DUISBURG (dpa-AFX) - The commercial real estate specialist Hamborner Reit has earned slightly more in the first quarter thanks to increased rental income. As the company, which is listed in the second-line stock index SDax, announced in Duisburg on Tuesday, the key operating figure funds from operations (FFO), which is important in the real estate industry, increased by 2.6 percent year-on-year to EUR 14 million in the first three months. The Group confirmed its forecasts for 2024. The quarterly presentation was well received by investors.

The shares gained around 1.8 percent to 6.95 euros in morning trading. They thus continued their recent recovery following the setback since the beginning of April. The high for the year from the beginning of January at just over seven euros is not far away.

For analyst Andre Remke from Baader Bank, Hamborner Reit has presented good results. In addition, the commercial real estate specialist is an attractive dividend stock. A dividend of EUR 0.48 per share will be proposed at the Annual General Meeting this Thursday.

According to Philipp Kaiser from Warburg Research, the figures for the first quarter of 2024 signal a solid start to the new year. However, a further acceleration in growth will be limited by the high LTV - the ratio of loan volume to property value - and the still subdued transaction market.

Income from rents and leases rose by 3.1% to 23.4 million euros in the first quarter. The company benefited from contractually agreed rent adjustments as a result of inflation. The bottom line was a profit of 4.7 million euros, compared to 4.5 million euros a year earlier.

For the current year, the company, which focuses on offices and retail, is still targeting an operating result (FFO) of EUR 49 million to EUR 50.5 million. Even in the best-case scenario, this would be less than in the past two years. However, income from rents and leases is likely to increase compared to 2023 and reach EUR 91.0 million to EUR 92.5 million.

Hamborner Reit owns 67 office and retail properties with a total value of just under 1.5 billion euros./mne/nas/mis