Jefferies says Centuria Office should sell some assets to reduce gearing

Centuria Office REIT

25/10/2022 21:37

** Analysts at Jefferies say Australian property investor
Centuria Office REIT  COF.AX 's 1Q23 update on Tuesday showed
strong leasing volumes but it still has elevated vacancy
    ** Brokerage cuts price target to A$1.50 from A$1.77;
retains "hold" rating 
    ** Says rising debt costs, capitalization rates and gearing
remain a risk
    **  Jefferies says COF should sell A$200 mln to A$300 mln of
assets to reduce gearing to 24%-28%
    ** Expects elevated downtime on vacancies and higher cost of
debt to remain a drag in FY23
    ** Four of nine analysts rate the stock "buy" or higher,
four "hold" and one "sell"; their median PT is A$1.90 –
Refinitiv data
    ** Stock down ~38.5% this year, as of last close
 (Reporting by Anan Ashraf in Bengaluru)
 ((Anan.Ashraf@thomsonreuters.com;))