British Land Shares Climb as Trading Statement Shows 12% Rental Growth, Guidance Unchanged

British Land (LON: BLND) shares are higher on Thursday after the property group reported 12% like-for-like net rental growth and a 5% rise in underlying earnings per share. The trading statement, covers the six months to the 30th of September.

The shares opened at 418p and stood at 416.4p at 08:11 UK time on Thursday, 2.1% above yesterday’s 407.8p close. The shares had already risen about 3.4% from Monday’s 394.4p close.

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The company expects underlying earnings per share of 16.1p, up 5% on 15.4p a year earlier, and underlying profit of £166m against £155m. The statement is unaudited, and the expected underlying profit is subject to external review.

Campuses, British Land’s large London office estates, stood out. Leasing there ran 14.8% ahead of estimated rental value (ERV), the rent the company expects a space to command, and occupancy stands at 95%. Retail parks are 99% occupied, with leasing 9.6% ahead of previous passing rents.

Our campus developments continue to lease up at record rents, with 1 Broadgate and One Triton Square now fully let and a further 119,000 sq ft under offer at 2 Finsbury Avenue.

Jo McNamara, Chief Executive

McNamara, who joined as chief executive in mid-September, said demand for the company’s space had driven “double-digit like-for-like net rental income growth”.

Measure	Latest	Comparison
Underlying EPS	16.1p	15.4p (HY26)
Underlying profit	£166m	£155m (HY26)
Like-for-like net rental growth	12%	n/a
Portfolio values, six months	+1.5%	n/a
ERV, six months	+3.0%	n/a
EPRA NTA	599p	590p (FY26)
Loan-to-value	c.39.6%	39.2% (FY26)
FY27 underlying EPS guidance	At least 30.5p	Reiterated

EPRA net tangible assets (NTA) rose to 599p, while loan-to-value edged up to about 39.6%. British Land also sold £247m of assets at a 4.7% net initial yield, broadly in line with book value.

The company reiterated, rather than raised, FY27 underlying EPS guidance of at least 30.5p, which represents 6% growth. The next test is the half-year results on the 18th of November.