Hello, and welcome to the Investis half-year 2026 results. If you would like to register a question at the end of the presentation, you may type your question into the Q&A text box at the top of your screen, or you may use the raise hand function. If you have joined us via the telephone lines today, you may press star one on your telephone keypad. I now hand it over to CEO Stéphane Bonvin to begin. Please go ahead.
Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, good morning, and thank you for joining us today to the presentation of our half-year results for 2026. I have with me our CFO, René Häsler, and our investor relation, Laurence Bienz. As you know, Investis celebrated the 10th anniversary of its initial public offering in June. This is an important milestone for us. Since our listing in 2016, we have almost tripled the size of our real estate portfolio, significantly strengthened our financial position, reduced our loan-to-value ratio, and delivered an excellent total return to our shareholders. At the time of our IPO, our real estate portfolio was valuated approximately CHF 875 million, with a LTV ratio of 38%.
Today, its value stands at almost CHF 2.3 billion, while our LTV has been reduced to almost 27%. Since our listing, we have also paid CHF 25 per share to our shareholders as dividend. As of June 30th, 2026, the annualized total shareholder return on Investis shares, including dividends, stood at 12.9%, an excellent return.
At a recent investor conference, a speaker asked me, "After the success of your first 10 years, how do you see the next 10?" Our ambition is, of course, to continue on this path, but we have to recognize that the next 10 years will probably be different from the first 10. Economic cycles will evolve. Financing conditions may change rapidly. Real estate markets will experience both more and less favorable periods. The expectation of our tenants will continue to evolve as well. Before presenting our four priorities for the next 10 years, however, I would like to emphasize one essential point. Investis' main competence is not our ability to acquire the right properties at the right time.
Our real strength is that our value creation is driven first by the organic growth of our existing residential portfolio. Thanks to the quality of our locations, the structural housing shortage in the Lake Geneva region, the exceptional low vacancy rate, and the gap between in-place and market rents, our portfolio can continue to generate steady growth. Acquisitions accelerate this growth. They are not its only driver. Today, our strategy for the coming years is built around four priorities. First priority, the acquisition market naturally remains an important component of our value creation. Since our IPO, we have always taken a highly disciplined approach to investment. We have been able to take advantage of market cycles, disposing of assets when valuations were particularly attractive, and reinvesting when conditions became favorable again. This philosophy remains fully relevant today.
We continuously assess a significant number of opportunities and continue to submit bids on a regular basis. Our objective remains unchanged. We continue growing our portfolio gradually with the aim of reaching CHF 100 million annualized rental income while maintaining one of the lowest LTV ratios in the sector. We will therefore continue to prioritize the quality of acquisition over the number. When valuations become excessive, we prefer to be patient. Our investment capacity is not an obligation to spend. It is a strategic option that allows us to wait, negotiate, and act when the risk-return profile becomes attractive. Second priority. Our second strategic priority is probably the area on which we are currently focusing most of our effort. We believe that success over the next few years will not be driven by acquisition alone. It will also depend on operating our existing portfolio ever more effectively.
The housing market remains exceptionally tight, while the expectations of our tenants are evolving rapidly. New technologies and AI, in particular, now offer unprecedented opportunities to improve the quality of our service while increasing efficiency. We are currently testing several new tools and assessing the gradual insourcing of certain activities that are presently operated by external property managers. The objective goes far beyond simple cost reduction. We want to bring the teams responsible for letting technical service facilities and renovation close together. This organization should allow us to provide a better service to our tenants, improve the responsiveness of our team, monitor maintenance work more effectively, and ultimately further strengthen the economic performance of the portfolio. We are convinced that this closer day-to-day connection with our tenant and our building will become an important competitive advantage over the coming years.
Our third priority is to continue investing in the quality of real estate portfolio. Organic value creation does not depend solely on rental growth. It also depends on our ability to maintain, renovate, and improve our properties over the long term, and especially in our high-regulated market. We are therefore continuing to invest the renovation of apartment and common areas, improvement in energy efficiency, and the overall attractiveness of our building. We are also strengthening our collaboration with specialist partner to optimize energy consumption on a substantial basis and preserve the value of our asset. This investment improves the comfort of our tenants, reduces technical risk, supports the attractiveness of our properties, and prepares the portfolio for future environmental requirements. Fourth priority, finally, our business model is not changing. Our objective remains to maintain a residential rating of more than 80% within the portfolio over the long term.
