Research Tree | Equity Research for Investors

Level the playing field with real-time Equity Research

Research Tree offers both private and institutional investors access to the latest UK investment research from over 35 Brokers and Research Providers, offering comprehensive coverage of small and mid-cap stocks.

The Equity Research Platform

Equity research, broker reports, target prices, and valuations on UK-listed companies in real-time.

Our platform learns which sectors, industries, and markets you're intersted in to help you discover new stocks.

30 Jun 20

D4T4 Solutions - A transitional period sets up secure growth in FY 2022

The FY 2020 results are in line with our expectations and reflect the impact of the previously announced switch from large perpetual licences to recurring annual term licences during the year. Despite the COVID strictures, with its large global partnerships, D4t4 continues to close numerous lucrative data gathering and data management contracts with major blue-chips around the world. It is successfully converting a high proportion of its new sales to recurring revenue contracts, but this will sacrifice growth and earnings in FY 2020 and FY 2021. Nevertheless, with growing recurring revenue base, an exciting pipeline and a very strong balance sheet, D4t4 is very well positioned for continued long-term growth and security.

Companies: D4T4 Solutions

01 Jul 20

THE MONTHLY July 2020

A number of REITs have the ability to thrive in current market conditions and thereafter. Not only do they hold assets that will remain in strong demand, but they have focus and transparency. The leases and underlying rents are structured in a manner to provide long visibility, growth and security. Hardman & Co defined an investment universe of REITs that we considered provided security and “safer harbours”. We introduced this universe with our report published in March 2019: “Secure income” REITs – Safe Harbour Available. Here, we take forward the investment case and story. We point to six REITs, in particular, where we believe the risk/reward is the most attractive.

Companies: AGY ARBB ARIX BUR CMH CLIG DNL HAYD NSF PCA PIN PXC PHP RE/ RECI SCE SHED VTA

03 Jul 20

Manolete Partners

Accelerating activity in to FY21

Companies: Manolete Partners

30 Jun 20

Full-year results

Full-year results were at a record level and slightly ahead of expectations by £0.2m at the adjusted PBT level, or 2.8% better at the EPS level. Cash generation was also stronger than expected, resulting in net cash of £3.2m. The dividend was maintained – a sign of confidence. Good strategic progress was made, helped by the integration synergies of Pacer and new product development programmes. Our forecast and price target remain under review given COVID-19-related uncertainties.

Companies: Solid State

02 Jul 20

Strategically important acquisition in Germany

Gamma is acquiring around 80% of HFO Holding AG (HFO), one of the leading SIP Trunk providers in Germany, for an initial consideration of €20.4m in cash with an option to purchase the remaining shares over the next three years. In line with its stated strategy, Gamma can invest and use its commercial strength and expertise to accelerate HFO’s growth and replicate the Group’s success in the UK by developing a market leading position in Germany. Noting net debt of €2.9m when the deal closed, the implied historical EV/EBITDA multiple of about 10x compares with Gamma’s equivalent of 18.7x. We estimate that the deal will be 4% earnings enhancing in the first full year of ownership and our estimate upgrades reflect that. The European markets for cloud telephony in which Gamma is now represented will ultimately overtake the UK in size, providing Gamma with significant future growth potential. We view this acquisition as another significant step in Gamma’s strategic aim to expand into Europe via exposure to another lucrative market opportunity.

Companies: Gamma Communications

02 Jul 20

£55m placing as brick demand bounces back

Brick and concrete products manufacturer Forterra has raised c. £55m gross in an equity placing in order to maintain its strong balance sheet and support the Group's continued investment programme. It was accompanied by, in our view, a reassuring trading statement which we believe is backed by yesterday’s brick industry data and comments from housebuilders, which suggest that demand has been recovering from its lockdown lows, before the PM’s promises to “build, build, build” housing and infrastructure.

Companies: Forterra

03 Jul 20

Avon Rubber - Cream rises to the top

The announcement that Avon Rubber is to sell milkrite | InterPuls, its dairy division, to DeLaval Holding for £180m gross proceeds is strategically logical and financially compelling. The fit of dairy and defence has always looked slightly anomalous and the terms of the deal show that the opportunity to augment dairy through value-accretive deals is difficult given the scale of the business and opportunities. Management must now recycle the cash balances that will be created into Avon Protection, where there are a greater number of potential investments.

Companies: Avon Rubber

02 Jul 20

GB Group - Managing cash now to support long-term strategy

GB Group reported strong performance in FY20 and started taking measures to preserve cash in Q420. Trading in Q121 has been mixed and while management is unwilling to provide guidance for FY21, it has confidence that in the longer term it is well positioned to benefit from the acceleration in digital transformation that should drive demand for its identity data intelligence services. We have upgraded our EPS forecasts by 5% in FY21 and 3% in FY22.

