Canaccord Genuity raises target price on Celtic

Canaccord Genuity said Celtic's full-year results were "comfortably ahead" of its forecasts, with revenue growth of 45% year-on-year and a reduced trading loss pre-player trading.

"The Club returned to winning ways in 21/22 by regaining the league title and the Premier Sports Cup, marking a tenth league title victory in eleven seasons. After the challenges of the previous season, the immediate return to winning ways was crucial for a Club used to so much success and, importantly, has delivered a direct route into the lucrative Champions League Group stages," said the analysts.

The Canadian bank, which reiterated its 'buy' rating on the stock, noted that the total Champions League financial "dividend" remains dependent on Celtic's performance over the coming months, but said there "should be" a significant amount of income based on qualification and its ranking coefficient.

"We have increased our FY23E forecasts to reflect the strong FY22 outcome coupled with the benefits of Champions League qualification and now forecast a meaningful profit post player trading for the current year, before a reversion to a breakeven outcome in FY24E, in line with the Club's ambition to deliver a minimum breakeven result. We continue to believe that Celtic's strong global franchise and strong balance sheet leave it well-placed for the future," said Canaccord.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com