Hammerson issues

Hammerson plc announces the issue of £300,000,000 unsecured Bonds due 2026. The lead manager and bookrunner to the issue is Barclays Capital. Interest will be payable annually in arrears on 23 February in each year at the rate of 6 % and the first such payment is due on 23 February 2005. The Bonds will be redeemed at par on 23 February 2026, unless redeemed in accordance with their terms.

The Bonds were issued with a fixed re-offer and issue price of 99.415 per cent and priced to yield a margin of 125 basis points over the gross redemption yield of 6 per cent Treasury stock due 2028.

The proceeds of the issue will be used by Hammerson for general corporate purposes, including the funding of current development projects. Following the transaction, the average maturity of Hammerson’s debt will increase to 10 years.

Application will be made to the Financial Services Authority for the Bonds to be admitted to the Official List of the UK Listing Authority, and to the London Stock Exchange plc for the Bonds to be admitted to trading. It is expected that official dealings in the Bonds will commence on the London Stock Exchange on 24 February.

John Richards, Chief Executive of Hammerson plc, said: “I am very pleased with the support for this issue, which further strengthens the group’s capital structure. This Bond issue follows the successful placing of 55 million existing shares in Hammerson earlier this week to a wide variety of institutions. I believe this underlines the confidence investors have in Hammerson’s business.”

Source: Hammerson

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