Liberum stays at 'sell' on Hammerson, 'still long way to go to rebuild business'

Analysts at Liberum reiterated their 'sell' recommendation for shares of Hammerson, telling clients that there was "still a long way to go" to rebuild the property developer's business.

Although there were signs of capital value stabilisation and earnings were recovering, at 45%, the firm's loan-to-value remained "too high to be comfortable".

Furthermore, its better-than-expected earnings per share were flattered by one-offs.

One fix for the balance sheet might be to sell its Value Retail assets, but those were Hammerson's crown jewels, while its "complex" joint-venture structures complicated its divestment options.

Value Retail had a net asset value of £1.1bn as at 31 December, according to Liberum.

The broker's analysts reiterated their recommendation to 'sell' the shares and 31.0p target price.