Berenberg raises target price on Hilton Food following strong H1

(Sharecast News) - Analysts at Berenberg lifted their target price on Hilton Food Group to 810p from 790p on Monday, after the food producer delivered betterthanexpected interim results and struck a more confident tone in its second-half outlook.

Berenberg said Hilton had emerged from a difficult 12month period with a stronger H1 performance and improving momentum across key divisions amd upgraded its FY26 and FY27 earnings forecasts by 11% and 5%, respectively, noting the shares trade on what it called an undemanding valuation of around 13x FY26 earnings and a 5% dividend yield.

Hilton posted a 11.5% rise in continuing revenue to £2.29bn in the first half, ahead of consensus, while adjusted operating profits slipped 3.4% to £45.8m and adjusted earnings per share fell 9.2% to 25.7p. However, free cash flow improved markedly to £10.4m from a £30.8m outflow a year earlier and net debt also fell yearonyear.

Berenberg said core meat and fresh prepared foods traded well, Seachill was set for a stronger H2 as costcutting takes hold, but Foppen remained a drag.

The German bank said the UK outlook for H2 looked encouraging, with strong promotional activity heading into Christmas, while Canada offered a sizeable rampup opportunity with Walmart. Australia continued to perform well despite inflation pressures.

However, Berenberg warned that Foppen remained lossmaking and subject to US FDA regulatory approval tied to its Greek facility, leaving limited visibility on timing.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com