Panmure Liberum has lifted its price target for Weir Group PLC (LSE:WEIR) to 3,280p from 2,990p, keeping its 'buy' recommendation as the broker grows more confident about the mining engineer’s momentum.
The upgrade reflects a sector-wide rerating and stronger visibility across Weir’s key markets.
The broker said Weir has increased fully diluted earnings per share by 66% since 2020 through a mix of margin gains and sales growth, and the outlook still looks favourable.
Recent updates from peers Sandvik and Metso pointed to resilient mining activity and robust aftermarket demand, particularly in equipment servicing.
That bodes well for Weir, whose own maintenance-heavy business model tends to generate steady cash flows even when new equipment orders slow.
Panmure expects Weir to deliver an operating margin of about 20% this year, reaching its target a year earlier than planned.
It added that Caterpillar’s recent purchase of Australian mining software group RPMGlobal should help accelerate adoption of digital tools, good news for Weir’s own Micromine division.
With exposure to resilient commodities such as copper and gold, Weir looks well placed in the current mining investment cycle.
At a forecast price-to-earnings ratio of just over 20 times next year’s earnings, Panmure argues that still looks reasonable for what it calls “a high-quality company exposed to structural growth drivers.”
The shares, up 34% year to date, were flat at 2,952p.