HIAG : New CEO and more defensive repositioning

The real estate company Hiag has published a net loss of CHF 43 million in the first half of 2019. These poor results are due to two extraordinary events. Firstly, the discontinuation of the Hiag data business (a cloud platform) weighted up to CHF 22 million. Secondly, the bankruptcy of a major tenant, Rohner AG, a chemical company, required a depreciation expense and a provision of CHF 45 million. However, the rest of the property portfolio is doing very well and rental income improved by 7.7% over the semester. In addition, a new CEO has been appointed and the company plans to refocus on its traditional development and letting business. Growth prospects are still very good. The group has seven projects under construction that should increase rental income by CHF 5 million by 2022.