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Starwood European Real Estate Finance Ltd (SWEF)
SWEF: Portfolio Update
24-Apr-2025 / 07:02 GMT/BST
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Starwood European Real Estate Finance Limited
Quarterly Portfolio Update
Starwood European Real Estate Finance Limited (“SEREF”, the “Company” or
the “Group”), a leading investor managing and realising a diverse
portfolio of high quality senior, junior and mezzanine real estate debt in
the UK and Europe, presents its performance for the quarter ended 31 March
2025.
Highlights
• Orderly Realisation of the portfolio is progressing at pace – this
quarter, following the repayment in full (£47.3 million) of the
Hotels, UK loan asset, the Company has returned £46.0 million to
Shareholders in Compulsory Redemptions in accordance with its orderly
realisation strategy adopted on 27 January 2023. Following this latest
redemption the Company has now returned £256.0 million to
Shareholders, equating to 61.9 per cent of the Company’s NAV as of 31
January 2023. In addition, during the quarter, a partial repayment
of £1.4 million was received related to one other loan asset
• All assets are constantly monitored for changes in their risk profile
– the current risk status of the investments is listed below:
◦ Three loan investments equivalent to 54 per cent of the funded
portfolio as of 31 March 2025 are classified in the lowest risk
profile, Stage 1.
◦ Two loan investments equivalent to 26 per cent of the funded
portfolio as of 31 March 2025 are classified as Stage 2.
◦ One loan investment equivalent to 20 per cent of the funded
portfolio (before impairment) as of 31 March 2025 is classified
as Stage 3. An impairment provision of €12.9 million was made
against this loan investment in October 2024.
• Impaired loan investment – since announcing a €12.9 million impairment
provision against one loan in October 2024, no material changes to the
value of this loan are considered to have occurred.
• Cash balances – As of 31 March 2025 the Group held cash balances of
circa £48.8 million. These cash balances include a cash reserve of
£19.0 million to cover the Group’s unfunded loan commitments as of the
same date.
• Dividend – on 24 April 2025, the Directors announced a dividend, to be
paid in May 2025, in respect of the first quarter of 2025 of 1.375
pence per share in line with the 2025 dividend target of 5.5 pence per
share.
• Strong cash generation – the portfolio is expected to continue to
support the annual dividend payment- of 5.5 pence per share, paid
quarterly.
• The weighted average remaining loan term of the portfolio is 0.7 years
- albeit the final loan is not due to repay until the end of 2026.
• Inflation protection – 77.5 per cent of the portfolio is contracted at
floating interest rates (with floors).
• Significant equity cushion – the weighted average Loan to Value for
the portfolio is 68.1 per cent.
John Whittle, Chairman of SEREF, said:
“We are pleased to be progressing at pace with our orderly realisation
strategy. This quarter the Company returned £46 million to Shareholders in
February, following the full repayment of one loan, and the weighted
average remaining loan term of the portfolio is now just 0.7 years.
The remaining six investments continue to perform within our expectations
and the portfolio is also expected to continue to support the annual
dividend of 5.5 pence per share. Accordingly, we look forward to issuing
additional updates on our progress for the Company’s orderly realisation
strategy during 2025.”
The factsheet for the period is available at:
1 www.starwoodeuropeanfinance.com
Share Price / NAV as of 31 March 2025
Share price (p) 86.0p
NAV (p) 101.34p
Discount 15.1%
6.4%
Dividend yield (on share price)
Market cap £127m
Key Portfolio Statistics as of 31 March 2025
Number of investments 6
Percentage of currently invested portfolio in floating rate 77.5%
loans
Invested Loan Portfolio unlevered annualised total return (1) 9.0%
Weighted average portfolio LTV – to Group first £ (2) 29.8%
Weighted average portfolio LTV – to Group last £ (2) 68.1%
Average remaining loan term* 0.7 years
Net Asset Value £150.0m
Loans advanced (including accrued interest and net of impairment £101.5m
provision)
Cash £48.8m
Other net liabilities (including hedges) £0.3m
(1) The unlevered annualised total return is calculated on amounts
outstanding at the reporting date, excluding undrawn commitments, and
assuming all drawn loans are outstanding for the full contractual term.
