Rotork boosted by JP Morgan upgrade

Rotork rallied as JP Morgan Cazenove upgraded the stock to 'overweight' from 'neutral' and lifted the price target to 265p from 230p, saying the company was positioned to return to growth.

The bank said it reckons the group's earnings power has increased and earnings can significantly exceed previous peaks.

"Our analysis increases our confidence that end-market headwinds are easing, the group remains well positioned to benefit from the recovery and growth opportunities exist outside of just oil & gas capex."

JPM said that incorporating its analysis into its model drives double-digit upgrades and its forecasts are now above consensus.

The bank upped its estimate for 2017 adjusted earnings per share to 11p from 10.1p and for 2018 EPS to 12.8p from 10.8p. It increased its forecasts for full-year revenue in 2017 to £637m from £609m and for 2018 to £670m from £620m.

JPM said it builds only a modest recovery in end-market demand over 20172017 into its forecasts, but this represents a reversal on the downturn pressures.

At 0857 BST, the shares were up 4.8% to 258p.