Broker snap: Wilmington offers little excitement

20th May 2011 12:54

After a bleaker-than-expected interim management statement from Wilmington, Peel Hunt has revised its target price down by a fifth, from 155p to 125p.The causes of concern at the publishing and training company are UK legal CPD (Continuing Professional Development) which is proving much weaker than feared, and the ongoing migration of print to digital which is resulting in lower demand for printed product, analyst Malcolm Morgan said.Profit and earnings forecasts for the current year are cut by 4%, implying a 6% profit decline in the second half."Although bid speculation may surface, we reduce our target price to 125p. The yield may have an attraction, but otherwise the stock offers little immediate excitement. 'Hold'." said Morgan. ---BC