IWG could become market leader, says RBC

(Sharecast News) - RBC Capital Markets has said it sees a buying opportunity at IWG after a recent underperformance in the shares, keeping the workspace solutions group at 'outperform'. The broker said it still sees upside from the current level of 186.8p (as of last Friday's close) and kept a 215p target price for the stock, saying that the risk-reward balance was "in favour, especially given the recent pullback from 200p".

"We upgraded the stock at the start of the year and the rationale still holds: IWG has started hitting expectations, and we believe consensus forecasts look achievable, even in the current macro environment," RBC said in a research note.

"There is genuine evidence that the business is moving to a capital-light model - this should have implications for growth over the next few years as the 1k+ locations signed over the last two years ramp up and perhaps more importantly for cashflow, as it coincides with high depreciation from the 2016-19 expansion phase. Unlike peers, services are also now a meaningful chunk of the business."

The broker said there was "clear opportunity" for IWG to establish itself as the largest independent global marketplace for flexible working, and it could "monetise part of all of the business over time".

The stock was up 1.7% at 190p by 0841 BST.