Five of the loans are floating rate (partially or in whole and all with
floors) and returns are based on an assumed profile for future interbank
rates, but the actual rate received may be higher or lower. Calculated
only on amounts funded at the reporting date and excluding committed
amounts (but including commitment fees) and excluding cash uninvested.
The calculation also excludes the origination fee paid to the Investment
Manager.
(2) LTV (Loan to Value) to Group last £ means the percentage which the
total loan drawn less any deductible lender controlled cash reserves and
less any amortisation received to date (when aggregated with any other
indebtedness ranking alongside and/or senior to it) bears to its value
determined by the last independent third party appraisals for loans
classified as Stage 1 and Stage 2 and on the marked down value per the
recently announced loan impairment for the loan classified as Stage 3 in
October 2024. Loan to Value to first Group £ means the starting point of
the Loan to Value range of the loans drawn (when aggregated with any other
indebtedness ranking senior to it).
Remaining years to contractual Funded loan balance % of funded portfolio
maturity* (£m)
0 to 1 years £83.8 75.5%
1 to 2 years £27.2 24.5%
*Remaining loan term to current contractual loan maturity excluding any
permitted extensions. Note that borrowers may elect to repay loans before
contractual maturity or may elect to exercise legal extension options,
which are typically one year of additional term subject to satisfaction of
credit related extension conditions. The Group, in limited circumstances,
may also elect to extend loans beyond current legal maturity dates if that
is deemed to be required to affect an orderly realisation of the loan.
Country % of funded portfolio
UK 73.2%
Republic of Ireland 20.1%
Spain 6.7%
Sector % of funded portfolio
Office 25.8%
Light Industrial 24.5%
Healthcare 22.5%
Hospitality 13.5%
Life Sciences 12.7%
Residential 1.0%
Loan type % of funded portfolio
Whole loans 50.7%
Junior & Mezzanine 49.3%
Currency % of funded portfolio*
Sterling 73.2%
Euro 26.8%
*The currency split refers to the underlying loan currency, however the
capital on all non-sterling exposure is hedged back to sterling.
Orderly Realisation and Return of Capital
On 31 October 2022, the Board announced the Company’s Proposed Orderly
Realisation and Return of Capital to Shareholders. A Circular relating to
the Proposed Orderly Realisation, containing a Notice of an Extraordinary
General Meeting (the “EGM”) was published on 28 December 2022. The
proposals were approved by Shareholders at the EGM in January 2023 and the
Company is now seeking to return cash to Shareholders in an orderly manner
as soon as reasonably practicable following the repayment of loans, while
retaining sufficient working capital for ongoing operations and the
funding of committed but currently unfunded loan commitments.
Since then the Company has returned circa £256.0 million to Shareholders
(including £46.0 million in the first quarter of 2025), equating to 61.9
per cent of the Company’s NAV as of 31 January 2023. As of the date of
the issuance of this factsheet the Company had 148,039,803 shares in issue
and the total number of voting rights was 148,039,803.
Liquidity and credit facilities
The Company continues to maintain a cash reserve sufficient to cover its
unfunded commitments which amounted to £19.0 million as of 31 March 2025.
This cash reserve is included in the £48.8 million of cash held as of 31
March 2025.
The Company believes it holds sufficient cash to meet its commitments,
including unfunded loan commitments.
Dividend
On 24 April 2025, the Directors announced a dividend, to be paid in May,
in respect of the first quarter of 2025 of 1.375 pence per Ordinary Share
in line with the 2025 dividend target of 5.5 pence per Ordinary Share.
The dividend will be paid on Ordinary Shares in issue as of 2 May 2025.
The unaudited 31 March 2025 financial statements of the Company show
modest income reserves. Given the current level of cash flow generated by
the portfolio, the Company intends to maintain its annual dividend target
of 5.5 pence per share. Dividend payments can continue to be made by the
Company (as a Guernsey registered limited company) as long as it passes
the solvency test (i.e. it is able to pay its debts as they come due).
