Broker tips: Barclays, BP, Standard Life

24th Apr 2013 12:08

Canaccord Genuity has kept its 'hold' rating and 280p target price for Barclays, saying that the bank's first-quarter results look 'slightly soft on a first read'."We don't believe investors can read much into a single quarter of number for any bank, particularly one where a new management team is embarking upon a multi-year restructuring programme. That said, we note the heavy weighting of Q1 within the financial year - Q112 accounted for 31% of the total profit before tax outturn for the year."Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofA) has maintained its 'buy' rating and 540p target price for BP, saying that the stock remains a top pick amongst European oil majors after a capital markets day from Rosneft delivered a 'confident message'.Rosneft, in which BP holds a 19.75% stake, "gave a confident and well-received strategy presentation" at its capital markets day in London on Tuesday, according to BofA. "In our view, management communicated a strong focus on creating shareholder value whilst transforming Rosneft into a global oil major," the broker said.Investec has reiterated its 'buy' rating and 373p target price for Standard Life following a strong first quarter from the insurance firm."Standard Life has had a commission-free, Retail Distribution Review-compliant business model since its 2006 initial public offering and this has helped deliver consensus beating 1Q new business," said analyst Kevin Ryan.BC