Cushman & Wakefield Plc - CWK STOCK NEWS

Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK) has released a comprehensive report analyzing commercial real estate trends five years after the COVID-19 pandemic. The report highlights several key developments:

Cities are experiencing a resurgence, with Manhattan seeing a 9% increase in young population (15-29) during 2022-2023. Class A office leasing in CBDs has returned to 41% market share. The study reveals that employees living within a mile of work show 90% office return rates, while those beyond three miles only reach 70%.

Notable trends include: normalized consumer behavior with e-commerce returning to 15% annual growth; reduced construction across sectors (industrial -17%, multifamily -8% below Q1 2020 levels); and office development declining from 135M to under 30M square feet. The report emphasizes the growing importance of experiential spaces, with two-thirds of urban foot traffic coming from visitors, though only 12-15% of city real estate is dedicated to 'Play' spaces versus an optimal 25%.

Cushman & Wakefield (CWK) has strengthened its capital markets platform with the addition of Josh Jandris and Brett Gardner as Vice Chairs, both joining as industry-leading Seniors Housing capital markets advisors. The duo has completed over $15 billion in Seniors Housing investment sales throughout their careers.

Based in Chicago, they will focus on representing institutional and private-capital investors in dispositions across various senior living facilities, including skilled nursing, assisted living, memory care, independent living, continuing care retirement communities, and age-restricted communities.

The strategic hire comes amid strong sector performance, with Seniors Housing trades worth $25 million or more increasing 80% in 2024, totaling $6.24 billion. A late 2024 Urban Land Institute poll ranked Seniors Housing second for most promising risk-adjusted returns. The team will create synergies with CWK's existing Seniors Housing capabilities and its joint venture with Greystone, the #1 HUD lender for healthcare.

Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK) has been named to the 2025 Global Outsourcing 100® list in the Leader category for large established global firms by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals® (IAOP®). This marks the 14th consecutive year the company has received this recognition.

The Global Outsourcing 100, in its 19th year, recognizes top global outsourcing service providers through a rigorous scoring methodology, including independent review by IAOP customer members experienced in selecting outsourcing providers. The selection process evaluates providers' ability to deliver comprehensive real estate solutions and their commitment to innovation in service delivery.

Cushman & Wakefield's 2025 General Contractor Sentiment Survey reveals that construction cost increases have fallen below their 5- and 10-year averages as inflation eases across the Americas. However, the sector faces new challenges from U.S. tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports.

Key findings show that new office construction pipeline has declined 40% YOY across the Americas. To address higher costs, Class A tenant improvement packages increased by 7% YOY, with some markets experiencing up to 20% YOY increases in TI allowances.

The survey indicates ongoing concerns about rising labor costs and commodity prices (lumber, steel, copper, cement) extending into 2025. Extended permitting times remain a significant challenge, contributing to project delays. With new office space availability, occupiers are increasingly focusing on upgrading existing spaces through fit-outs.

Cushman & Wakefield (CWK) has released its 2025 Life Sciences Update, revealing significant shifts in the life sciences real estate market. The overall vacancy rate reached 20.5% in Q4 2024, increasing 250 basis points from Q2 2024. The U.S. market experienced negative net absorption for two consecutive years, though Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles-Orange County showed positive absorption in 2024.

The construction pipeline has dramatically decreased to 2 million square feet expected beyond 2025, down from 16 msf currently under construction. While average asking rent growth slowed to 3% year-over-year, it remains 22% above 2022 levels. Notable market variations include Denver (+26%), Los Angeles-Orange County (+18%), and Chicago (+13%) showing strong growth, while New York City (-14%) and Boston (-11%) experienced declines.

Capital markets show increasing sales volume in 2025, though cap rates remain elevated as investors evaluate income potential and debt costs. Total returns have been negative for three consecutive years.

Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK) reported strong Q4 2024 results with revenue of $2.6 billion, up 3% year-over-year. The company saw significant growth in Capital markets revenue (35%) and Leasing revenue (6%), while Services revenue declined 3%.

Q4 net income reached $112.9 million ($0.48 per share), up from $69.8 million ($0.30 per share) in Q4 2023. Adjusted EBITDA increased 4% to $222.3 million, with a margin of 11.9%.

For full-year 2024, revenue slightly decreased to $9.4 billion, but net income improved significantly to $131.3 million compared to a $35.4 million loss in 2023. Free cash flow generated was $167.0 million, an increase of $65.8 million from 2023. The company maintained strong liquidity of $1.9 billion, including $0.8 billion in cash and $1.1 billion in undrawn credit facility.

Cushman & Wakefield has appointed Todd Savage as Executive Managing Director of Office Investment Sales. Based in Dallas, Savage brings over 24 years of commercial real estate experience and will focus on representing institutional office investors in Dallas-Fort Worth while expanding investment sales across Texas.

Savage joins from JLL, where he served as Senior Managing Director, having joined through the HFF acquisition. His track record includes involvement in more than $23 billion in commercial real estate transactions, including investment sales, sale/leasebacks, and joint venture arrangements.

The appointment comes at a strategic time as Texas experiences continued growth in the office market alongside a more stable capital markets environment. Savage holds an MBA from Southern Methodist University and serves on several industry boards including NAIOP and ULI's North Texas Industrial/Office Product Council.

Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK) has appointed Robert Thornburgh as Regional President of the Southwest Region, overseeing operations in Southern California, Nevada, Phoenix, Colorado, Utah and Idaho. Based in Los Angeles, Thornburgh will be responsible for the company's strategic growth, client service delivery, talent development, and recruiting in the Southwest region.

Reporting to Victoria Malkin, President of Americas Markets, Thornburgh joins CWK from his previous role as Chief Executive of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR), where he successfully improved member retention, increased membership, and enhanced brand recognition. In his new position, he will focus on strengthening client relationships and helping investors and occupiers identify opportunities in both established and emerging markets across the Southwest region.

Cushman & Wakefield has appointed Tom McDonnell as Executive Regional Director to lead the firm's Northwest Region, encompassing Northern California, Oregon, and Washington. Based in San Francisco, McDonnell will report to Victoria Malkin, President of Americas Markets.

In addition to his regional leadership role, McDonnell will serve as Head of Americas Office Agency Leasing, where he will drive strategic client engagement and business development. McDonnell joins from Shorenstein, where he served as National Leasing Director managing a 20-million-square-foot portfolio across 18 major U.S. markets. During his 20-year tenure there, he arranged over 600 lease agreements totaling more than $1 billion.

In his new position, McDonnell will focus on talent recruitment and retention, business development, and fostering collaboration across service lines to enhance client outcomes.