Ashtead Group (AHT)

Sector:

Support

Index:

FTSE 100

5,788.00p
   
  • Change Today:
    -14.00p
  • 52 Week High: 6,104.00p
  • 52 Week Low: 4,694.00p
  • Currency: UK Pounds
  • Shares Issued: 451.35m
  • Volume: 776,483
  • Market Cap: £26,124m
  • RiskGrade: 116

Tuesday preview: Conservative party TV debate, Tesco in the spotlight

By Alexander Bueso

Date: Monday 17 Jun 2019

LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - The focus on Tuesday will be on the televised Conservative party leadership debate on the BBC and on how the current apparent lead contender, Boris Johnson, fares.


\"Nail it and he will go a long way to making it onto the ballot paper of party members for the final two candidates. If he trips up he may find that his lead amongst Tory MPs disappears faster than a rat up a drainpipe,\" said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK.

\"The outcome of the debate in turn could affect how markets view the likely prospect of a \"no deal\" Brexit. It is Boris\'s to lose, faux pas notwithstanding.\"

In the background meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, congressional hearings on the Trump administration\'s proposed tariffs on another $300bn-worth of Chinese exports will move into their second day, with Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer scheduled to testify before committees in both the upper and lower houses of Congress on the country\'s proposed trade deal with Mexico.

The economic calendar is otherwise quite sparse, with only US new housing starts data for May due to be published at 1330 BST, preceded by the ZEW institute\'s economic confidence gauge for Germany in June, at 1000 BST.



Tesco will also be in the market spotlight on Tuesday, as the grocer holds its Capital Markets Day.

ShoreCap\'s Clive Black expects the company\'s presentation to be one of \"evolution rather than revolution\".

In his opinion, Tesco was following Morrisons capital allocation strategy and in the absence of material M&A or a deviation from its current guidance for annual capital outlays of £1 1.1-1.4bn \"shareholder-friendly initiatives within the forthcoming 12-18 months\" were to be expected.

\"Depending on the prevailing valuation, this could involve a notable share buy-back and/or special dividends (potentially up to 13% of the current market cap by end FY2022F, 23% including ordinary dividend payments).\"



Also on the corporate front, fourth quarter results are also due out from Ashtead.

Numis analyst Steve Woolf expects the rental equipment outfit to post another set of bumper quarterly figures on Monday, despite bad weather in California and in the Carolinas.

Revenues at its Sunbelt unit in the US - which accounts for 85% of group sales - is seen up by 15% on a like-for-like basis and is expected to drive an approximately 20% jump in the company\'s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation to reach £1,108m.

Worth noting, analyst Woolf does not believe that the US construction sector is softening nor that a downturn is imminent.

\"In our view, a number of State-funded, long term infrastructure projects remain in place, and this could help sustain a period of moderated growth for the construction industry,\" he said.

Indeed, uncertainty in the market in fact favours equipment rental companies and Ashtead had diversified its end markets since the last downturn, with over half its sales now originating from non-construction actvities, Woolf added.

\"Overall, we believe that Ashtead s outlook will be similar to the positive trading environment indicated by peer, United Rentals. Backed by a strong balance sheet, we remain positive on the shares.\"

Tuesday June 18

INTERIMS

Safestore Holdings, Schroder European Real Estate Investment Trust

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Balance of Trade (EU) (10:00)

Building Permits (US) (13:30)

Consumer Price Index (EU) (10:00)

Housing Starts (US) (13:30)

Producer Price Index (GER) (07:00)

ZEW Survey (EU) - Economic Sentiment (10:00)

ZEW Survey (GER) - Current Situation (10:00)

ZEW Survey (GER) - Economic Sentiment (10:00)

Q4

Ashtead Group

FINALS

Ashtead Group, NextEnergy Solar Fund Limited Red, TechFinancials (DI), Telecom Plus

AGMS

Andrews Sykes Group, Ascent Resources, CEIBA Investments Limited NPV, Clearstar Inc. (DI), Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI), Directa Plus, Ergomed , Evraz, Global Ports Investments GDR (REG S), Horizon Discovery Group, MHP SE GDR (Reg S), NetScientific , Plus500 Ltd (DI), Rosenblatt Group , Savannah Resources

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Card Factory, Witan Pacific Inv Trust



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Note 1: Prices and trades are provided by Digital Look Corporate Solutions and are delayed by at least 15 minutes.

Note 2: RiskGrade figures are provided by RiskMetrics.

 

Ashtead Group Market Data

Currency UK Pounds
Share Price 5,788.00p
Change Today -14.00p
% Change -0.24 %
52 Week High 6,104.00p
52 Week Low 4,694.00p
Volume 776,483
Shares Issued 451.35m
Market Cap £26,124m
RiskGrade 116

Ashtead Group Star Ratings

Compare performance with the sector and the market.
more star ratings
Key: vs Market vs Sector
Value
20.82% below the market average20.82% below the market average20.82% below the market average20.82% below the market average20.82% below the market average
26.67% below the sector average26.67% below the sector average26.67% below the sector average26.67% below the sector average26.67% below the sector average
Price Trend
45.72% above the market average45.72% above the market average45.72% above the market average45.72% above the market average45.72% above the market average
25.25% above the sector average25.25% above the sector average25.25% above the sector average25.25% above the sector average25.25% above the sector average
Income
84.47% below the market average84.47% below the market average84.47% below the market average84.47% below the market average84.47% below the market average
79.66% below the sector average79.66% below the sector average79.66% below the sector average79.66% below the sector average79.66% below the sector average
Growth
14.83% above the market average14.83% above the market average14.83% above the market average14.83% above the market average14.83% above the market average
21.74% above the sector average21.74% above the sector average21.74% above the sector average21.74% above the sector average21.74% above the sector average

What The Brokers Say

Strong Buy 6
Buy 10
Neutral 3
Sell 1
Strong Sell 0
Total 20
buy
Broker recommendations should not be taken as investment advice, and are provided by the authorised brokers listed on this page.

Ashtead Group Dividends

  Latest Previous
  Final Interim
Ex-Div 08-Aug-24 11-Jan-24
Paid 10-Sep-24 08-Feb-24
Amount 89.25¢ 15.75¢

Trades for 31-Oct-2024

Time Volume / Share Price
17:32 15,706 @ 5,754.25p
17:32 1,992 @ 5,754.25p
17:32 45,293 @ 5,760.21p
17:32 20,885 @ 5,754.73p
16:39 210 @ 5,788.00p

Ashtead Group Key Personnel

CEO Brendan Horgan
CFO Michael Pratt

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