Berenberg downgrades Rathbones to 'hold'

7th Mar 2023 09:41

(Sharecast News) - Berenberg downgraded Rathbones Brothers on Tuesday to 'hold' from 'buy' and cut the price target to 2,200p from 2,400p as it said it sees better risk/reward elsewhere in the sector, at companies such as IntegraFin, Petershill Partners and Investec.

The bank said Rathbones' results showed a resilient performance in a challenging market environment, and came in broadly in line with consensus expectations.

Berenberg said it has revised its forecasts to account for the uncertain economic environment and Rathbones' latest results, "despite the optically large change bringing them close to the prevailing consensus".

It noted that Rathbones' share price has risen around 35% over the past 12 months, highlighting the market's enthusiasm for the company's strategic direction.

"However, the shares currently trade on circa 16x consensus P/E (FY 2023E) at the upper end of their 12-month historical range of 9-16x P/E," Berenberg noted.