Jefferies Slashes Partners Group Target by a Third as Flagship Fund Caps Redemptions
13.06.2026 - 04:51:50 | boerse-global.de
The market’s patience with Partners Group has worn thin, and the numbers reflect it. Jefferies delivered a brutal reassessment on Friday, cutting its price target for the Swiss asset manager from CHF 1,130 to CHF 760 — a slide of nearly one-third. The hold rating remains, but the new target sits only a whisker above where the stock currently trades. Shares closed the session at 767.40 euros, up 2.58 percent from the prior day’s low, though that modest bounce does little to mask a year-to-date decline of almost 30 percent. The stock now trades roughly 37 percent below its 52-week high of 1,213.50 euros, reached in August last year.
The root cause of the sell-off is the pressure building inside Partners Group’s open-ended fund structures. Its flagship Global Value SICAV, which manages $8.6 billion, was forced to cap redemptions at 5 percent of net asset value per quarter after withdrawal requests in the second quarter surged to an estimated 9.8 percent — nearly double the new limit. A US-domiciled private-equity vehicle in Delaware faces similar strain, with redemption requests hovering around 6 percent of NAV. Three other evergreen funds, together holding $9.7 billion in assets, are expected to see quarterly outflows between 3.5 and 5 percent. The caps have triggered a crisis of confidence, with analysts slashing earnings forecasts by as much as 22 percent for 2026 and 2027.
These troubles are not unique to Partners Group. Apollo Global Management, KKR, BlackRock and Blue Owl have all tightened redemption gates in recent months, highlighting a structural flaw in the open-ended private-markets model. But the Swiss firm’s exposure to one beleaguered portfolio company adds a second layer of concern. French property-services group Emeria, which bears €3.5 billion in debt, was recently downgraded deeper into junk territory by Fitch. Partners Group is now weighing a €200 million capital injection alongside a minority stakeholder to steady the ship, after Emeria’s first-quarter revenue in Switzerland collapsed by 25 percent. Creditors are already bracing for tough negotiations.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Partners Group?
Against this grim backdrop, management has scrambled to shore up trust. Co-founder Fredy Gantner and other employees bought over 20 million francs’ worth of stock in recent days. Gantner described the market’s reaction as a “massive overreaction” and conceded that the company must communicate “better and more proactively.” He stopped short of apologising for the business model, however, and reiterated that the short-seller report from Grizzly Research — which compared Partners Group to Wirecard — is “completely unfounded.” The firm has initiated legal proceedings.
Operationally, the company is pressing ahead with new initiatives. It recently announced the first closing of its fifth real-estate secondaries programme with over $650 million in commitments, targeting a total of $1.5 billion. Since 2008, Partners Group says it has invested more than $6 billion across 120 such transactions. The group also reaffirmed its 2026 guidance for gross new money inflows of between $26 billion and $32 billion, arguing that first-half inflows into the evergreen platform will exceed outflows. A drag of 1 to 2 percent on net AUM growth is possible in the second half, however.
Technically, the stock looks beaten down. It sits about 26 percent below its 200-day moving average, and the relative strength index of 29.7 signals extreme oversold conditions. Around 80 percent of the $185 billion in assets under management comes from institutional investors, a more patient base than the retail clients driving the redemption wave. The next major test for the share price comes on 15 July, when the firm publishes half-year AUM figures. Full quarterly results land on 1 September. For now, the market is waiting to see whether the redemption cap holds the line — and whether Gantner’s buying spree proves prescient or premature.
Ad
Partners Group Stock: New Analysis - 13 June
Fresh Partners Group information released. What's the impact for investors? Our latest independent report examines recent figures and market trends.
