Paddy Power Betfair boosted by Morgan Stanley upgrade

Paddy Power Betfair got a boost on Tuesday as Morgan Stanley lifted its stance on the shares to ‘overweight’ from ‘equalweight’, saying the stock’s drop of over 20% in the last two months made for a compelling entry point.

“We are not changing forecasts, but see upside risks given signs of accelerating cost cutting and strong industry growth,” the bank said.

MS said there four new developments other than valuation giving it confidence in the growth profile.

It said the company seems to be on track to exceed its £50m synergy target, with delivery quicker than its three-year target.

In addition, it highlighted strong industry growth rates. The bank said peer William Hill's surprise profit warning was related to changes in regulations for player activity and anti-money laundering.

“This heightened market concerns of a slowdown in growth in the key UK online gambling market. Subsequent upbeat reports from Ladbrokes, GVC and Skybet suggest that William Hill's issues are more company specific.”

Morgan Stanley also pointed to Betfair’s s horse-racing exchange in New Jersey, which launches on 10 May.

It said this will be the first fixed-odds product for US horseracing, adding that it sees significant long-term scope for growth as more states legalise, and a long-term option on sports betting regulation.

Finally, the bank said net debt of £63m as of 8tMarch leaves PPB on track to beat its year-end forecast of net cash of £42m.

MS has a 10,000p price target on the stock.

At 1013 BST, PPB shares were up 2.8% to 8,610p.