Unite sees earnings at top end of range

Student accommodation provider Unite said annual earnings would be at the top end of guidance as higher than expected rental income in term 1 of the 2022/23 academic year more than offset the impact of higher interest costs in the second half of the financial year.

Unite said demand for the group's accommodation has been strong in the first part of the sales cycle. with 70% of rooms are now sold for the 2023/24 academic year, significantly ahead of the prior year and pre-pandemic levels (2022/23: 60%).

"In our strongest markets we have seen an increasing number of students looking to secure accommodation earlier in the sales cycle than previous years. We have also seen increased demand from universities who see quality accommodation as a key part of their proposition to prospective students.," the company said on Tuesday.

"As a result of this strong demand and the need to offset cost pressures in our business, we now expect to deliver income growth of at least 5% for 2023/24 (previously 4.5-5.0%)."

As a result, we reiterate our guidance for adjusted EPS to be at the top end of our 40-41p range for FY2022.