Berenberg lowers target price on Breedon

(Sharecast News) - Analysts at Berenberg lowered their target price on construction firm Breedon from 540p to 465p on Friday following the group's trading update for the 10 months ended 31 October. Breedon ultimately guided for full-year underlying earnings to come in roughly 4% lower than the prevailing consensus, as it said end-markets remained challenging through the year.

"The share price reaction on the day - the share price fell by c2% - suggests that these challenges were largely understood," said Berenberg, which lowered its forecasts and price target to reflect the updated guidance.

"Breedon is not suddenly a bad company, but not much has gone well for it this year. The weather, the macro and the politics have all conspired against it at various times. Clearly calling the macro inflection point has proven tricky of late, but the volume of data points would make it hard to argue we are not close to, or around, a trough."

To that end, the German bank highlighted the longer-term prospects - saying the UK government's commitment to infrastructure and housebuilding should drive demand for building materials, while it also said the publication in Ireland earlier this year of the National Development Plan could drive a significant increase in infrastructure investment, and stated that there was still "considerable potential" to grow the business in US.

Berenberg, which reiterated its 'buy' rating on the stock, said Breedon's shares trade on 10x FY 2026 price-to-earnings ratio and 6x EBITD.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com