Several commercial properties will therefore be gradually converted into residential use over the coming years. This project will create new homes in the area where demand is strongest, increase our rental income, and further strengthen the residential profile of the portfolio without any significant increase in our LTV. Beyond this portfolio allocation, however, the main driver of Investis value creation remains unchanged. Our portfolio is concentrated in the Lake Geneva region, particularly in the Canton of Geneva. Population growth, scarcity of land, structural housing shortage, and an exceptionally low vacancy rate create particularly favorable fundamentals in this region. This environment enables us to increase rents gradually when the tenant changes, without relying solely on rent adjustment linked to change in the Swiss reference interest rate or the CPI. This dynamic is once again reflected in our first half results, with like-for-like growth of 1.1% across our residential portfolio.
We are convinced that this ability to generate steady organic growth is one of Investis' main competitive advantage and will continue to support our value creation over the coming years. To conclude this introduction, I would like to return to the question I was asked: Are we capable of replicating over the next 10 years the performance achieved since our IPO? I am convinced that we are, not because market conditions will always be favorable, but because the principles that have guided our development remain more relevant than ever. Discipline, strong balance sheet, focus on a residential segment with particularly attractive fundamentals. Our ambition is not to be the most active investor in the market. Our ambition is to create more value than our competitors over the long term. This also means accepting that some periods will offer fewer investment opportunities than others.
When market conditions do not offer sufficient value creation potential, we prefer to wait. This discipline has allowed us to navigate different market cycles successfully over the past 10 years. It will remain one of the strongest safeguards of value creation for our shareholders over the next decade. With this long-term vision in mind, let us now turn to the result of this first half 2026. Shortly, agenda. I will begin with the key highlights, very short. I will then present our view of the market in the Lake Geneva region. René will then present the financial overview. Finally, I will return to conclude with our outlook before taking your questions. Highlights. The results for the first half of 2026 confirm the strength of our model. Rental income increased almost by 7%. Net profit, excluding revaluation effect, reached CHF 30 million.
It confirms that our dividend is comfortably covered by recurring earnings. Our balance sheet also remains particularly strong, with an equity ratio of almost 64% and an LTV reduced to 27.3%. We therefore combine a high-quality portfolio valued at approximately CHF 2.3 billion, positive organic growth, and one of the strongest balance sheets in the sector. These results provide further confirmation of the strength of our long-term strategy. Before looking more closely at our portfolio, I would now like to take a step back and present our view of the market. To understand Investis' organic growth potential, it is essential to understand the structural forces shaping the residential market in the Lake Geneva region. On the next slide, the main feature of our market remains the structural housing shortage. Population growth continues to support demand, while the supply of new housing remains insufficient.
In our view, the expected decline in certain United Nations-related jobs should have only a very marginal impact on the residential market. At the same time, we are observing a widening gap between the rents paid by existing tenants and the asking rent for apartments returning to the market. Finally, the Swiss National Bank's decision to maintain its policy rate at 0% support demand from institutional investors for residential real estate. Our conviction regarding the rental market and the investment market is therefore very strong. The next slide brings together the four structural forces shaping the Lake Geneva real estate market today. First, demographics, as always, remain a major source of support. Canton Vaud and Geneva are expected to continue recording above average migration growth, mainly in urban centers. This trend supports the rental demand, while rural areas are more exposed to stagnation.
Second, supply is not keeping pace with demand. The share of rental households remains high, and the shortage is particularly acute in the affordable segment. Despite visible construction activity, the delivery of new homes remains well below market needs. Third, the regulatory and fiscal picture, it is mixed. On the positive side, Geneva's competitive corporate tax environment continues to attract companies and strengthens the region's economic appeal. On the other hand, lengthy and complex planning and permitting procedures are causing significant project delays. In practice, even when projects exist, new homes reach the market too slowly, further constraining supply. Another key issue is the Federal Council proposal to tighten the Lex Koller.