Portfolio Update
The Group continues to closely monitor and manage the credit quality of
its loan exposures and repayments.
The Group’s exposure is spread across six investments. The number of
investments has reduced from seven investments as of 31 December 2024,
following the repayment of the Hotels, UK loan in the quarter to 31 March
2025. 99 per cent of the total funded loan portfolio as of 31 March 2025
is spread across five asset classes; Office (26 per cent), Light
Industrial (24 per cent), Healthcare (23 per cent), Hospitality (13 per
cent), and Life Sciences (13 per cent). The potential impact of recently
announced US trade tariffs is in the very early stages of being understood
and quantified. To-date, no material adverse impacts have been reported by
underlying loan borrowers and it is expected that any impact, positive or
negative will be secondary in nature. The Board, the Investment Manager
and the Investment Advisor are monitoring the situation closely.
The Group’s office exposure (26 per cent) comprises two loan investments.
The weighted average Loan to Value of loans with office exposure is 94 per
cent. The elevated level of the office exposure Loan to Value is driven by
Office Portfolio, Ireland loan which is a risk rated Stage 3 loan. The
value used to calculate the Loan to Value for the Stage 1 office loan uses
the latest independent lender instructed valuation. The value used for the
Stage 3 office loan Loan to Value calculation (which was downgraded from a
Stage 2 asset in October 2024) is the marked down value as per the loan
impairment recognised in October 2024. The higher Loan to Value of this
sector exposure reflects the wider decrease in market sentiment driven by
post pandemic trends, higher interest rates and high costs attached to
upgrading older office stock.
The largest office investment is a mezzanine loan which represents 74 per
cent of this exposure and is classified as a Stage 3 risk rated loan. As
outlined in previous factsheets, the underlying assets comprise seven well
located European city centre CBD buildings and have historically been well
tenanted, albeit certain assets are expected to require capital
expenditure to upgrade to Grade-A quality to retain existing tenants upon
future lease expiry events. A 50 per cent impairment provision of the 30
September 2024 loan balance related to this asset was announced on 21
October 2024 as a result of new operational information received from the
borrower. Following an analysis of potential future scenarios and
outcomes, the Board decided to make this provision. As noted in the
announcement, the potential outcomes could recover a greater or lesser
amount of the loan. The Investment Manager and the Investment Adviser
continue to actively advise on this position to maximise recovery. No
material changes to the value of this loan are considered to have occurred
since October 2024 and therefore the loan risk classification and
impairment provision remain unchanged. This remains under frequent review
and the Company will provide updates as appropriate.
The remaining 73 per cent of the total funded portfolio (excluding
Residential (1 per cent)) is split across Light Industrial (24 per cent),
Healthcare (23 per cent), Hospitality (13 per cent), and Life Sciences (13
per cent). These sectors provide good diversification. The weighted
average Loan to Value of these exposures is 59 per cent.
Credit Risk Analysis
All loans within the portfolio are classified and measured at amortised
cost less impairment.
The Group follows a three-stage model for impairment based on changes in
credit quality since initial recognition as summarised below:
• A financial instrument that is not credit-impaired on initial
recognition is classified as Stage 1 and has its credit risk
continuously monitored by the Group. The expected credit loss (“ECL”)
is measured over a 12-month period of time.
• If a significant increase in credit risk since initial recognition is
identified, the financial instrument is moved to Stage 2 but is not
yet deemed to be credit-impaired. The ECL is measured on a lifetime
basis.
• If the financial instrument is credit-impaired it is then moved to
Stage 3. The ECL is measured on a lifetime basis.
The Group closely monitors all loans in the portfolio for any
deterioration in credit risk. As of the date of this factsheet, assigned
classifications are:
• Stage 1 loans – three loan investments totalling £60 million,
equivalent to 54 per cent of the funded portfolio as of 31 March 2025
are classified in the lowest risk profile, Stage 1.
