Safestore boosted as self-storage market resilient to economic uncertainty
Self storage company Safestore enjoyed an earnings boost in the first half of the year as occupancy rates rose in its UK and Parisian stores.
However, profits fell more than 50 per cent due to a reduced gain on its investment properties.
Read more: Safestore plans four new units after strong year of growth
The figures
Safestore reported pre-tax profits of £38.2m in the six months to the end of April, 53 per cent down on the same period the previous year.
It put the fall down to a reduced gain of £7.9m on investment properties compared to £51.8m in 2018.
Revenue jumped 5.6 per cent to £73.1m, while underlying earnings also climbed 5.9 per cent to £41.4m, both led by a rise in occupancy rates.
The company posted an interim dividend of 5.5p per share – a 7.8 per cent rise on the previous year.
Why it’s interesting
Safestore has five new stores in the pipeline as it prepares to meet the demand for its services in both the UK and Paris.
Since the company launched an acquisition and development programme in 2016, it has added 38 stores to its business, which includes the five on the horizon.
Read more: Safestore profits stack up due to turnaround
While its profits fell due to its investment properties compared with the previous years, the company reported strong growth in both its core markets and an earnings boost.
What they said
Chief executive Frederic Vecchioli said: “Safestore’s performance has been robust in the first half of the year and continues to build on the strong earnings and dividend growth achieved over the last five years.”
He added: “The self-storage market remains resilient to macroeconomic uncertainty and we continue to capture growing levels of demand in the UK and in Paris, with double digit new let growth on a like-for-like basis in both markets.