Broker snap: Schroders a 'hold' on valuation grounds, says Panmure

8th Aug 2013 09:13

Shares in Schroders fell sharply on Thursday morning as investors gave a cool reaction to the asset manager's first-half results.Panmure Gordon admitted that the first half beat its own forecasts, though maintained its 'hold' recommendation saying that the shares are expensive at 14 times earnings."We are neutral on the shares on valuation grounds," said analyst Keith Baird.Total assets under management (AuM) were up 11% year-on-year at £235.7bn. Net inflows of £5.6bn in the first three months were followed by net outflows of £1.1bn in the second after the Federal Reserve first said that it would begin to scale back stimulus if the economy improves.He said that interim results were "slightly better than expected with a strong Q1 followed by a toucher Q2 (post Fed tapering concerns)". Baird said: "This is equivalent to 4.0% annualised growth on opening AuM, lower than in recent years but respectable."The broker has kept its 2,740p target price for the shares.The stock was down 5.48% at 2,364p by 10:00.BC