• Stage 2 loans – two loan investments totalling £29 million, equivalent
to 26 per cent of the funded portfolio as of 31 March 2025 are
classified as Stage 2. The average Loan to Value of these exposures
is 58 per cent. The weighted average age of valuation report dates
used in the Loan to Value calculation is just under one year. While
these loans are higher risk than at initial recognition, no loss has
been recognised on a twelve-month and lifetime expected credit losses
basis. Therefore, no impairment in the value of these loans has been
recognised. The drivers for classifying these deals as Stage 2 are
typically either one or a combination of the below factors:
◦ lower underlying property values following receipt of updated
formal appraisals by independent valuers or agreed and in
exclusivity sale values;
◦ sponsor business plans progressing more slowly than originally
underwritten meaning that trading performance has lagged
expectations and operating financial covenants under the facility
agreements have been breached; and
◦ additional equity support is required to cover interest or
operating shortfalls as a result of slower lease up or operations
taking longer to ramp up.
The Stage 2 loans continue to benefit from headroom to the Group’s
investment basis. The Group has a strategy for each of these deals which
targets full loan repayment over a defined period of time. Under each of
the existing Stage 2 loans, the underlying sponsors are progressing
strategies to repay the loans in full by refinancing with third party
lenders.
• Stage 3 loans – during October 2024, one loan (with a funded balance
amounting to £22 million as of 31 March 2025) was reclassified as
Stage 3. As of 31 March 2025, the balance of this loan represented 20
per cent of the total funded portfolio. As outlined above, a 50 per
cent impairment of the 30 September 2024 loan balance has been
provided for as per the Company’s announcement dated 21 October 2024.
The position is being monitored and managed closely, and updates will
be provided as appropriate and when practically available.
This assessment has been made based on information in our possession at
the date of publishing this factsheet, our assessment of the risks of each
loan and certain estimates and judgements around future performance of the
assets.
Market commentary and outlook
The United States’ (“US”) tariff policy moves have dominated markets since
the beginning of April. While Trump has been talking about tariffs for a
long time, the market was taken by surprise by the scope and size of the
“Liberation Day” announcements and immediately sold off sharply in
reaction. Markets had to try to price the implications of a new approach
to negotiating trade agreements and the impact that tariff scenarios will
have on individual stocks, countries and growth in general. As further
news emerged stock markets had a roller coaster ride and the VIX which
measures the volatility of the S&P 500 index and is the benchmark for
equity volatility hit over 60 on April 7th having been less than a third
of that level a week earlier. The equity markets saw some of the biggest
one day moves of all time comparable only to the worst days of the Great
Financial Crisis, Black Monday in 1987 and the COVID pandemic.
Credit markets also reacted quickly with a sharp slowdown in new issuance
activity. The itraxx Main which is the corporate investment grade
benchmark increased by 20 basis points (“bps”) from 65 bps to 85 bps and
has subsequently settled in the middle of that range. Commercial mortgage
backed securities (“CMBS”) are a part of the larger European structured
finance market which suffered a sharp slowdown of issuance activity.
Generally secondary spreads for the AAA tranches of European Asset Backed
Securities across the board are wider by 10 to 20 bps month-on-month.
The itraxx Crossover which is the benchmark for low investment grade and
high non-investment grade credit saw a greater change increasing from 330
bps to a peak of over 430 bps before settling back to 370 bps. Primary
issuance in the high yield market also slowed significantly with just $13
billion in high-yield bonds and loans in the US market issued in the first
two weeks of April which is well below the month-to-date average since
2021 of $52.5 billion.
Usually a market selloff leads to a flight to quality and US Treasuries
are a beneficiary as a safe asset in the world’s reserve currency. This
did happen initially with the yield on the US 10 year Treasury falling
from 4.2 per cent to 3.9 per cent but subsequently we have seen the US
dollar decline against major currencies with longer dated US Treasuries
selling off at the same time. After the initial rally, the US 10 year
Treasury sold off to a yield as high as 4.5 per cent in the week after
Liberation Day before settling slightly lower. The bond market reaction
was almost certainly one of the major contributors in the decision to
pause many of the tariffs for 90 days. Equity markets rallied hard in
response to the news of the pause with the S&P 500 moving by 7 per cent in
8 minutes and the Nasdaq rallying over 12 per cent on the day. Equity
markets are now not significantly below pre-Liberation Day levels.
