Minerva raises stake in Allders

MINERVA, the commercial property company, has raised its stake in stores group Allders to 25%. The firm, worth £22m at current market valuation, previously held a 21.4% stake in Allders, its anchor tenant at Croydon's Park Place.

Since June Allders shares have tumbled from 165p to 112p, making a possible market loss of £5m. Chief executive Andrew Rosenfeld says the group invested in Allders because it yields more than banks. In the last financial year its stake brought 5.7% after tax.

In the year to June the group made a pre-tax profit of £6.3m against £6.6m last time. Net asset value has risen to 351.3p a share from 330.4p. The total dividend is up by 3.3% to 3.1p.