Heavyweight bank Barclays issued a research note on the European media and telecoms industry today, with most firms receiving an upgrade of some description.
Online and magazine car sales platform Autotrader Group PLC (LON:AUTO) had its price forecast bumped up 15p to 390p.
Zoopla Property Group Plc (LON:ZPLA), the online estate agent also had its price target upped by 5% to 355p.
Peppa Pig owner Entertainment One Ltd (LON:ETO), broadcaster Sky Plc (LON:SKY) and Trinity Mirror Plc (LON:TNI) all received price target upgrades as well.
The only firms to receive any kind of downgrade were ITV Plc (LON:ITV) and Inmarsat Plc (LON:ISAT).
Barclays predicted that ITV would be “worst hit” in terms of advertising forecasts this year, which it expects to fall by 2% year-on-year.
Inmarsat was moved lower to a 745p price target from its previous forecast of 745p.
Outside of media and telecoms, the same bank wasn’t keen on education specialist Pearson PLC (LON:PSON) either.
It maintained its ‘equal weight’ rating for the stock unchanged, but slashed its price target almost £2 to £750p.
Pearson has been hammered in recent months by brokers, with Liberum continuously picking the stock as its ‘top sell’.
British Gas owner Centrica Plc (LON:CNA) was downgraded to ‘sector perform’ from 'market perform' by RBC Capital Markets.
RBC said it was becoming “less optimistic” on the firm as its pricing position “remains uncompetitive”, while it is also unconvinced by the long-term growth plan.
Blue-chip broker UBS likes the cut of mining giant BHP Billiton plc’s (LON:BLT) jib, repeating its ‘buy’ advice ahead of a meeting with the management of the company’s oil operation on Wednesday.
Onshore BHP has curtailed “activity significantly” to “preserve value”, adding that the business has potential in the medium-term, presumably when the oil price rises well above US$50 a barrel.
Its offshore oil fields, meanwhile, are a “cash-flow generator”, with exploration success likely to be the “key catalyst”, UBS said.
UBS said it likes the company’s free cash-flow yield and the balance of risk and reward, with the firm getting the nod over Rio Tinto PLC (LON:RIO) on that basis.
However its £12 a share target price doesn’t leave much room for growth. BHP opened £11.60.
Supermarket giant Tesco PLC (LON:TSCO) wasn’t in favour with City heavyweight JP Morgan Cazenove.
The bank reckons Tesco shares are worth 135p, a serious markdown on its current trading price of around 183p.
It said pension worries and an overstretched balance sheet still haunt the group, while investors have become “overexcited” on the stock given the difficult market backdrop.
It also noted the significant market share gains made by discounter stores Aldi and Lidl, which could pose a threat going forward.
In the small caps, eye-tracking specialist Seeing Machines Limited (LON:SEE) had its 12p target price reiterated by broker finnCap.
finnCap praised the higher margins and lower losses posted by the company in its latest full-years.
The same broker also upped its price target to 12p for nickel miner Horizonte Minerals Plc (LON:HZM) after it released the results of a new pre-feasibility study for its Araguia project.
finnCap’s Martin Potts said the new study shows “robust economics” , with the mine now forecast to produce 14,500 tonnes per annum of nickel.
And finally, Liberum reiterated is ‘hold’ recommendation for Fastjet PLC (LON:FJET) after it announced it was selling its sole owned aircraft for US$8mln.
Liberum said the deal was in “in-line with [its] assumptions” as it maintained its price target of 23p.