JPMorgan reinstates coverage of Unite Group at 'overweight'

(Sharecast News) - JPMorgan reinstated coverage of Unite Group on Thursday at 'overweight' with a 725p price target as it said the de-rating was excessive given structural drivers. "We recognise that the jury is still out on whether we have reached a turning point for UK student accommodation; there is general unease around the outlook and Unite's guidance for an EPS decline in FY26 has seen the shares de-rate," the bank said.

However, at 13.6x trough earnings, with a 6.5% dividend yield, JPM thinks it is overdone.

"We expect a bumpy ride higher as investors scour data on applications, nomination activity and the behavior of returners, but re-engaging with the stock after a period of restriction and aware of its underperformance (1year: circa 40%) we expected to find a more challenging backdrop to the one we ultimately found."

At 1350 GMT, the shares were down 0.5% at 580.50p.