New Zealand Professional Investment Services Firm

Forsyth Barr

We are proud to be a New Zealand owned firm, with 21 offices throughout the country and over 300 employees. We assist personal, institutional and corporate clients providing a full range of investment services.

Forsyth Barr is a foundation New Zealand Exchange firm (NZX) and accredited market participant. We have been confirmed by the Financial Markets Authority as a Qualifying Financial Entity (QFE).

Research is the cornerstone of our advice. We have one of New Zealand's leading teams of analysts. Our global affiliations ensure comprehensive research coverage of all major investment markets.

New Zealand Professional Investment Services Firm, Forsyth Barr

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul><li>Chorus (CNU) reported an in-line operational 1H23 result but with a meaningful miss on the bottom line. The miss was driven by accelerated depreciation of copper assets and higher interest expense.</li><li>On the positive side, price inflation is coming through faster than expected; for the first time in six years fibre revenue growth more than offset the copper decline.</li><li>We think CNU is a solid long term holding with low operational downside risk. However, we believe valuation is stretched, even factoring in a likely meaningful uplift in regulatory WACC in 2025. </li></ul>

Chorus (CNU) reported an in-line operational 1H23 result but with a meaningful miss on the bottom line. The miss was driven by accelerated depreciation of copper assets and higher interest expense.On the positive side, price inflation is coming through faster than expected; for the first time in six years fibre revenue growth more than offset the copper decline.We think CNU is a solid long term holding with low operational downside risk. However, we believe valuation is stretched, even factoring in a likely meaningful uplift in regulatory WACC in 2025. 

Chorus Aviation

Chorus: 1H23 Result — Reality Check