Robert Walters PLC (LSE:RWA) received an upgrade from 'hold' to 'buy' at Deutsche Bank as resilient recruitment trading outweighed lingering interest rate risks.
In morning trading, the shares stood at 126.75p, up 1%, as the broker raised its price target by 60% to 160p, from 100p.
Behind the upgrade, Steve Woolf estimates roughly 50% of peer-group recruitment revenue has returned to growth, against around 10% in the first quarter of 2025.
Leading the recovery, Adecco Group AG has around 77% of revenue in growth and Randstad NV, 60%, enough to deliver group-level growth.
Across the Atlantic, US revenue growth accelerated year on year as stronger demand across manufacturing, logistics, IT and healthcare reinforced the sector's robust near-term outlook.
Elsewhere, Deutsche Bank rated Hays PLC (LSE:HAS) and Michael Page PLC 'buy', raising targets from 60p to 95p and 210p to 355p, respectively.
Meanwhile, SThree PLC (LSE:STEM) received a 'buy' rating and a higher price target of 360p, up from 260p.
In the same note, the bank rated Adecco 'buy', raising its target from CHF22 to CHF32, while Randstad carried a 'hold' rating despite an increase from €32 to €42.
For the next 12 months, Woolf sees Germany's fiscal stimulus and labour-market reform as potential support for demand, with early recovery signs at Randstad and Michael Page.