Under the current draft, persons abroad would, in principle, require authorization for any purchase of shares in listed real estate companies, which would amount in practice to a near prohibition. The real estate industry position is clear. This would not create any additional housing. Instead, it could reduce liquidity in the listed market, restrict area access to capital, and make it more difficult to finance larger developments.
For Investis, the immediate exposure through the current shareholder structure is relatively limited, as foreign shareholders account for less than 5%. There could nevertheless be an effect on future share liquidity and access to foreign capital. Finally, the capital market remains supportive, with low inflation, stable and strong Swiss francs, and a resilient economic environment. These factors continue to underpin investor interest in Swiss residential real estate. Our strategy is positioned at the intersection of these four trends. On the next slide, the chart may suggest that the number of residential units currently under construction in Geneva is relatively high. However, the key question is not only how many homes are being built today.
We must also ask whether the pace of construction can be maintained over the coming years. Planning and approval procedures remain lengthy and complex. Current construction activity is therefore not sufficient to eliminate the shortage. It merely prevents the imbalance between supply and demand from deteriorating even more rapidly in the short term. The next slide provides an indication of future supply. While the previous chart showed the residential units currently under construction, this chart shows a sharp decline in the number of new building permits, particularly in the Lake Geneva region. Construction currently underway represents today's supply. Building permits provide an indication of tomorrow's supply. The decline in permits shows that the production of new housing is likely to remain insufficient relative to population growth. This is why we consider the imbalance between supply and demand to be structural rather than temporary.
On the next slide, the consequences of this situation are clearly visible on the development of vacancy rates. The vacancy rates stand approximately at 1% across Switzerland, 0.87% in Vaud, and only 0.31% in Geneva. At these levels, the market is effectively operating at full occupancy. This situation provides strong visibility over rental income and confirms that the shortage is not limited to a small number of neighborhoods or to a particular housing category. It is particularly relevant for Investis because our portfolio is concentrated in urban centers where the imbalance is most pronounced. On the next slide, it illustrates another essential feature of the Swiss residential market. Asking rents for new tenants have increased much more rapidly than the rents paid under existing leases. This creates what we call the lock-in effect.
Tenants often prefer to remain in their apartment even when it no longer perfectly meets their needs, because moving would result in a materially higher rent. For Investis, this situation supports high occupancy rates and very stable cash flows. It also creates significant rental upside. This upside is realized gradually, primarily when tenants change, and always in compliance with the applicable regulatory framework. The organic growth of our portfolio is therefore not based on a theoretical assumption. It is based on an observable gap between existing rent and market rents. Regarding the investment market, Swiss residential real estate remains attractive relative to Swiss Confederation bonds. In Geneva, prime residential real estate continues to offer a risk premium of approximately 200 basis points over the 10-year Swiss Confederation bond. Strong investor demand and the limited ability of high-quality residential assets continue to compress yield.
As opportunities become increasingly scarce in the best locations, investors are gradually expanding their search towards the outskirts of Lake Geneva region and neighboring cantons. This development supports the value of our existing portfolio. However, it also makes acquisitions more competitive, actually. We must not confuse an abundance of capital with value creation. A highly liquid market supports the value of assets, but it also requires even greater discipline when acquiring new properties. On the next slide, you can see that investment activity in Geneva has accelerated during 2026. We are also seeing the return of larger transactions, particularly in the commercial segment, which is contributing to higher overall transaction volume. This development confirms investors' continued interest in Geneva real estate. The next slide explains one of the main reasons behind the strength of investment demand.
Swiss real estate vehicles continue to raise very substantial amounts of capital, while the average size of this capital raising is increasing. A significant proportion of this capital will need to be deployed in new acquisitions. At the same time, the supply of high-quality residential properties remains exceptionally limited. For Investis, this environment has two consequences. First, it supports the value of our portfolio, but it also reinforces the need to remain patient and disciplined. We will continue to submit bids. However, we will not change our criteria simply to be more active. Next slide. The property at Rue du Nant is a good illustration of our buy and hold strategy, or what I call our business model. We acquired this asset in December 1998. Over the period shown in this chart, its value increased from CHF 12.3 million to CHF 25.5 million, representing an increase of 106%.
