Lull over, realty ready to roar again
As developers cut debt, offload assets and push sales, investors start trickling back Investors and analysts have begun re-rating the realty sector on optimism that the worst may be over, as the efforts of recent months and a stable global environment will help developers attract funds and boost earnings. Developers in the past year have restructured debt, sold non-core assets and tweaked product mix, helping to push up sales. This has encouraged investors to buy stocks of real estate companies and motivate analysts to revise price targets and upgrade the outlook on the sector. "The stabilisation in the international market improved financials arising out of restructuring of loans and enhanced liquidity from banks have resulted in revision in the outlook for the sector," said Dipesh Sohani, an analyst with MF Global, an equity brokerage. "The real estate players are better placed now than what they were two-three quarters before." Reflecting the positive sentiment, ...