Important information: The value of investments can go down as well as up so you may get back less than you invest. Investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. This is a third-party news feed and may not reflect Fidelity’s views.
(Sharecast News) - Deutsche Bank cut its recommendation on Tate & Lyle on Friday to 'hold' from 'buy' after the company agreed to be taken over by US peer Ingredion in a £2.7bn deal.
The German bank highlighted that following Ingredion's firm offer for Tate, the shares have risen to 556p.
"The implied spread to the full offer of 615p now stands 10.6%, and is circa 7% below our 595p target price," it said. "As such we think that the risk reward dynamic has shifted to be more neutral and accordingly we move our rating from buy to hold."
DB noted that Tate has provided a relatively long time frame for completion of the deal, citing the second half of 2027.
"Tate has identified eleven jurisdictions where it foresees potential anti-trust issues," it added.
Analysts at Canaccord Genuity said Moonpig's full‑year results marked a positive start for new chief executive Catherine Faiers, with revenue and adjusted underlying earnings landing in line with March guidance and earnings per share growth of 19.5% coming in well ahead of the 8-12% range.
Canaccord Genuity said the outperformance was driven by customer growth, higher average order values, a strong recovery at both Greetz and Experiences, and support from Moonpig's ongoing capital‑return programme. While Moonpig's new financial framework points to lower mid‑term growth, Canaccord said the operational drivers behind FY26's improvement should continue to support growth.
Faiers has set out a strategy focused on extracting more value from the existing platform, improving customer understanding and supporting engagement across the lifecycle. Range expansion and higher multi‑gift attach rates remain the key levers for average order value, though Canaccord noted the attach‑rate formula was still being refined.
Operationally, the Moonpig brand delivered 8.6% revenue growth, with Greetz up 4.5% and Experiences narrowing its decline to 4.5% from 19% a year earlier. Order volumes rose 2.1%, supported by a 2.8% increase in active customers, while AOV grew 5.7% on the back of trading up to higher‑priced gifts, card format upsell and greater use of tracked delivery. Canaccord acknowledged investor concerns about the sustainability of tracked‑delivery‑led gains but said management sees further pricing levers across the business.
Despite Moonpig's strong market position and visible growth outlook, the Canadian bank noted that its shares trade on a 8.1x FY27E enterprise value-to-EBITDA ratio, around 12x earnings and an 8.3% free cash flow yield. Canaccord reiterated its 'buy' rating on the stock, but trimmed its DCF‑based price target to 300p from 310p to reflect the lower estimates.
Berenberg upgraded Barratt Redrow and Bellway on Friday to 'buy' from 'hold' as it took a look at UK housebuilders.
The bank said it was reviewing earnings forecasts, ratings and price targets for the names under its coverage.
"Our market view and forecasts reflect a pretty downbeat outlook," it said. "However, within this sombre framework we think there are interesting opportunities emerging when we consider three factors: valuation, balance sheet and capital returns. Indeed, it is these three factors that underpin the upgrades to buy in this note of Barratt Redrow and Bellway."
Berenberg said that supported by strong balance sheets, it sees attractive capital return (dividends and buybacks) programmes at each of Barratt, Bellway and Taylor Wimpey, which equal 8%, 11% and 10% per annum, respectively.
In the same note, Berenberg downgraded Berkeley to 'hold' from 'buy' but it said its long-held admiration for the company's differentiated business model, with impressive operational and financial outcomes, was unchanged. However, it is downgrading its rating given the stock's relative outperformance, which means the valuation - at 1.0 TNAV - and upside was less compelling than other opportunities in sector.
Berenberg cut its price target on Barratt to 348p from 415p and lifted its target price on Bellway to 2,400p from 2,100p. It also kept its 4,000 price target on Berkeley unchanged.
