Investec downgrades Weir to 'sell'

14th Mar 2014 11:22

The outlook at industrial engineering firm Weir Group is 'fairly subdued', according to Investec, which has lowered its stance on stock from 'add' to 'sell'."The shares recently hit a 52-week high - driven by a relief rally on avoiding further material downgrades, in our view, rather than confidence that key end markets are set to resume a sustainable recovery," Investec said.The broker admitted that downside to forecasts is now limited, but said that at current levels the stock is pricing in a strong recovery in oil and gas markets in 2015. "Yet for us, this is far from clear," it said."While the recent pick-up in Minerals original equipment (OE) and Oil & Gas aftermarket order input in the fourth quarter is generally encouraging, we await an established trend before factoring this into our forecasts."The broker has left its target price at 2,250p.The stock was trading 0.1% higher at 2,440p by 11:37 on Friday.BC