Deutsche Bank has reduced its price target for YouGov PLC (AIM:YOU) to 438p, from 565p, amid concern that performance was skewed to the second half of the current financial year.
Despite the downgrade, the German bank maintained a 'Buy' rating for the research and data analytics firm.
It comes after YouGov's full-year 2025 results, released Monday, in which it reported higher annual profits as cost savings and restructuring began to take effect, but guided to modest growth in the new financial year due to investment in technology and data science. Revenue for the year to 31 July 2025 rose 16% to £388.9 million, with underlying growth of 1%.
Analyst Steve Liechti said the figures were ahead of both Deutsche Bank’s forecasts and market consensus, but management uncertainty suggested YouGov was not as far along in its reorientation towards growth as the broker had anticipated.
Liechti said the bank recognised the need for continued investment in growth, including new products and AI-led services, though improved momentum may be more weighted to the second half of fiscal 2026. YouGov plans to hold a Capital Markets Day to outline its growth strategy in more detail.