Best of the Brokers
WM MORRISON
UBS rates the supermarket “neutral” and has cut its price target by 20p to 250p following lacklustre Christmas trading figures announced last week. The analyst warns that Morrison’s cost-cutting plan is being made more difficult by underlying declines in sales volumes and cost inflation. UBS has also pared its like-for-like sales forecasts for the coming year and expects a fall of 1.3 per cent.
ENRC
Credit Suisse has upgraded its rating on the miner from “neutral” to “outperform” and raised its target price by 50p to 400p. It expects ENRC’s margins to improve this year as its mines move from development into production, with scope for small divestments. Credit Suisse also sees peer Vedanta as a strong mining pick as it continues to deleverage.
SCHRODERS
JP Morgan Cazenove has an “overweight” rating on the asset manager and has increased its target by 674p to 2,556p. The analyst believes that ratings in the sector remain modest by historical standards after a profitable 2012.