Liberty Two Degrees: new look, fresh potential

Despite co-owning what is widely regarded as two of Gauteng’s most prized retail assets — Sandton City and Eastgate Shopping Centre — Liberty Two Degrees (L2D) has had a disappointing run since listing nearly two years ago. The share price has been on a steady decline since the Liberty Group brought a portion of its property assets to the JSE via L2D in early December 2016, with the stock shedding around 30% of its value — from R10.50 at listing to R7.14 this week. L2D has also not lived up to dividend growth expectations. Distributions were down around 1% for the latest reporting period (six months ended June). However, loyal investors are likely to be rewarded for their patience over the next few years following the successful completion of a major restructuring exercise, through which the company began trading in its new guise as a corporate real estate investment trust (Reit) last week.

L2D’s restructuring was prompted by what many believed was an ill-advised and complicat...