Palmer Capital and joint venture partner Opus North have bought two supermarket portfolios from Morrisons for £175m – a 6% yield.
The first of the two three-asset packages was bought on behalf of Malaysia’s Employees Provident Fund, which was advised by Deutsche Asset and Wealth Management.
It comprises the 167,000 sq ft Isaac Newton Centre in Grantham, Lincolnshire, the 99,999 sq ft Denton Park Centre in Newcastle, and a Morrisons in Morley, Yorkshire.
EPF has been targeting the supermarket sector as it seeks to recycle cash from the sale of trophy London offices which it bought early in the cycle.
It bought stakes in a trio of Tesco-anchored retail parks last year and purchased two Sainsbury’s supermarkets earlier this year.
The second portfolio, bought on behalf of one of Palmer’s retained clients, includes two Yorkshire supermarkets, the Hunslet Morrisons in Leeds and Hillsborough Barracks shopping centre in Sheffield.
Each of the assets was bought freehold, with Morrisons retaining its leases, which have an average unexpired term of 25 years.
The disposals form part of Morrisons’ three-year plan, launched last year, to sell £1bn of property to raise capital in the face of a price war in the grocery sector.
Following £181m of sales in the first half of the year, the latest deals bring Morrisons’ disposals in the year to date to more than £350m.
These included NewRiverRetail buying 13 retail warehouses for £69m – an 8% net initial yield – and the sale of 140 M Local convenience stores to entrepreneur Mike Green and Greybull Capital for £25m last month.
The supermarket has now sold a total of £700m of property since launching the three-year disposal plan.
Colliers International advised Morrisons.
All parties declined to comment.