Over the same period, gross rental income rose from CHF 623,000 to CHF 826,000, representing an increase of 33% and an average annual growth of 2.7%. The value creation did not result from a single event. It reflects the quality of the location, the steady growth in rental income, the investment made in the building, and our ability to retain a good asset over a long period. Again, this example perfectly explains our business model. Shortly, Investis positioning. As I said, we operate in markets where the supply of housing is structurally constrained and vacancy rates are exceptionally low.
We focus on urban center and mid-market residential segment. We have a deep knowledge of our market. This specialization is balanced by the portfolio high residential weighting, our limited commercial exposure, and a very low level of indebtedness. Our model therefore provides us simultaneously with resilience, significant organic growth potential, and the ability to act when winning opportunities arise. I will now hand over to René, who will take you through the financial results for this first half of 2026. René, please.
Thank you, Stéphane. Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Stéphane has already described the key points of our half-year results. I will therefore now turn to the details of our performance in the income statement. Revenue for the first six months rose by 6.8% to CHF 41.5 million, and we improved our operating profit by 9.3%. The organic revenue increase was 0.6%, with the majority of the revenue growth due to last year's property acquisition now contributing a full six-month period to the rental income. We achieved a like-for-like rental growth in residential properties within our long-term guidance of 1%-2%. With the CPI index remaining relatively stable, all of the growth was driven by tenant turnover. Revaluation gains amount to CHF 44 million. Both major contribution factors, lowering discount rates and higher cash flows, contributed more or less equally to this positive result.
EBIT closed at CHF 70 million compared to CHF 96 million a year ago, when revaluation gains were even higher. Once again, the financial result remained positive. The sale of two financial assets during the first six months enabled us to report the financial gain of CHF 10 million, which offset for the interest expenses. The slightly lower income tax charge was due to the use of some tax losses, reducing the tax cost to 13%, just below the current guidance of 14%. This brings us to the bottom line, where we can report a profit of CHF 68 million for the first six months, or without the effects of revaluation, a remarkable CHF 30 million profit, well on track to cover the dividend. On the next slide, we show our ability to organic growth. Over the last years, we had a compound average growth of 1.7% organically.
Even so, in the current environment, with no inflation, or very low inflation, the main contributor to the organic growth comes, as said, from the tenant turnover. In residential, we grew 1.1%. Vacancy rate at 2%, I come back to that on a later slide. I would like to confirm our growth target, which is unchanged of 1%-2% in residential properties like for like. Since we could not acquire any properties in 2026 so far, these charts show somehow the same characteristics as in March. We are residential, 78%. We are Geneva, 66%, and Vaud, 30%, and just a little, 4%, outside these two cantons. W e are very importantly in the one to three room segment, where we have most demands in the Lake Geneva region. A significant contribution to our EBIT comes from revaluation.
Here we have the development since the IPO 2016. With the CHF 44 million in the current six months period, we are just short of the CHF 700 million accumulated revaluation gains over this 10-year period. Average discount rate decreased 3 basis points to 2.86%. Of course, we have some commercial properties, so the residential discount rate is lower.
Likewise, the portfolio development, and this is a nice characteristic of the Investis business model. Over the years, you see what we have invested or disposed in the portfolio. We used the cycles that were available in the market, and we could improve not only the equity of the company, but also turnover growth while doing some selective disposals and reinvestments. In 2026, as I said before, we had some renovations of CHF 4 million. Otherwise, no investment in the portfolio.
Coming back to the low vacancy rate, we are still at no vacancy. The 1.2% residential vacancy is 1% in Geneva and a slightly higher number in the canton of Vaud, which is fully contributable to renovations or ongoing renovations that we have in two properties. Otherwise, the vacancy would be at 1%, as in Geneva. The commercial property at 4% is not a big concern to us. On the one hand, we purchased two properties with large vacancy that we were happy for and did not pay for that rental income. Over the years, we will work on these vacancies to eliminate it. Rent potential, still 15%, which gives us further organic growth in the portfolio in the coming years.
