Broker snap: In-line results from Standard Chartered, says Nomura

29th Feb 2012 10:06

Nomura has maintained its buy rating and 1,800p target price for Asia-focused banking giant Standard Chartered, highlighting the group's in-line results and guidance of double-digit growth in the current year."STAN reported numbers that were broadly in line with our estimates. Outlook statement is not as positive as it has been in the past, hardly surprising in the current economic climate, but still guides to double-digit income and EPS growth for 2012," the broker said.Pre-tax profit rose by 11% to $6.78bn, in line with consensus estimates but slightly below Nomura's $7.1bn forecast. However, revenue of $17.6bn was in line with expectations. Meanwhile, double-digit growth in 2012 implies a pre-tax profit of $7.45bn, similar to consensus and Nomura's estimates."While it is expensive in the context of European banks, STAN is one of the few companies that will deliver positive earnings momentum in the sector and we reiterate our buy rating on the back of these numbers."Shares were trading 1.36% higher at 1,644p in mid-morning trade.BC