Hill & Smith (LON:HILS) Sets New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• New 52‑week high: Hill & Smith's shares hit a 52‑week high of GBX 2,580 (last GBX 2,569.79) on strong intraday volume (~1.07m shares), and recent analyst upgrades have left the stock with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of GBX 2,813.33.
• Solid fundamentals: the company has a market cap of £2.02bn, a P/E of 25.29, last quarter EPS of GBX 132.20, return on equity of 17.34% and a net margin of 9.50%, with a debt-to-equity ratio of 25.52.

Hill & Smith PLC (LON:HILS - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as GBX 2,580 and last traded at GBX 2,569.79, with a volume of 1071747 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 2,505.20.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HILS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Hill & Smith from GBX 2,625 to GBX 2,930 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Berenberg Bank reissued a "buy" rating and set a GBX 2,750 price objective on shares of Hill & Smith in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Shore Capital Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Hill & Smith in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 2,760 target price on shares of Hill & Smith in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of GBX 2,813.33.

Hill & Smith Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of £2.02 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of GBX 2,278.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of GBX 2,236.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 25.52, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

Hill & Smith (LON:HILS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported GBX 132.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Hill & Smith had a return on equity of 17.34% and a net margin of 9.50%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Hill & Smith PLC will post 129.1287386 EPS for the current year.

About Hill & Smith

Our purpose is to create sustainable infrastructure and safe transport through innovation. Hill & Smith PLC is an international group with leading positions in the supply of infrastructure products and galvanizing services to global markets. Through a focus on leading positions in niche markets we aim to consistently deliver strong returns and shareholder value. Supplying to, and located in, global markets the Group serves customers from facilities in Australia, India, Sweden, the UK and the USA, building a presence in international markets, where countries are upgrading or improving their infrastructure as their economies grow.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.