UK/NETHERLANDS – Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP, Europe’s largest pension fund, has continued to buy into UK real estate firms, according to company filings.

It has raised its stakes in the listed London Merchant Securities and CLS Holdings to 3.017% and 4.15% respectively.

The €178.3bn civil service scheme – which already has stakes in several UK real estate firms – now has just under 10m shares in LMS and 3.4m in CLS.

ABP holds significant stakes in some of the UK’s largest listed real estate investment and development companies, including Hammerson, Slough Estates, British Land, Workspace, Great Portland Estates and Unite.

LMS says its aim is to “produce high long-term rates of return to shareholders through investment in property, venture and development capital, through risk diversification”. It has property holdings worth £991.3m and an investment portfolio with a book value of £220.6m.

CLS has a property portfolio in London, France and Sweden valued at just over £1bn.

Last month the Heerlen-based fund said its financial position had "deteriorated" in the second quarter due to low interest rates.

Topics