Enterprise sells three pubs in latest sale and leaseback auction

Auctioneers found homes for three of the 12 Enterprise Inns freeholds which went under the hammer last week, while nine pubs were withdrawn from the sale.

The pubco had hoped to raise nearly £14m in the auction, hosted by Allsop in London last week, by selling the freehold interests in the dozen pubs. It then planned to lease them back on new 35 year leases.

However nine pubs were withdrawn from the sale.

The Blackstock in Finsbury Park, went for £1.05m, yielding 6.7 per cent; the Wheelbarrow in Camden was sold £1.57m (5.7 per cent) and the Stamford Arms in Southwark sold for £860,000 (seven per cent).

Enterprise has now sold its freehold interests in more than 60 pubs, raising in excess of £70m to pay down its debt.

Last week it revealed it had agreed a sale and leaseback deal with the Hermes Property Unit Trust involving a package of 26 London-based freehold pubs for £32.5m.

The pubco noted the amount paid was well above the total book value of £25.1m, as at September 30, 2010.

The initial annual rent roll for the pubs is £2.2m.