Interest rate expectations are being pulled in different directions by
contradictory forces. Markets are concerned that the tariff policies are
likely to slow US and global growth which would tend to lead to lower
interest rates. However tariffs are also likely to be inflationary for
the US which would usually mean interest rates would generally be kept
higher, or be driven higher. The result so far for the US and the UK is
that we are seeing some steepening in the curve with the short end
declining versus the longer end. Five year swaps are lower by around 20
bps in each of the US and UK markets with longer rates just slightly
higher since Liberation Day. In Europe the German 10 year Bund has fared
better then the US and the UK in April with a rally of 25 bps but that
move should be taken in the context of a sharp increase in the Bund yield
in March in response to the historic spending plan which unlocked hundreds
of billions of euros for defence and infrastructure investment.
Real estate investing is a long term business and transactions typically
take months to complete to allow for appropriate time for marketing,
underwriting, due diligence, documentation etc.. Transactions that are in
the later stages of closing are continuing to go through. For some
transactions in the earlier phases we have seen both buyers and sellers
and borrowers and lenders taking a pause while markets have a chance to
settle and for the implications for real estate and/or the economy as a
whole to filter through. One early observable example of changing trends
is that the travel data for March showed a marked slowdown in
international visitation to the United States with 12 per cent less
visitors globally and 17 per cent less from Europe compared with this time
last year. This will affect hospitality markets with large international
components like New York and Florida and other markets may benefit from
displaced demand. Until the final details of the Liberation Day tariffs
are set it will be hard to analyse the full effect of tariffs by country
and industry.
Notwithstanding the recent tariff driven news, real estate markets had
been continuing to improve with increased volumes in 2025. In the office
sector after a period with no larger transaction sizes we saw a number of
multi hundred million lot sizes. In the City of London, in addition to
the 2 Finsbury Avenue transaction that we mentioned in the market
commentary that accompanied our full year result announcement, we saw the
sale of 100 Bridge Street for £333 million from Helical to State Street
for owner occupation and a higher bid of £322 million offered by
Blackstone to Nuveen for the Can of Ham. Elsewhere in Europe, Upper West,
a mixed use building in Berlin developed by Signa traded for over €400
million and in Paris Norges bought an 80 per cent stake in the Trinity
office tower from Unibail at a valuation of €450 million. While final
data is still to be compiled, according to Savills research, European real
estate investment volumes are currently forecast to surpass €50 billion in
the first quarter 2025, representing a healthy 28 per cent year-on-year
increase. On the credit side, with a good diversity of lender types
looking to increase exposure the real estate credit markets in the first
quarter were as liquid as they have been since the Great Financial Crisis.
Looking forward, there is a way still to go in the tariff story and there
could be many twists that will continue to affect market pricing and
volumes. Geopolitical uncertainty, potentially lower growth and asset
specific considerations will be factors in real estate underwriting and
investment decisions. However, if the economic outlook deteriorates, and
this leads to lower interest rates that could be helpful to real estate as
it reduces financing costs for a capital intensive asset class and also
makes real estate income more favourable compared to fixed income
alternative investments. While these times of uncertainty continue it is
likely that transactions will continue at a slower pace until the picture
settles.
Investment Portfolio as of 31 March 2025
As of 31 March 2025, the Group had six investments with total cash
commitments (funded and unfunded) of £130.0 million as shown below.
Sterling Sterling equivalent Sterling Total
equivalent balance unfunded commitment (Drawn and
(1), (2) (3) Unfunded)
Hospitals, UK £25.0 m £25.0 m
Hotel, North £15.0 m £15.0 m
Berwick
Life Science, UK £14.1 m £14.1 m
Industrial £27.2 m £19.0 m £46.2 m
Estate, UK
Total Sterling £81.3 m £19.0 m £100.3 m
Loans
Office Portfolio, £7.4 m £7.4 m
Spain
Office Portfolio, £22.3 m £22.3 m
Ireland
Total Euro Loans £29.7 m £29.7 m
Total Portfolio £111.0 m £19.0 m £130.0 m
1. Euro balances translated to sterling at period end exchange rate.
2. These amounts are shown before any impairment provisions recognised.
3. These amounts exclude interest which may be capitalised.
Loan to Value
All assets securing the loans undergo third party valuations before each
investment closes and periodically thereafter at a time considered
appropriate by the lenders. The Loan to Values shown below are based on
independent third party appraisals for loans classified as Stage 1 and
Stage 2 and on the marked down value as per the announced loan impairment
for the loan classified as Stage 3 in October 2024. The weighted average
age of the dates of these valuations for the whole portfolio is just under
ten months.