Looking at the balance sheet, it is strong, it is solid. We have an equity ratio of 64%. We have low financial debts with 27%, and we continue to have a very strong ability to growth. Interest costs are below 1%, both in the first six months and at the balance sheet date. We are looking forward to remain in that territory going forward. The LTV already disclosed and explained many times. You see the effect of the disposals in 2022 and the reinvestments. Nevertheless, we could keep the low level, and we are still well below 30%. Financing, we still have CHF 500 million of credit lines available. They are 65% used, or we have instant firepower of CHF 175 million in cash. That is from my side. Thank you very much, I hand over to Stéphane.
Thank you, René. Now let me conclude with our outlook for the remainder of 2026. For the second half of 2026, we expect rental income to continue growing. This growth will be supported by the full-year contribution from the acquisition completed in 2025, but also and above all, by the gradual realization of the rental upside within our existing portfolio. The market environment remains supportive. Demand for affordable, high-quality housing remain very strong in the Lake Geneva region. Demographic trends remain positive. We are therefore confident that the portfolio will continue to deliver a strong operational performance. At the same time, we will remain highly disciplined in our capital allocation. Our balance sheet provide us with significant investment capacity. Our confidence in the rental market is based on structural fundamentals. Allow me to conclude by summarizing the Investis equity story.
We own a high-quality residential portfolio that is exceptionally well-positioned in the Lake Geneva region. This portfolio benefits from strong demand, an exceptionally low vacancy rate, and a significant rental upside. Our strong balance sheet provides resilience and significant strategic flexibility. Our dividend is fully covered by recurring earnings. The past 10 years have shown that Investis can grow while maintaining particularly strong financial discipline.
For the next 10 years, our priorities remain clear. Realize the organic growth potential of the portfolio, improve our operational performance, invest in the quality of our properties, preserve our balance sheet, and seize opportunities when they really create value. We are entering our second decade as a listed company with the same focus: a stronger portfolio and the ability to act without ever being forced to do so. Thank you for your attention. René and I are now available to answer your questions.
Thank you. As a reminder, if you would like to ask a question on Teams, you may use the raise hand function, or you may type your question into the Q&A text box. If you have joined us via the telephone lines today, you may press star followed by one on your telephone keypad. We have some questions from the telephone lines. The first one is from Holger Frisch of Raiffeisen Switzerland. Your line is now open. Please go ahead.
Good morning, thanks for the presentation. I have three questions, but I would take them one by one. The first one would be, can you give us a bit more insight into the commercial properties of your portfolio? I saw the WALT is now at 4.5 years compared to 4.8 years per year-end. On the other hand, the vacancy went down from 4.5% to 4.0%. What were the main drivers behind these two developments?
As I explained already, we have only a few commercial properties. There is an industrial building in Vaud, an office building where we have our own office in Morges. It is a well-known building, full occupancy. We bought then in Geneva, mainly one building, very important, for more than CHF 100 million. That was Geneva Business Center in Morgines. One in Versoix, and also one building occupied by Banque Cantonale de Genève. As we explain in the strategy, there is also one commercial building I forgot in Canton Vaud, Hôtel Au Lac. Hôtel Au Lac, we are going to get now the building license finally. We had some problem with the neighbor to get all the planning signed by them for the final approval, but now it is done. There we are going to start now the refurbishment.
It will take maybe more than one year. This is going to become a residential building then. Versoix already 1/3 of the building is already residential. We are going to change it gradually when the tenants leave as a residential building. Also we have one building in Petit-Lancy, where we have actually Banque Cantonale de Genève. They should, if I am not wrong, we had a 5 + 10 years, two years. We bought it now three years, so it remains 2. 5 years. There we are working to get the permit to do residential. This is going to be these three residents, commercial building going to be residential. As I explained, this is going to reduce our commercial exposure. Regarding the vacancy rate from 4.5% to 4%, we took over, in 2024, 2025, two buildings.
We had really to restructure also the organization. Not only the organization also, always when you have a property management change, Geneva Business Center also, we have a company who is offering the facility service. There is five employees working the whole day there. This makes that we improve. As René said, now also we are hiring one person, just to take care of our commercial letting. Also to improve and to reduce as low as possible this building. What is very important is that the tenants, they must have the sensation that they are happy in the buildings. Last week, my responsible of the portfolio with Sophie did a visit at Geneva Business Center. Except one tenant, all the tenants were very happy and much happier than the former owner.
