by Federica Mileo and Valentine Baldassari
Feb 10 (Reuters) – Shopping center operator Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield posted the biggest rise in the CAC 40 on Thursday after saying it expects adjusted earnings per share (EPS) this year to be much higher than in 2021, encouraged by the recovery observed at the end of last year.
At 11:37 a.m., Unibail shares climbed 8.56% to 72.34 euros while the CAC 40 fell 0.1% at the same time.
The group, which had not yet given a profit forecast for 2022 or beyond, forecasts recurring EPS over the year between 8.20 and 8.40 euros, compared to 6.91 euros in 2021.
Unibail, owner of Les Halles in the center of Paris and the Les Quatre Temps shopping center in the La Défense business district, anticipates a return to normal after long months of health restrictions which have limited access to shopping centers .
“On footfall and rentals, assuming there is no reintroduction of major COVID-19 related restrictions, we are confident of a return to 2019 levels in 2022 and growth from there” , declared the chairman of the executive board, Jean-Marie Tritant.
Unibail does not, however, expect to reach pre-pandemic levels this year for its convention and exhibition branch.
The group reported rent collection for 2021 at 88%, compared to 80% in 2020, with retailer turnover reaching 93% of pre-COVID levels in the second half.
At the same time, Unibail announced an agreement for the sale of a 45% stake in the Westfield Carré Sénart shopping center, located in Essonne, to Société Générale Assurances and BNP Paribas Cardif for an implicit price of approximately one billion euros. .
The group, engaged in asset disposals in Europe and the United States in order to reduce its debt, indicates that at the end of this transaction it will have reached 2.5 billion euros in its disposal program in Europe out of the 4 billion euros planned.
At the end of December, Unibail’s net debt was reduced to 22.6 billion euros, against 24.2 billion a year earlier. (French version Lou Phily, edited by Blandine Hénault)