Canaccord raises target on Kainos following trading update

Analysts at Canaccord Genuity upped their target price on digital technology solutions firm Kainos from 590p to 660p on Tuesday, noting that the consensus forecasts for growth and margins both looked "conservative".

On the back of Kainos' most recent trading update, the Canadian broker highlighted how the company's results were slightly ahead of its own model, with management sounding confident about the firm's short and long-term growth outlook underpinned by strong sales orders and backlog.

The broker raised its already above-consensus estimates further, stating that it continued to see upside to markets' growth expectations of 8-9% for the company in 2020 and 2021 with scope for the group to exceed "conservative" estimates for a 50 basis point annual expansion in margins.

"The stock remains a rare combination of quality, growth and earnings upside benefiting from the strong multi-year themes of government and enterprise automation and workday adoption," said Canaccord.

Canaccord, which also reiterated its 'buy' rating on Kainos' shares, said it was further encouraged by the Belfast-based outfit's accelerating enterprise sales and international momentum across North America and Europe.