Berenberg raises target price on Vitec

Berenberg said Vitec had made "a strong start" to 2021, with trading picking up "nicely" as first-quarter order intake and revenues came in broadly in line with 2019, while the group also announced two acquisitions - Lightstream and Quasar.

Vitec shares have also performed "exceptionally well", said Berenberg up 45% year-to-date, with the company also benefitting from the reopening trade.

Yet while the German bank expects the group to deliver "a much improved financial performance" in the current year, with the shares trading near all-time high levels at a valuation of 19.5x full-year 2022 price-to-earnings ratio and 10.7x enterprise value/underlying earnings, the analysts said they struggled to become "more constructive".

Berenberg reiterated its 'hold' rating on the stock, citing a preference for Strix and Coats in the retail/consumer subset of our UK industrials coverage.