Deutsche Bank downgrades Abrdn to 'sell'

Deutsche Bank downgraded Abrdn to ‘sell’ from ‘hold’ on Wednesday and cut the price target to 135p from 175p, as it argued that accelerating stake sales won’t offset wider headwinds.

The bank said it was taking a more cautious stance on several fronts.

"We have been cautious on Abrdn’s earnings for a while, as evidenced by our sell catalyst call in June," it said.

"Since then, we’ve reflected further on the numbers and see further downside risk to the shares form both an earnings and capital perspective. On the latter, we now push through a 25% cut to the DPS beginning with the 2022 final.

"Additionally, we also value the excess capital locked within the Indian stakes at a larger 5% discount to reflect concerns around the uses of sale proceeds."

At 1010 BST, the shares were down 4.3% at 142.80p.