saba Capital Management LP, which has called for a leadership shake-up. The London-based flexible workspace provider reported ‘steady’ trading in the first quarter, with 264 new lettings completed an 111 renewals with a combined annual rental value of £11.9 million, compared with 278 new lettings, 112 renewals and £10.7 million for the same period a year earlier. Workspace acknowledged a decrease in enquiries and viewings. The conversion rate of enquiries to lettings edged down to 14% from 15%. Total rent roll was up 0.5% to £128.0 million in the first quarter, and excluding disposals, was up 1.8%. Workspace also noted that it had ‘been more disciplined on pricing’, and as a result, had bumped overall rent per square foot up by 1.2% to £42.73. The company is investing in ‘four case study buildings’ - Salisbury House, Cargo Works, Edinburgh House and Centro Buildings - where it expects to complete fit-outs within the next 18 months. Assets worth £12.6 million were sold in the first quarter, which brings total disposals to £138.4 million - the target being £200 million by the end of financial 2027. Workspace is currently considering an additional £100 million of disposals above its original target, with assets worth £200 million currently marketed for sale. Net debt stood at £740 million as of June 30, down from £758 million at March 31. Workspace ended June with cash and undrawn facilities of £260 million, up from £242 million at the end of March. Chief Executive Charlie Green said that in its full-year results announcement in June, the company had ‘set out a focused plan to reposition the business and deliver sustainable earnings growth, and work is already underway to execute this plan at pace’. ‘We saw a modest increase in stabilised occupancy and rent roll in Q1. While this is encouraging, there is still a long way to go,’ the CEO continued. ‘We are confident that we have the right strategy to be a more earnings-focused business and maximise long-term sustainable value for all shareholders.’ Workspace shares traded 0.4% higher at 344.60 pence each on Wednesday morning in London. Also on Wednesday, Workspace urged shareholders to vote for its own resolutions, and against resolutions proposed by activist-investor Saba Capital Management LP at the annual general meeting scheduled for July 23. Earlier this month, Workspace said that Saba’s proposals were effectively ‘an accelerated wind-down’ in disguise. The New York-based hedge fund, which owned 28.21% of Workspace as of July 1, had proposed a managed wind-down back in January. After Workspace deemed this proposal neither achievable nor likely to maximise shareholder value, Saba in May proposed to remove five non-executive directors, and replace them with four Saba nominees at the upcoming AGM. In June, Saba released an open letter proposing a new strategy focused on accelerated property disposals and share buybacks. Workspace responded by criticising Saba’s strategy as ‘high-risk, short-sighted and NOT suitable’. Workspace acknowledged that its stock price ‘doesn’t reflect the value of our business,’ but insisted that it ‘has a clear, disciplined strategy to deliver long term sustainable value for ALL shareholders and the right board and management to implement and oversee it’. It is one of several FTSE250 firms contending with Saba, which has forged a reputation as an agitator, buying large stakes in smaller funds and requisitioning meetings to overhaul management. Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust PLC confirmed in April that Saba had succeeded in ousting its board, which was replaced by Saba’s nominees. Last month, Saba took control of another FTSE-250 listing, Impax Environmental Markets PLC. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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