Smiths Group plc (LON:SMIN) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Smiths Group plc (LON:SMIN) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is GBX 3,128.33.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SMIN shares. Berenberg Bank reissued a “buy” rating and set a GBX 3,000 price target on shares of Smiths Group in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Smiths Group from GBX 2,830 to GBX 2,810 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Smiths Group from GBX 2,900 to GBX 2,750 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 21st.

Smiths Group Trading Up 2.9%

Shares of SMIN opened at GBX 2,596 on Monday. Smiths Group has a 1-year low of GBX 2,088 and a 1-year high of GBX 2,746. The firm has a market capitalization of £7.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.80, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 0.73. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is GBX 2,496.29 and its 200-day moving average price is GBX 2,485.07. The company has a current ratio of 3.04, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 73.19.

Smiths Group (LON:SMIN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The company reported GBX 62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Smiths Group had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 13.71%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Smiths Group will post 85.1295337 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Simon Pryce bought 206 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of GBX 2,532 per share, with a total value of £5,215.92. Also, insider Alister Cowan bought 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Sunday, March 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of GBX 2,268 per share, with a total value of £113,400. Over the last ninety days, insiders bought 5,276 shares of company stock valued at $12,038,832. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

About Smiths Group

Smiths Group plc operates as an industrial engineering company in Americas, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates through four businesses: John Crane, Smiths Detection, Flex-Tek, and Smiths Interconnect. The John Crane business engineers mechanical seals, seal support systems, power transmission couplings, and specialized filtration systems. The Smiths Detection business provides sensors and systems that detect and identify explosives, narcotics, weapons, chemical agents, biohazards, and contraband.