Unite Group Plc · LSE:UTG
Unite — Investor Presentation (November 2025)
50 slides from Unite's investor presentation, Nov 27, 2025
Slide 1: Investor Event
Investor Event London 27 November 2025
Slide 2: Agenda
AGENDA Agenda 1. Introduction & sector outlook 2. Market review 3. Financial outlook 4. Capital allocation 5. Acquisition of Empiric 6. Summary 2
Slide 3: Sector outlook
1 Sector outlook Joe Lister, Chief Executive 3
Slide 4: Adapting to a changing market
INTRODUCTION & SECTOR OUTLOOK Adapting to a changing market Structurally Near-term Responding Returning growing sector challenges to change to growth Growing UK Strong cities Optimise pricing to Above-inflation 18-year-old population performing well drive occupancy rental growth Global appeal of UK
Slide 5: Fundamentals of Higher Education remain strong
INTRODUCTION & SECTOR OUTLOOK Fundamentals of Higher Education remain strong World-class sector • 17 UK universities in QS Global Top 100 Strongest • £265bn contribution to the UK economy universities • Emerging competition from Asia will outperform Enduring demand Students seeking • Participation
Slide 6: Active management of our portfolio
INTRODUCTION & SECTOR OUTLOOK Active management of our portfolio Positioning for growth Beds sold over past 5yrs by city Sheffield Exited 2,300 cities • Significant repositioning of the portfolio since Liberty Living acquisition in 2019 4,400 Leicester 1,800 • Increasing alignment to the strongest u
Slide 7: Strategic priorities
INTRODUCTION & SECTOR OUTLOOK Strategic priorities Our focus Our objectives Our targets 97% core occupancy Sustainable rental growth Rental growth above inflation Operational excellence High-quality income 60% of beds nominated Deliver our business plan for Empiric Earnings accretive from FY2027 Inc
Slide 8: Market review
2 Market review Joe Lister, Chief Executive Karan Khanna, Chief Operating Officer 8
Slide 9: Key themes of the 2025/26 academic year
MARKET REVIEW Key themes of the 2025/26 academic year 95.2% occupied with 4.0% rental growth High-tariff universities Increasing bookings Strong cities Students seeking value taking share from universities continuing to deliver from university High-tariff acceptances 59% nominations 4.3% rental gro
Slide 10: Strongest universities taking market share
MARKET REVIEW Strongest universities taking market share Growing gap between high and low-ranked universities Unite income by university ranking Low 9% • High-ranked universities recruiting more UK students in response to softer international demand Medium 27% • Lower-ranked universities losing out
Slide 11: Increased demand for nomination agreements
MARKET REVIEW Increased demand for nomination agreements University partners taking more beds Proportion of beds nominated • Strong university demand for accommodation 80% 57% 57% 59% • Increased proportion of multi-year agreements 60% 53% 51% 52% 53% 40% • Housing availability constrains university
Slide 12: International sales broadly stable
MARKET REVIEW International sales broadly stable Slightly below expectations based on stronger visa data • Recovery in student visa numbers following policy changes in 2024 • Stronger undergraduate intake offsetting postgraduate reduction • Fewer late cycle sales due to reduction in postgraduate dem
Slide 13: Strong cities continuing to deliver
MARKET REVIEW Strong cities continuing to deliver Occupancy movement Vacancies concentrated in a few regional cities 98% 97% 96% (1.3%) 97.5% • Average occupancy of 97% in 19 of our 22 cities 95% (0.9%) (0.1%) 95.2% 94% • Three cities accounted for a 1.3ppt reduction in occupancy 2024/25 Bottom 3 Pr
Slide 14: New supply concentrated in fewer cities
MARKET REVIEW New supply concentrated in fewer cities 2025/26 development completions • 2.5% growth in PBSA supply for 2025/26 with 18,000 new beds delivered • Higher supply markets taking time to absorb new deliveries and major refurbishments • Limited impact on rental growth in supply constrained
Slide 15: Students seeking value from university
MARKET REVIEW Students seeking value from university Trends in student mobility • 1.7% growth in UG students seeking accommodation for 2025/26 (UK +0.8%, International +5.5%) • Strongest growth in housing need for high-tariff universities • Increasing live-at-home share among low and mid-tariff univ
Slide 16: High-quality and affordable accommodation
MARKET REVIEW High-quality and affordable accommodation Occupancy driven by university performance rather than price • Rents have grown in line with competing accommodation since 2019 • Focused on providing affordability at a range of price points • Higher occupancy in mid and higher-priced rooms Oc
Slide 17: Sustained rental growth
MARKET REVIEW Sustained rental growth Encouraging outlook for rental growth in most cities • Strongest pricing in high-occupancy markets • Nomination rents driven by annual inflation-linked increases • Greater direct-let exposure in more fully supplied markets • Some dilution of rental growth from s
