Broker tips: Barclays, Homeserve, Sage

31st Oct 2011 12:13

Nomura has reiterated its buy call on banking giant Barclays, after the firm's third quarter results came in ahead of expectations.The broker notes that Barclay's traditional banking operations drove the third quarter beat, and while Barclays Capital was weak, figures were in line with forecasts and still "outperformed peers in a negative environment".Nomura keeps hold of its 268p target price.Peel Hunt downgraded emergency repair services firm Homeserve from hold to sell, after the group announced that it is to suspend its telesales operation after an independent review.Peel Hunt said that it has put its forecasts (and 450p target) under review but expects to cut profit forecasts for the year ending 2013 by around 10%."This adds to concerns we already have about international growth expectations and we believe reputational knock-on could affect US and international progress further," said analyst Henry Carver.UBS has downgraded accountancy software firm Sage from buy to neutral, saying that there are few catalysts for the stock in the near future."[Shares] are still 6% below their 2011 highs but we see limited catalysts near-term, with the buyback likely to provide downside protection but little more. An announcement accompanying the start of the buyback indicating that the company was not in possession of any price-sensitive information means FY11 results (due 30 November), should be in-line," said analysts Michael Briest and Chris Grundberg.The target price is left at 275p.BC