Also what I explained earlier, our priority now is also to develop tools to be directly in contact with them. We are going to start regarding your question of the vault to already discuss not six months before, but already 1. 5 years, two years, to renew the lease contract. Also what we noticed in March in our building, we did something new is the building is already letted. The tenants, they come, they enter, you have already all the furniture, all the service. We have also a short-term contract of one year. What we noticed, so we have PostFinance, so we have different tenant. No one is moving. What I think today, what they expect is really to get an office ready to enter and maybe to offer some service.
And if you look for March, the average price that we rent, we are also over the market price because we offer this service to be already furnished, etc. We need to be more close of our tenant, and that is what we are doing with a dedicated team. That was the answer also for vacancy why it reduced.
Okay, thank you. Second question will be on the debt. Out of the CHF 625 million in debt, CHF 525 million is due within the next 12 months. Can you walk us through the refinancing plan for this debt, especially with respect to the CHF 100 million bond that is maturing in October?
Yes, we have a majority in mid of October, and we plan to replace it with another bond. The bank credit lines, they are all used with short-term financing on a rollover basis, month by month. That is why they are very short term.
Okay, great. Thank you. Last question would be on the four specific pillars that you outlined for the next coming years. Could you give us an idea for the time horizon to realize those ambitions, especially with respect to, for the rental income to reach the CHF 100 million? With respect to investing in your current portfolio, what level of CapEx would you expect on an annual basis for the next few years, excluding acquisitions?
Regarding the timeframe, maybe I have good news. In six months it is done, and maybe it takes three years. It depends. I think during my introduction, I really, and that is really what we have done during the past year. We are quite disciplined in our acquisition. What we are more looking today is to speak with some families to get the whole portfolio and that they become shareholder of Investis to increase this rent and this rental income. I t is difficult to say, just read what has happened this week.
Solvalor bought a residential properties in Geneva at a gross yield of 2.7%. It is quite tough to create value if you start to buy properties at this year. It is difficult to answer, but as I said, we are actually on two property, not that big. One, we prepare the contract and the other one, we know that we are in the due diligence phase and our offer was the best. One is in over Lausanne and the other one is in Montreux, but it will take time. Second question was?
The investments. Traditionally, we invest 1% of our rental income into renovations, and that is what we currently are executing.
Okay, great. Thank you.
Thank you. Our next question comes from René Locher of ODDO BHF. Your line is now open. Please go ahead.
Yes, good morning. Thank you very much. Hope you can hear me well. I am going to just go back to interest expense, which decreased by 12% year-over-year. I have seen that you have shifted CHF 60 million from bank loans to private placement. I was wondering, is this the reason for the decrease in interest expense? That would be my first question. I do not know if you want to go question by question.
Let us go one by one. We had some financial income from sales that we used to reduce the debt, and the lower interest environment also helped to create this low interest rates.
Okay, thank you. On the EBITDA margins, if I am right, it is 64.3% in H1 2026. You are guiding for an unchanged H2, so I ended up higher in my model. I am more in the range of 66%-67%. I was wondering if you can comment on the development of the EBITDA margin. Is it more like 64%, or can it go up to 66%- 67% again?
I take this one as well. Yes, you are right with your calculation, 64.3% for the first half year. We were 67% last year. We were a year before 59%. I was expecting this question, to be honest. The reason is very simple. We purchased in 2024 some properties that need heavy renovations, which we started to do. This year, and maybe also the first six months next year, we will see some higher renovation charges, which we had not in 2025. That is why we have, maybe this year and a couple of months next year, higher direct costs, which lead to that 64%. Nothing to worry, we will go back to 67% in the future.
Excellent. Understood, thank you very much. Just a general question. I saw a board in a Swiss term newspaper that up to 90,000 French-speaking Swiss people are thinking about moving to France. I was wondering, is this something you experience in the Lake Geneva region?
I would say, France, Geneva, till two years ago, they were accepting that Swiss national who were living in France could bring the children in a Swiss school. That is not anymore the case. I think if you are factual and you look at the numbers, I think you have more Swiss people coming back to Swiss to get the ability to continue to have the children in the Swiss school. Of course, you have many people, they said, "I want to move because it is too expensive," or, "I cannot find an apartment." But when they look at all the disadvantage they have to move to France, of course, no one is moving.