As of 31 March 2025, the Group has an average last £ Loan to Value of 68.1
per cent (31 December 2024: 63.5 per cent).
The Group’s last £ Loan to Value means the percentage which the total loan
drawn less any deductible lender controlled cash reserves and less any
amortisation received to date (when aggregated with any other indebtedness
ranking alongside and/or senior to it) bears to the market value
determined by the last formal lender valuation received, reviewed in
detail and approved by the reporting date or, in the case of the Stage 3
asset classified as Stage 3 in October 2024, the marked down value per the
recently announced loan impairment. Loan to Value to first Group £ means
the starting point of the Loan to Value range of the loans drawn (when
aggregated with any other indebtedness ranking senior to it). For
development projects the calculation includes the total facility available
and is calculated against the assumed market value on completion of the
relevant project.
The table below shows the sensitivity of the Loan to Value calculation for
movements in the underlying property valuation and demonstrates that the
Group has considerable headroom within the currently reported last £ Loan
to Values.
Change in Valuation Office Light Industrial Healthcare Other Total
-15% 110.3% 75.9% 62.6% 70.1% 80.2%
-10% 104.2% 71.7% 59.1% 66.2% 75.7%
-5% 98.7% 67.9% 56.0% 62.7% 71.7%
0% 93.7% 64.5% 53.2% 59.6% 68.1%
5% 89.3% 61.5% 50.7% 56.7% 64.9%
10% 85.2% 58.7% 48.4% 54.1% 61.9%
15% 81.5% 56.1% 46.3% 51.8% 59.2%
Share Price performance
The Company's shares closed on 31 March 2025 at 86.0 pence, resulting in a
share price total return for the first quarter of 2025 of -4.9 per cent.
As of 31 March 2025, the discount to NAV stood at 15.1 per cent, with an
average discount to NAV of 13.0 per cent over the quarter.
Note: the 31 March 2025 discount to NAV is based off the 31 March 2025 NAV
as reported in this factsheet. All average discounts to NAV are
calculated as the latest cum-dividend NAV available in the market on a
given day, adjusted for any dividend payments from the ex-dividend date
onwards.
For further information, please contact:
Apex Fund and Corporate Services (Guernsey) Limited
as Company Secretary
Duke Le Prevost
+44 (0)20 3530 3630
Starwood Capital
Duncan MacPherson +44 (0) 20 7016 3655
Jefferies International Limited
Gaudi Le Roux
Harry Randall +44 (0) 20 7029 8000
Ollie Nott
Burson Buchanan
Helen Tarbet +44 (0) 20 7466 5000
Henry Wilson +44 (0) 7788 528 143
Samuel Adams
Notes:
Starwood European Real Estate Finance Limited is an investment company
listed on the premium segment of the main market of the London Stock
Exchange with an investment objective to conduct an orderly realisation of
the assets of the Company. 2 www.starwoodeuropeanfinance.com.
The Group's assets are managed by Starwood European Finance Partners
Limited, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Starwood Capital Group.
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Dissemination of a Regulatory Announcement that contains inside
information in accordance with the Market Abuse Regulation (MAR),
transmitted by EQS Group.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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ISIN: GG00BTZJM644
Category Code: PFU
TIDM: SWEF
LEI Code: 5493004YMVUQ9Z7JGZ50
OAM Categories: 3.1. Additional regulated information required to be
disclosed under the laws of a Member State
Sequence No.: 384225
EQS News ID: 2122598
End of Announcement EQS News Service
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