Hill & Smith’s (HILS) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at Berenberg Bank

Berenberg Bank reissued their buy rating on shares of Hill & Smith (LON:HILS) in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a GBX 2,500 ($32.52) price target on the stock.

Separately, Shore Capital restated a “hold” rating on shares of Hill & Smith in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th.

Hill & Smith Price Performance

Shares of LON:HILS opened at GBX 1,932 ($25.13) on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of GBX 1,908.28 and a 200-day moving average of GBX 1,982.53. The stock has a market capitalization of £1.56 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 34.30. Hill & Smith has a 12 month low of GBX 1,734 ($22.56) and a 12 month high of GBX 2,330 ($30.31).

Hill & Smith (LON:HILS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 12th. The company reported GBX 122.60 ($1.59) EPS for the quarter. Hill & Smith had a net margin of 9.23% and a return on equity of 17.39%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hill & Smith will post 129.1287386 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hill & Smith Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of GBX 32.50 ($0.42) per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 29th. This is a positive change from Hill & Smith’s previous dividend of $16.50. This represents a dividend yield of 1.7%. Hill & Smith’s payout ratio is 47.30%.

Insider Activity at Hill & Smith

In related news, insider Alan Giddins purchased 4,225 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of GBX 1,875 ($24.39) per share, with a total value of £79,218.75 ($103,055.48). Also, insider Carol Chesney bought 1,054 shares of Hill & Smith stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 1,842 ($23.96) per share, for a total transaction of £19,414.68 ($25,256.51). 1.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.