We do not feel really. Also, do not forget that today, and you are based in Geneva, so you know well, you have 100,000 people coming every day in Geneva coming from France to work. Already all these international organizations, you have almost minimum 50% of them, they are living already in France. For me, there is no chance, no change. Also when you speak with the local property manager, you see more that when everyone is living in France, they look always. They are screening the market to see if they can find something affordable in Geneva.
Okay. Thank you very much.
Thank you. We have a question from Teams from Dagmar Morawetz. Please unmute yourself locally and proceed with your question.
Well, maybe I can read the question. "In March, you said that you are in concrete negotiations for acquisitions, but till now, the portfolio hasn't changed. What happened, and what can we expect for H2?"
Yes, it's true. We were even selected in the second round on numbers of potential acquisition. W hat we've noticed is exactly what I told before, that some institutional, they are bidding much higher than what we want to pay. R ecently, we were very surprised because you see after the due diligence that some institution, they increase the price. Even they had the best offer, they increased the price by more than 10% just to be sure that they get the property. It shows you that the competition was too high, and we didn't want to follow. That was the first question. T he second?
"What can we expect for H2?"
Yes, as I said, we have these two properties, actually. We are bidding comparative to 2021. We still receive quite a lot of opportunity. We are always bidding, but now, I show it in the presentation. Asset manager, they raise so much money, and if they want to get fees, they need to invest this money. I said sometime, and also I explain it in last investor presentation, in our industry, sometimes you have to be patient and I think we create a lot of value because we were able to be anticipative. N ow the demand is very high, and if you start to my residential building, I know it's going to be I've seen that some in the center of Geneva residential building now, I've seen some transaction with even 2.5% gross yield.
It will be difficult, but we are still in the market and let's see also the evolution. Now, we have quite a high instability in the, I would say, in the financial market regarding the sovereign debt. Al ways when you have a stress on sovereign debt, then all the analysts, first they start to monitor the countries, but just after, they start to monitor also the companies. J ust look what's happening actually in Europe on real estate, the price, the demand, the yield, etc. I think the investor who is patient, who has his policy, he can again, it will not change a lot if we buy six month or 18 months later. Because if you buy a property and the price fell 50%, then you have to gain after just to be at the level 100%.
I think the difference is always what I explain to investors when, for example, I have to present sometime with Swiss Life. I said always to Paolo Di Stefano, "You have to invest money. You have to place this money that you receive." The difference with Investis, we have to gain money. We have to earn money because we did just one capital rise in 2016, and from look what we did with this CHF 150 million. That's the difference, so better to wait.
I have no more questions.
We do have one further question from the telephone lines from Philippe Züger of Zürcher Kantonalbank. Your line's now open. Please go ahead.
Thank you very much for the presentation. I do have a question regarding PHM. Have you now sold the entire position there? What's actually the strategy behind all your financial assets? May you elaborate on that?
I take the first one. The second one I did not hear correctly. PHM, yes, we sold the entire participation. We could exit with the final part in the first six months, and we decided to do so. W e achieved another nice financial gain of roughly CHF 8 million on this single transaction. The second one, what was it?
The second part is regarding the strategy behind your financial assets. You do have a couple of investments there. What is the idea behind?
Okay. I think our strategy, we have still Neo, where with Polytech, we have directly and indirectly, we have now the control of the company. Indirectly, because we have one third of Polytech. It is just if we want to vote, we can speak with the other shareholder of Polytech. W e are doing very well. We have almost a growth between 20% and 30% this company, so we want to keep it. The second one is Taurus, and there it is more long-term, but also the company is doing well. The last one is also linked to Neo because there we are doing some consolidation, but it is more really a financial participation with Polytech. The rest, when we get the opportunity, we are going to exit from there then.
Okay. Thank you.
Thank you. At this time, we currently have no further questions.
I propose some closing remarks, Stéphane?
Then thank you for your question and for your interest in Investis. We look forward to seeing you again for the presentation of the full-year results 2026. Thank you again, and we wish you a very pleasant day.
Thank you. Bye bye. See you soon.
Thank you. Bye bye.
Thank you all for joining. You may now disconnect your lines.