Companies: GB Group

06 Jul 20

Macfarlane Group*

Resilient Trading Update

Companies: Macfarlane Group

03 Jul 20

CentralNic Group - A platform business, looking to scale

CentralNic’s capital markets day (CMD) on 24 June 2020 introduced the divisional management team and provided insight on each of the three key segments as they will report in FY20: Indirect (Wholesale, Registry); Monetisation (Team Internet); and Direct (Retail, Corporate). We have picked out what we believe are the four key themes from the CMD: FY20 performance, COVID-19 and seasonality; organic growth; M&A; and, pulling it all together, the benefit of scale. CentralNic continues to trade on an FY20 EV/EBITDA of 9.1x and a P/E of 15.8x, a material discount to its peer group, with our DCF indicating further share price upside. M&A could bring CentralNic’s multiples down further.

Companies: Centralnic Group

03 Jul 20

FY20A Results

Whilst Arena delivered FY20E results in line with our expectations, this has inevitably been overshadowed by the challenges posed by COVID-19 to the industry. Arena acted swiftly to cut costs and preserve cash, such that it currently has a c£23.5m cash balance. This is enough to see the company through into 2021, even if the global event market remains heavily disrupted for the rest of the year.

Companies: Arena Events

29 Jun 20

Cenkos: Equals Group Plc -- An eventful and improving Q2/20 hinted

Equals' FY19A results confirm another year of strong, double-digit revenue and adj EBITDA growth. The move to a B2B focused offering continues to progress and looks well timed in view of Covid-19's impact on overseas travel. While the pandemic impacted Q2/20E trading early on, we note June KPI's indicate a positive rebound. Given the continued uncertainty as to Covid's full impact upon FY20E trading, we refrain from reissuing forecasts and thus leave our recommendation under review.

Companies: Equals Group

30 Jun 20

Two key agreements seeking to expand the utility of KidneyIntelX

The announcement announced today highlights the potential breadth of the KidneyIntelX platform, opening up new routes to expand data inputs and test utility, and create opportunities alongside pharmacological therapy as a companion diagnostic. The first agreement with the University of Michigan adds an additional 800 chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients (adding to Mount Sinai’s 1,500 patients and the University of Groningen’s 3,500 patients) to analysis the performance of KidneyIntelX in different settings. This will ultimately carry additional sway with healthcare centres, regulators, and payers. The option to exclusively license a new urinary biomarker, urinary Epithelial Growth Factor (uEGF), shows the potential to add additional biomarkers and body fluids into the platform to further enhance the prognostic performance of KidneyIntelX. We understand there is a relatively immaterial upfront payment to access this new biobank, and a similar immaterial cash payment to gain the biomarker license option with additional milestones and standard tiered royalties payable if exercised. The second data sharing agreement with a major undisclosed pharma partner highlights KidneyIntelX’s potential use as a companion diagnostic (e.g. for SGLT2 inhibitors) and the potential to use the test multiple times to monitor drug response. This builds on work being conducted in Groningen with data expected H2 CY’20. Ultimately, pharmaceutical collaborations could drive additional long-term value creation and may open opportunities for lucrative licensing and M&A deals. At this juncture we make no changes to our forecasts and eagerly await further updates. We reiterate our positive stance on Renalytix.

Companies: Renalytix AI

02 Jul 20

Another strong month of trading, with PBT of £10m delivered YTD

Air Partner has issued a further shareholder update, confirming PBT of at least £10m in the first five months of the year to June, an increase of £2.5m since the last update to May. The Group continues to deliver impressive results despite a challenging market backdrop. As has been the case throughout the COVID-19 crisis, performance has been driven by strong activity in the Freight and Group Charter divisions. Crisis driven activity is expected to reduce in H2, with an anticipated recovery in the Group’s core activities, where the update reports positive early indications across the Group’s divisions. The balance sheet is very well supported, with net cash at 30th June standing at £13m post the recent £7.5m fund raise. The Group continues to have access to total debt facilities of £14.5m. Whilst visibility for H2 remains limited, we believe the Group is well placed to deliver a strongly profitable FY21 result.

Companies: Air Partner

02 Jul 20

Solid State - Diversity of markets gives resilience

As flagged in the April trading update, Solid State’s FY20 results showed a 19.7% growth in revenues and 34.3% jump in adjusted profit before tax. Demand from the medical and food retail sectors is strong but weakness in the oil & gas and commercial aviation sectors related to the coronavirus pandemic is likely to result in lower year-on-year sales during Q2 and early Q321. While management sees potential for a Q4 recovery, the current range of FY21 profit outcomes is wide, so it is not providing guidance.

Companies: Solid State

06 Jul 20

From headwinds to tailwinds

Q2 should be a clear improvement upon a turbulent first quarter, helped by strong financial markets, good premium growth and a higher AuM. We’ve lifted our Q2 and 2020 estimate for EPS, but have kept 21/22e relatively unchanged. Solvency should benefit from strong equity markets and tighter spreads, but lower rates and a sharp VA reduction means we see a slide to 151% (155%) excl. transitionals and a flat 172% q/q incl. transitionals.

