BEST of the BROKERS
BTG
Merchant Securities has initiated coverage of the speciality healthcare group with a “buy” rating and a target price of 490p, seeing what it calls a tantalising growth story after three development and distribution companies were combined to produce two direct sales operations. As a result the broker is forecasting a significant increase in revenues from international operations – rising to as much as 44 per cent in 2020.
MAN GROUP
Credit Suisse has downgraded its rating for hedge fund manager “neutral” from “outperform” and lowered its target price from 130p to 88p. The broker sees Man’s market environment as tough, and says volatility in the second quarter of this year will have hit Man’s flagship funds AHL and GLG after a strong first three months of the year. The broker expects a negative impact on assets under management of $2.3bn in the second quarter.
WM MORRISON
Panmure Gordon has downgraded the supermarket group from “hold” to “sell” and cut its target price from 260p to 240p. The broker has alos downgraded its forecasts over the next three years by four per cent, seven per cent and nine per cent respectively, having taken into account recent industry sales trends. Panmure says the diversification into small stores and into new formats for its main chain has added risks.