Slide 18: High income visibility through nomination agreements
MARKET REVIEW High income visibility through nomination agreements Significant recurring income delivering contractual rental growth • Multi-year deals support 3-4% rental growth from nomination agreements • 5.9-year average unexpired lease term on agreements • Nomination rents c.10% below comparabl
Slide 19: 2026/27 commercial strategy
MARKET REVIEW 2026/27 commercial strategy Increased focus Drive share Maximise income Increased Leverage new on high-quality of re-bookers in lower marketing for technology nominations & Returners occupancy cities new properties capabilities Target Best price Price to Stabilise Reduce cost c.60% sha
Slide 20: Driving performance throughout the sales cycle
MARKET REVIEW Driving performance throughout the sales cycle Retention Returners Early NOMs Early UK / Intl. UG (Oct-Dec) (Nov-Jan) (Jan-Feb) (Feb-Mar) • Exclusive re-booker week • National sales launch • UCAS applications end-Jan • Lunar New Year campaign • In-property Housing Fairs • Focus on 2nd/
Slide 21: Leeds case study
MARKET REVIEW Leeds case study Rebuilding occupancy and rental growth LFL The challenge 7% (4%) -% 3% rental growth 100% • Market of 29k beds, of which Unite owns 4k beds • Historically 97-100% occupied with strong rental growth 95% Occupancy • Several challenges emerged: 90% 99% • Reduced student n
Slide 22: Financial outlook
3 Financial outlook Mike Burt, Chief Financial Officer 22
Slide 23: Income guidance
FINANCIAL OUTLOOK Income guidance 2026/27 academic year Occupancy Occupancy Rental growth Beds 2025/26 2026/27 2026/27 Nomination agreements ~37,000 100% Stable 3-4% High occupancy ~16,000 95% +/-1ppt 2-3% markets (>95%) Direct let Lower occupancy ~11,000 78% +/-5ppt 0-1% markets (<95%) Total¹ ~64,0
Slide 24: Taking action on costs
FINANCIAL OUTLOOK Taking action on costs Key drivers of cost and operating margins • Guidance for costs to be held flat in 2026 versus 2025 • Central cost reductions to mitigate inflationary increases • Savings already delivered in H2 2025, technology driven savings from 2026 Rental income to EBIT w
Slide 25: 2026 earnings guidance
FINANCIAL OUTLOOK 2026 earnings guidance Impact of lower occupancy, property activity and financing costs 2025 adjusted EPS guidance reiterated 47.5-48.25p Considerations for 2026 YoY impact Impact of shorter tenancies in H1 Like-for-like income (1)% to +1% 0-4% LfL growth for term 1 of 2026/27 7-10
Slide 26: Path to growth from 2027
FINANCIAL OUTLOOK Path to growth from 2027 Medium-term outlook 97%+ occupancy target in core markets LfL rental growth Above-inflation rental growth Operational Cost growth below rental increases excellence Cost efficiency Sustainable Savings from technology investment and efficiencies earnings Empi
Slide 27: Capital allocation
4 Capital allocation Mike Burt, Chief Financial Officer 27
Slide 28: Updating our capital allocation framework
CAPITAL ALLOCATION Updating our capital allocation framework Greater flexibility in our approach Delivering Discipline Accelerating Focus on on university in off-campus capital risk-adjusted partnerships development recycling returns Reducing capex, Target disposals of Two secured JVs with Flexible
Slide 29: Delivering on university partnerships
CAPITAL ALLOCATION Delivering on university partnerships Key opportunity for future growth • Partnerships provide high-quality income visibility • On-campus locations • Affordable rents • University alignment through equity • Uniquely positioned to address university needs Manchester Newcastle Metro
Slide 30: Discipline in off-campus development
CAPITAL ALLOCATION Discipline in off-campus development Reducing capex with optionality over future commitments • £1.2bn pipeline in strong markets Land Option On-site • 5,000+ beds, 90% with planning consent owned agreements • 100% aligned to Russell Group cities Beds 1,650 2,400 1,100 • c.£110m co
Slide 31: Increased focus on quality universities
CAPITAL ALLOCATION Increased focus on quality universities Targeting disposals of £300-400m p.a. NOI yield Considerations • High income yield at affordable rents Lower growth assets 6.0-7.5% • Value-add opportunity for buyers Earnings impact • Significant discount to replacement cost Stabilised asse
Slide 32: Continued investor appetite for PBSA
CAPITAL ALLOCATION Continued investor appetite for PBSA PBSA investment activity and pricing • PBSA transaction volumes below long-term average with some activity on hold pre-Budget • Two tier market with investors focused on ‘clean & green’ and value-add opportunities • Rental growth expectations k
Slide 33: Maintaining a robust balance sheet
CAPITAL ALLOCATION Maintaining a robust balance sheet Target leverage reflective of operational intensity Net debt/EBITDA • Built-out leverage within target ranges 8x 0.4x • PF net debt/EBITDA of 6.3x 6x 0.6x • Net debt/EBITDA target of 6-7x 4x 6.3x 5.3x • Funding strategy driven by cashflow metrics
