Ascencio 1Q26 trading update: No mention of Carrefour exit in report

Ascencio reports EPRA earnings in line with our expectations. Rental income came in slightly below due to a 60 bps increase in vacancy at an unknown Walloon site requiring repositioning. In its report, Ascencio hints at further acquisitions as it feels comfortable at its 41,4% debt ratio (before dividend payment, incl. € 22,8m acquisition). There is no mention of Carrefour in its trading update. Carrefour has 4,4% of Ascencio's contractual rents. The assets are on average 22,5% overrented. Hence, we see a 1,0% impact over time (excl. impact rent free periods) on the topline if Carrefour breaks its existing contracts. In case of a sale, the new supermarket retailer would likely take over the existing rental contracts similar to what we saw at the Casino – Intermarché swap which means the imminent impact is more muted. Ascencio has only exposure to the Carrefour Markets (40 in Belgium) and 1 Carrefour Express, where the profitability is higher than for the Carrefour Hypermarkets (43 in Belgium). Additionally the markets are 2 times smaller than the Hypermarkets which makes reletting easier.
1Q26 trading update:
Rental income € 13,3 vs € 13,6m KBCSe, - 1,3% YoY as a result of disposals. +0,3% like-for-like (below indexation due to negative rent reversion); Occupancy drop 60 bps to 96,6% vs 97,2% at 3Q25
EPRA earnings € 9,2m vs € 9,2m KBCSe, - 2,6% YoY; EPRA EPS € 1,39 vs € 1,40 KBCSe, -2,6% YoY
Fair value portfolio stable +,03%; EPRA NTA per share € 67,1 vs € 68,56 (pre dividend payment)
EPRA LTV 41,4% vs 40,7% at 3Q25 (pre-dividend payment, incl. Monteux acquisition)