The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday, Nov. 14, edition that National Bank's Giuliano Thornhill has cut his rating for Northwest Healthcare Properties REIT to "sector perform" from "outperform" in response to a recent period of unit outperformance. The Globe's David Leeder writes that Mr. Thornhill hiked his unit target to $5.90 from $5.40. Analysts on average target the units at $5.94. Mr. Thornhill says in a note: "Since upgrading units back in February, Northwest Healthcare has since delivered a total return of 31 per cent vs. the S&P/TSX REIT Index of 6 per cent. We point to the stabilization of its balance sheet, abating risks associated to HSO, and a new CEO bringing depth of experience to the team. However, at current levels we prefer seniors-related investment opportunities or durable triple-net retail names that can deliver similar return expectations to ours. Our rating change may be too early if HSO is resolved more rapidly than current expectations, its European asset sales are ahead of estimate, or PE takes a second look at its Australasia platform. ... We expect a narrowing of its discount to NAV ($7.10 vs. $5.72 trading price), particularly if Northwest emerges from its HSO exposure unscathed."