Unite warns on earnings, shares slide
By Abigail Townsend
Date: Tuesday 24 Feb 2026
(Sharecast News) - Shares in The Unite Group fell sharply in morning trading on Monday, after the student accommodation specialist warned on earnings.
The property developer said its 2025 performance had been "robust", with strong trading across the majority of its portfolio.
Rental growth was 4% and occupancy 95.2% in the 2025/26 academic year, while adjusted earnings per share rose 2% in the year to December end, to 47.5p. Unite said that a "record" number of British 18-year olds had started university in 2025/26.
However, growth was partially offset by weaker sales to international postgraduate students - due largely to visa policy changes - and an increase in young people opting to live at home, seen most commonly in lower-ranked universities.
Looking to the current year and Unite said it now expected income for the 2026/27 academic year to come in at the lower end of its forecast 2% to 3% range. Occupancy was forecast to be between 93% and 96%.
It also flagged lower-than-expected income from Empiric in 2025/26, ahead of its integration. Unite completed the £634m acquisition of the fellow UK student accommodation provider last month.
As a result, Unite now expects group adjusted EPS to come in between 41.5p and 43p in 2026.
As at 0900 GMT, shares in Unite had slid 8% to 532p.
Joe Lister, chief executive, said: "Growing domestic demand for higher education, improving international mobility and constrained housing supply underpin the long-term prospects for the sector.
"We have started to deliver on the strategic plan set out at the end of 2025, focusing on closer alignment to the strongest universities, building on our university partnerships and taking decisive action on costs.
"While there is much to do, we are making early progress and building momentum."
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