Puma Brandenburg, the AIM-listed German property investor, has bought a portfolio of Lidl stores for E108.4m (£79m).
The purchase price for the 45 edge-of-town retail units reflects £134/sq ft.
The portfolio has potential for development through expansion of floorspace or co-location of complementary businesses, including fast-food chains, bakeries and others, such as bank ATMs and recycling stations.
The average lease length is 11.2 years.
Puma Brandenburg, whose property investment advisor is Shore Capital, will invest E29.8m (£21.75m) of its own equity and take on E79.5m (£58m) of debt financing that was secured before the credit crunch began.
The deal generates a 10% yield on cash.
Chairman Peter Freeman said: ‘The edge-of-town food discount segment is expected to have the strongest growth prospects of all retail trading formats’.
