Investment accounts
Adult accounts
Child accounts
Choosing Fidelity
Choosing Fidelity
Why invest with us Current offers Fees and charges Open an account Transfer investments
Financial advice & support
Fidelity’s Services
Fidelity’s Services
Financial advice Retirement Wealth Management Investor Centre (London) Bereavement
Guidance and tools
Guidance and tools
Choosing investments Choosing accounts ISA calculator Retirement calculators
Share dealing
Choose your shares
Tools and information
Tools and information
Share prices and markets Chart and compare shares Stock market news Shareholder perks
Pensions & retirement
Pensions, tax & tools
Saving for retirement
Approaching / In retirement
Approaching / In retirement
Speak to a specialist Creating a retirement plan Taking tax-free cash Pension drawdown Annuities Investing in retirement Investment Pathways
RBC Capital trims Hays price target
(Sharecast News) - RBC Capital Markets cut its price target on Hays on Friday after the recruiter said a day earlier that full-year profit was set to be around the bottom end of the market consensus range of £106m to £113m as it posted a drop in fourth-quarter net fees. In an update for the three months to the end of June, the company said group net fees declined 15%. Fees were down 17% in the UK and Ireland, 22% in Australia and New Zealand and 17% in Germany. Meanwhile, rest of world fees were 11% lower.
Hays also said that the June exit rate was down 18%, hit by "challenging" conditions in Germany and Australia, and the negative effects of elections in the UK and France.
"Reflecting the increasingly challenging trading conditions as fiscal Q4 progressed and management's latest prognosis for near-term profitability, we lower our FY24 and FY25 EPS estimates by 6% and 36% respectively," RBC said.
In turn, it reduced its price target to 125p from 130p, but said it still sees an attractive longer term risk-reward profile.
"On a through-cycle basis, we expect meaningful shareholder returns via special dividends, albeit on our current estimates, we assume no specials will be proposed for FY24 or FY25," RBC said.
"We believe HAS looks attractive versus history on the EV/net fees metric in particular, which has historically helped to put a 'floor' under the share price."
RBC rates the stock at 'outperform'.
Share this article
Related Sharecast Articles
Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
Award-winning online share dealing
Search, compare and select from thousands of shares.
Expert insights into investing your money
Our team of experts explore the world of share dealing.
Policies and important information
Accessibility | Conflicts of interest statement | Consumer Duty Target Market | Consumer Duty Value Assessment Statement | Cookie policy | Diversity, Equity & Inclusion | Doing Business with Fidelity | Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Reports | Investing in Fidelity funds | Legal information | Modern slavery | Mutual respect policy | Privacy statement | Remuneration policy | Security | Statutory and Regulatory disclosures | Whistleblowing policy
Please remember that past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance, the performance of investments is not guaranteed, and the value of your investments can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest. When investments have particular tax features, these will depend on your personal circumstances and tax rules may change in the future. This website does not contain any personal recommendations for a particular course of action, service or product. You should regularly review your investment objectives and choices and, if you are unsure whether an investment is suitable for you, you should contact an authorised financial adviser. Before opening an account, please read the ‘Doing Business with Fidelity’ document which incorporates our client terms. Prior to investing into a fund, please read the relevant key information document which contains important information about the fund.
This website is issued by Financial Administration Services Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (FCA Register number 122169) and registered in England and Wales under company number 1629709 whose registered address is Beech Gate, Millfield Lane, Lower Kingswood, Tadworth, Surrey, KT20 6RP.