Companies: STOREBRAND

06 Jul 20

Stars aligned for a strong Q2

We’ve increased our 2020 EPS by ~30% following a strong quarter for financial returns as well as expectations of a strong Q2 on UW (ARCe 80.1% CR). Our estimates for 2021/2022 remain relatively unchanged at NOK 9.0 and 9.1 respectively. We’ve also lowered our 2020 DPS slightly as we await more clarity from regulators, though GJF’s dividend capacity remains extremely strong. We expect a strong Q2, but stick to Hold and NOK 180 target price.

Companies: GJENSIDIGE FORSIKRING

06 Jul 20

Shifting heavily into reverse gear

H1 20 figures: Group: -8.1% (-10.7% lfl) to €3,513m Consumer: -8.1% (-10.9% lfl) to €2,891m tesa: -10.0% (-10.0% lfl) to €622m

Companies: Beiersdorf

06 Jul 20

Hutchison China MediTech - Eye of the tiger

Hutchison China MediTech (HCM) is on the brink of global launches of two assets from its internally developed oncology portfolio. In 2022 we expect US launches of surufatinib (broad NET indication) two years earlier than forecast as well as savolitinib (NSCLC). Recently the FDA granted fast-track designation to fruquintinib in mCRC and we forecast global launch in 2023. In China, HCM has laid the foundations to capitalize on the slew of additional novel oncology drugs (expected by end 2021). HCM is well funded (following the recent $100m equity investment from General Atlantic, plus warrants granted for an additional $100m in 18 months) as it accelerates the global development of its unpartnered assets and expands its global commercial outreach. Beyond 2024 we expect sustainable profitability and margin expansion. Our increased valuation is $6.3bn.

Companies: Hutchison China Meditech

06 Jul 20

Benchmark Holdings focused on making core business 'commercially profitable'

06 Jul 20

Sales momentum and cost-cutting initiatives accelerate

With the gradual re-opening of the markets, Sonova’s sales run-rate reached 59% (in Q1) vs. 35% in April 2020. The recovery was faster than expected and management has guided for a 65-75% sales run-rate and single-digit EBITA margin for H1 20/21. Interestingly, Sonova has accelerated its structural optimisation measures – streamlining of the retail network and optimisation of non-customer facing functions could lower the headcount by 4-5% – and these initiatives have the potential to generate annual cost-savings of CHF50-70m.

Companies: Sonova Holding

06 Jul 20

Beowulf Mining - Madjan Peak Gold Target

06 Jul 20

Mosman Oil and Gas Ltd's John Barr updates on sale of Welch project and plans for Falcon

06 Jul 20

Hutchison China MediTech - Eye of the tiger

Hutchison China MediTech (HCM) is on the brink of global launches of two assets from its internally developed oncology portfolio. In 2022 we expect US launches of surufatinib (broad NET indication) two years earlier than forecast as well as savolitinib (NSCLC). Recently the FDA granted fast-track designation to fruquintinib in mCRC and we forecast global launch in 2023. In China, HCM has laid the foundations to capitalise on the slew of additional novel oncology drugs (expected by end 2021). HCM is well funded (following the recent $100m equity investment from General Atlantic, plus warrants granted for an additional $100m in 18 months) as it accelerates the global development of its unpartnered assets and expands its global commercial outreach. Beyond 2024 we expect sustainable profitability and margin expansion. Our increased valuation is $6.3bn.

Companies: Hutchison China Meditech

06 Jul 20

Oil & Gas Daily Flow

RockRose Energy (RRE LN): All cash offer to purchase RockRose for 1,850p/share | I3 Energy Energy (I3E LN): Binding purchase and sale agreement for Gain Energy confirmed

Companies: Rockrose Energy I3 Energy

06 Jul 20

SP Angel Healthcare Conditions- 06-07-2020

Fusion Antibodies (FAB.L): Trading update | N4 Pharma (N4P.L): Business update

Companies: Fusion Antibodies N4 Pharma

06 Jul 20

Supermarket Income REIT acquires 'cracking portfolio' of six Waitrose supermarkets

06 Jul 20

ReNeuron Group - Strong data in retinal therapy shows long effects

ReNeuron has released further follow-up data from the ongoing human retinal progenitor cell (hRPC) trial, which shows a robust sustained averaged response. This data set completes the six-month data on eight patients and extends, for one individual, to 18 months, who showed a good net gain. The next dose level, two million cells in nine patients, remains delayed due to COVID-19. A filing to start a pivotal study is expected in the second half of CY21. Our indicative value remains at £107m.

Companies: Reneuron Group

06 Jul 20

Market Report: FTSE 100 rockets higher after economic bounce-back optimism in Asia

06 Jul 20

SP Angel . Morning View

Altus Strategies* (ALS LN) – >400koz mineral resource at Diba gold project | Beowulf Mining* (BEM LN) – Grab sampling results from Madjan Peak in Northern Kosovo | Cora Gold* (CORA LN) – H1/20 exploration update | Eramet (ERA PA) – Eramet to sell Aubert & Duval subsidiary | Hochschild Mining (HOC LN) – Immaculada mine suspends operations as Covid19 hits S American mines | Kazatomprom (KAP LN) – Extension of reduced uranium operational activity due to pandemic-related risks

Companies: ALS BEM CORA CORA HOC