21 April 2026
If you are covering British Land’s latest trading statement, please see the following comment from Oli Creasey, head of property research at Quilter Cheviot:
“British Land posted a Q4 trading update this morning ahead of its full year results next month, showcasing a clear beat against guidance, with like for like rental growth of 6% coming in ahead of expectations of 3-5% and underlying earnings per share modestly better at 28.9p versus the 28.5p set previously.
“While it is encouraging to see the company ahead of expectations, the context is key. This time last year the company was guiding to flat earnings year on year which was a disappointment for shareholders, so growth of 1.4%, while an improvement, remains fairly modest. The more important signal is guidance for growth of around 5.5% for the next year ending March 2027, indicating that the company expects earnings growth to accelerate meaningfully. This outlook is largely unchanged compared to prior messaging once adjusted for the Life Science REIT acquisition which BLND completed yesterday.
“The pre-release of a net asset value of 590p, up 4% year on year, points to steady valuation growth across the year, with roughly equal contributions from the first and second halves. This valuation is as of 31st March, after the Iran conflict began, suggesting that no meaningful adjustment has been made as a result of the rise in interest rates seen since. With little reference to external risks in today’s statement, investors are likely to look to the full year results next month for greater clarity on what impact the conflict will have on valuations.”
