Best of the Brokers for 22 January 2015
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BHP BILLITON
S&P Capital has downgraded Anglo-Australian mining and commodities giant BHP Billiton to “sell” from “hold”. “We view the increase in production volumes and planned operational cost reductions as positive news, but expect lower commodity prices to weigh significantly on group sales,” said IQ equity research analyst Clive Roberts.
DOMINO’S PIZZA
Following the departure of chief financial officer Sean Wilkins, Numis has downgraded Domino’s Pizza Group from a “buy” to an “add”. Analyst Douglas Jack said: “We believe the resignation is not connected to trading… We are upgrading our forecast by three per cent, but are moving our recommendation to ‘add’ from ‘buy’ following recent strength.”
ABCAM
Canaccord Genuity has lowered biotech firm Abcam from “hold” to “sell”. “The company has outperformed both the UK sector and its laboratory services peers over the last three months, and we believe the premium is unjustified given we do not expect a re-rating,” said analyst Julie Simmonds.