Halma plc (LON:HLMA) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating on Halma, with five buys, three holds and one sell among nine firms. The average 12-month price target is £5,339.51.
• Halma shares opened at GBX 3,510, below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages, and remain within a 12-month range of GBX 3,194 to GBX 4,902.
• The company reported quarterly earnings of GBX 114.05 per share, a 14.42% net margin and a 17.92% return on equity. Recent insider activity included a significant share sale by Marc Ronchetti, while insiders own 0.83% of the company.

Halma plc (LON:HLMA - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is £5,339.51.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on HLMA shares. Berenberg Bank reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a GBX 4,200 price target on shares of Halma in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Citigroup increased their target price on Halma from GBX 3,700 to GBX 4,600 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Jefferies Financial Group restated an "underperform" rating and issued a GBX 3,050 target price on shares of Halma in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a £47,750 price target on shares of Halma in a report on Friday, June 5th.

Halma Price Performance

LON:HLMA opened at GBX 3,510 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 42.13. The firm has a market cap of £13.26 billion, a PE ratio of 35.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.97. Halma has a 12 month low of GBX 3,194 and a 12 month high of GBX 4,902. The company's 50-day moving average price is GBX 3,733.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 4,006.51.

Halma (LON:HLMA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 11th. The company reported GBX 114.05 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of GBX 258.23 billion during the quarter. Halma had a net margin of 14.42% and a return on equity of 17.92%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Halma will post 90.5626134 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Halma

In other news, insider Marc Ronchetti sold 49,664 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 3,934, for a total transaction of £1,953,781.76. Also, insider Sharmila Nebhrajani purchased 248 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of GBX 4,063 per share, for a total transaction of £10,076.24. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 122,188 shares of company stock worth $470,218,831. Corporate insiders own 0.83% of the company's stock.

About Halma

Halma is a global group of life-saving technology companies, focused on growing a safer, cleaner, healthier future for everyone, every day. Its purpose defines the three broad markets it operates in: - Safety - Protecting people's safety and the environment as populations grow, and enhancing worker safety. - Environment - Addressing the impacts of climate change, pollution and waste, protecting life-critical resources and supporting scientific research. - Health - Meeting the increasing demand for better healthcare as chronic illness rises, driven by growing and ageing populations and lifestyle changes. Halma employs over 9,000 people in more than 20 countries, with major operations in the UK, Mainland Europe, the USA and Asia Pacific.

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