Spire Healthcare Group PLC (LON:SPI) was upgraded to a ‘buy’ after three years of ‘hold’ by Liberum over good potential for long-term prospects.
The broker said that while the pandemic has been a major disruption for the hospital group, the massively increased waiting lists are likely to provide better long-term revenue visibility than ever.
“New management has significantly improved the operational quality of the business and its now well-placed to meet this demand once elective procedures begin - we assume fourth quarter,” analysts commented.
“COVID-19 removes at least six months of operations for Spire but we only expect a 15% increase in net debt and the longer-term outlook is actually better than before.”
Shares, which are trading at a third of February’s values, were flat at 75.5p on Tuesday morning.