National Storage initiated with a Sell at Deutsche Bank

Deutsche Bank initiated coverage of National Storage with a Sell rating and $33 price target. The analyst initiated coverage of self-storage real estate investment trusts with one Hold-rated name and three Sell-rated names. The normalization of demand trends will continue to be painful post the meaningful pull forward during the pandemic, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm expects earnings growth will slow more than consensus expects in 2024 driven by a moderation in the frequency and magnitude of existing customer rent increases, street rates remaining competitive given an ongoing slowdown in demand, and expense pressure from taxes, insurance, and harder-to-reduce labor costs. Deutsche says the recent 22% sector rally in Q4 “feels unwarranted.”