“There are dinner jackets and there are dinner jackets, and this is the latter,” said Eva Green’s Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale. Well, the same is true of London offices, and Great Portland Estates (GPE) argues that theirs properties fall into the latter category.
IC TIP:
Buy
at
301p
Tip style
Growth
Risk rating
High
Timescale
Medium Term
Bull points
- Valuations look to have stabilised
- Well-located portfolio of high-quality spaces
- Good track record of redevelopment
Bear points
- Demand for offices still uncertain
- High exposure to retail sector
Like most office investors, GPE has taken a battering since the pandemic. Shares have fallen 15 per cent this year alone and 58 per cent over the past five years. Portfolio valuations fell by almost a fifth in the 12 months to March 2024.