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(Sharecast News) - RBC Capital Markets upgraded Genuit on Wednesday to 'outperform' from 'sector perform' as it said the company was geared for growth.
The Canadian bank said that Genuit, formerly known as Polypipe, was a high-quality company with a strong management team, that was geared for growth as underlying markets were being revived by regulatory tailwinds through 2026 and beyond.
"While we expect more of the same from underlying markets through year-end 2025E, 2026E should progressively improve with positive impacts from key regulatory drivers - the AMP8 program, the Future Homes/Buildings Standard, and the UK government new homes target," RBC said. "With minor changes to our forecasts post H125 results and remaining cautious through year-end in expectation of another UK-government update in October, our discounted cash flow-based 505p price target is unchanged."
RBC said this was "a good entry point" with the stock trading at 11x/10.2x C2025E/26E EV/adjusted EBIT, a discount to both peers and to its five-year average.
JPMorgan Cazenove downgraded Legal & General on Wednesday to 'neutral' from 'overweight' and cut its price target on the stock to 275p from 290p on valuation, earnings outlook and competition risks.
JPM noted that L&G had beaten consensus operating profit in the first half, and that management raised guidance for back-book optimisation in profit and management actions in Solvency II.
"However, we are only raising our forecasts modestly - and see limited scope for positive surprises relative to current consensus," JPM said. "We are taking a more cautious view on L&G based on relative valuation, ongoing negative investment variances weighing on net profit, dividends and buybacks not covered by free cash flow and rising competition in the UK PRT (Pension Risk Transfer) market."
Analysts at Berenberg upgraded Quilter from 'hold to 'buy' on Wednesday and said they "have been impressed" by the group's transformation, which they noted has driven "a material acceleration" of inflows of client assets over the past 18 months.
Berenberg thinks that Quilter has "a strong position" in the UK wealth management market, which it expects to grow in the coming years.
The German bank stated the long-term outlook for the UK wealth market was attractive, in its view, given greater pension market participation and growing structural demand for financial advice in the UK market.
Berenberg noted that in the last few years, Quilter has transitioned to become "a simpler, full-service, UK-focused wealth manager", spanning the provision of financial advice, investment management and an investment platform.
It now expects Quilter to generate strong levels of client asset inflows, given its "high-quality investment platform" and popular investment product offering.
Berenberg also increased its price target on the stock to 195p from 150p based on revised forecasts and an improved outlook for the business.