Slide 34: Flexibility over future investment activity
CAPITAL ALLOCATION Flexibility over future investment activity Focus on driving earnings growth and enhancing portfolio quality • Transition to net seller as disposals accelerate and development becomes more selective • Planned disposals expected to generate surplus capital • Future capital allocati
Slide 35: Acquisition of Empiric
5 Acquisition of Empiric Joe Lister, Chief Executive 35
Slide 36: Increasing our addressable market
ACQUISITION OF EMPIRIC Increasing our addressable market Opportunity to attract more students across the university lifecycle Institutional PBSA is well suited to first-year undergraduate student needs, supporting the first step away from the family home but Returner students want a more independent
Slide 37: Acquiring a high-quality, complementary portfolio
ACQUISITION OF EMPIRIC Acquiring a high-quality, complementary portfolio Shared focus on the strongest universities • £1.2bn portfolio in Returner market • Best-in-class entry point to attractive segment • Acquiring c.20% below replacement cost • Joint presence in 15 cities • Focus on the strongest
Slide 38: Value add opportunity
ACQUISITION OF EMPIRIC Value add opportunity Leveraging our operating platform • Meaningful opportunity to improve Empiric occupancy • Targeting 95% occupancy over the next two years • Confident in delivering annual run-rate synergies of at least £13.7 million • Earnings accretive from second year a
Slide 39: Summary
6 Summary Joe Lister, Chief Executive 39
Slide 40: Strategic priorities
SUMMARY Strategic priorities Our focus Our objectives Our targets 97% core occupancy Sustainable rental growth Rental growth above inflation Operational excellence High-quality income 60% of beds nominated Deliver our business plan for Empiric Earnings accretive from FY2027 Increase alignment to the
Slide 41: The leader in student housing
SUMMARY The leader in student housing • Structurally growing sector • Growing UK and international demand • Strongest universities will outperform • Responding to market change • Positioning the portfolio for quality • Focus on university partnerships • Growing our addressable market • Returning to
Slide 42: Appendices
7 Appendices 42
Slide 43: Broadly stable housing demand for 2026/27
APPENDICES Broadly stable housing demand for 2026/27 Student numbers increasingly concentrated at strongest universities Driver Considerations Expected impact • 4% growth in UK 18-year-olds for 2026/27 UK demand • Growing number of second and third-year students • 7% growth in October UCAS applicati
Slide 44: Policy outlook
APPENDICES Policy outlook Government focused on quality HE provision University funding Immigration policy Renters’ Rights Bill Attractive market Domestic tuition fees Government targeting growth PBSA exempt post-transition rising with CPI in best and brightest students Structurally growing demand E
Slide 45: Universities adapting to financial pressures
APPENDICES Universities adapting to financial pressures Increased efficiency around costs and capital University income mix (2023/24) Investment income Donations 2% 2% • Universities are well-established, long-term organisations Other income 18% • Strong balance sheets and limited external borrowing
Slide 46: Portfolio and customer breakdown
APPENDICES Portfolio and customer breakdown Customers by domicile Distribution of beds by weekly price 2025/26 2024/25 2023/24 30% 20% UK 72% 72% 72% 10% - Non-EU 26% 26% 26% Other EU 2% 2% 2% RoUK London Customers by year of study Bookings by type Room types Post graduate Non en-suite Studio 4% 16%
Slide 47: Positive outlook for international demand
APPENDICES Positive outlook for international demand • Rising global living standards support increasing demand QS Global Top 100 universities by country 30 for Higher Education • 6% p.a. growth in international students since 2000 20 • Outlook for nine million international students by 2030 10 • UK
Slide 48: Enduring appeal of university education
APPENDICES Enduring appeal of university education £000's Lifetime graduate earnings premium 300 280 • Higher Education creates opportunities and 250 increases social mobility 190 200 • 84% of parents want their children to go to university 150 100 • £200-300k lifetime graduate earnings premium 50 0
Slide 49: New supply to slow
APPENDICES New supply to slow Viability challenges to constrain new development starts • Viable development now requires minimum rents of £230 per week • Building Safety Act gateways adding 6-12 months to development programmes • 2025 has seen the lowest number of PBSA planning submissions in the pa
Slide 50: Unite FY2025 and FY2026 Profit Forecasts
APPENDICES Unite FY2025 and FY2026 Profit Forecasts Unite released its 2024 financial results preliminary statement on 25 February 2025, which included the following statement: "guidance for adjusted EPS of 47.5 - 48.25p in 2025" ("Unite FY2025 Profit Forecast"). The Unite FY2025 Profit Forecast is