ABB: shares slide on Barclays downgrade

(CercleFinance.com) - ABB shares are slipping 2% in late morning trading on Friday, making them one of the biggest fallers on Switzerland's blue-chip index, after Barclays downgraded the stock to "equal-weight" from "overweight".


In a note on European electrical equipment companies, Barclays said it expects fourth quarter to see "continued improvement sequentially" as the economic recovery took hold in Europe and North America.

However, the impact of new lockdowns and sharply rising infection rates across Europe and the US represents a "key risk" to first-quarter guidance, it warned.

Barclays also cited "elevated valuations" and recent strong stock performance, meaning that the risk-reward for European capital goods specialistss have now become "more balanced."

The broker - which cut its target price for the ABB stock from 27 Swiss francs to 25 Swiss francs - said its preferred stocks in the sector remain France's Schneider and Legrand.

Copyright (c) 2021 CercleFinance.com. All rights reserved.
The information and analyses distributed by Cercle Finance are only intended as decision-making support for investors. Cercle Finance's responsibility may not be entailed, either directly or indirectly following the use of such information and analyses by readers. Any non-professional investor is recommended to consult a professional advisor before making any investment decision. This indicative information in no way constitutes any invitation to sell or buy securities.