Broker tips: Antofagasta, Persimmon, Smiths Group

19th Mar 2014 11:30

Copper producer Antofagasta was trading in the red on Wednesday after having its rating downgraded by Credit Suisse from 'neutral' to 'underperform' following the stock's outperformance over recent months. "With the positive of better-than-expected cost-cutting now played out together with heightened uncertainty around copper prices we downgrade the shares," the bank said.Persimmon offers the 'best of both worlds' in terms of top-line growth and returns, according to UBS which has lifted its rating on the stock from 'neutral' to 'buy'."While our forecasts are 18% ahead of consensus for 2015, we think the risk remains to the upside in light of recent house price inflation," the bank said.Investec has maintained its 'buy' stance on Smiths Group despite the sharp fall in the manufacturing firm's share price on Wednesday after its first-half results. The broker said that the stock is "probably still undervalued on a sum-of-the-parts basis and we remain positive.".Numis Securities, however, chose to keep a 'reduce' rating for Smiths Group, saying it sees "better value elsewhere" in the sector.BC