Eurocommercial Raises €128.44 Million to Fund €265 Million Acquisition in Belgium
Key Facts
Eurocommercial Properties raised gross proceeds of €128.44 million from a placement of 5.2 million new shares with institutional investors at €24.70 per share, according to a company statement dated 30 October 2026. Net proceeds will fund part of the purchase of Les Grands Prés in the Belgian city of Mons, in a deal the company announced the previous day for €265 million. The consideration includes the shares of the company that owns the centre and repayment of a shareholder loan, according to the acquisition statement. The company has not announced completion of the deal; it expects to complete it by 4 November. It said the acquisition would add to results from day one.
The issue price was 5% below Eurocommercial's closing share price of €26.00 on 29 October, setting the discount offered to investors participating in the placement. The new shares are expected to settle and begin trading on 3 November. After settlement, the company expects its issued share capital to total 60,708,668 shares. The issue will therefore increase the number of shares outstanding while providing part of the deal's financing. The remainder of the funding, the company said, will come from existing financial resources and credit facilities.
The centre is west of Mons and has around 27,000 square metres of lettable space across more than 100 stores, with occupancy of 97% and more than 6.5 million visitors a year. It serves around 746,000 people within a 30-minute drive in Belgium, rising to more than 904,000 when neighbouring areas of France are included. The shopping centre is internally connected to a 35,500-square-metre IKEA store and a 20,200-square-metre Carrefour hypermarket, but both are excluded from the deal. The site also includes an adjacent 11,700-square-metre retail park, which is also outside the scope of the acquisition. The company estimated the centre's initial investment yield at 7.5%.
Eurocommercial said reconfiguring stores, letting vacant space and restoring rental growth could support an increase in annual net rental income and strengthen the initial yield. Chief Executive Everta Jan van Garderen described the centre as “a strong fit with Eurocommercial’s identity and another prominent asset in its portfolio,” pointing to opportunities to grow rental income through active management. He added that the deal expands the company's presence in Belgium and builds on its experience and relationships with retailers. The loan-to-value ratio was 41.5% in the company's latest figures as of 30 September; it expects the ratio to rise to around 42.1% after the acquisition and share issue, on a pro forma basis as of the same date. The estimate reflects the combined effect of the deal and its financing on debt.
The deal comes as the company recorded growth in its business during the first nine months of 2026: like-for-like retail sales rose 4.4% and visitor numbers increased 3.3%. Proportional net property income rose 3.4% to €158.0 million. Direct investment result also increased 2.3% to €102.3 million, compared with €100.0 million in the corresponding period of 2025, while its IFRS profit rose to €133.7 million from €74.5 million. In the 12 months to the end of September, the company completed 307 renewals and relettings, with average rental growth of 2.9%. EPRA vacancy remained at 1.2%, while rent collection reached 99% during the nine months.
The company maintained its 2026 direct investment result guidance range at €2.45 to €2.50 per share and said it expects the result to be at the upper end under current conditions. It expects further growth in 2027, with a full-year contribution from the Avion centre and store reconfiguration projects. It also expects to pay an interim cash dividend of €0.73 per share in January 2027. The company said it intends to continue its asset rotation programme and has already identified assets for sale, with disposal proceeds set to support debt reduction after the acquisition is funded. The company expects to complete its purchase of the centre by 4 November, following the expected share settlement on 3 November.