The latest ASX stocks to be hit with a broker downgrade

Our market is on maximum bullishness! Not only have we raced to a new record high this morning, but stocks that have copped a broker downgrade don't seem to be fazed.

| More on:

You’re reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fool’s Premium Investing Services. Become a Motley Fool member today to get instant access to our top analyst recommendations, in-depth research, investing resources, and more. Learn More

Our market is on maximum bullishness! Not only have we raced to a new record high this morning, but stocks that have copped a broker downgrade don't seem to be fazed.

The S&P/ASX 200 (Index:^AXJO) (ASX:XJO) index added a further 0.5% to 7,077 at the time of writing as bulls continued to be emboldened by the trade deal struck between the US and China on Wednesday.

This is a time for investors to be on their toes as we have to be in extreme "greed" territory. This often occurs just before a painful market pull-back, although it's anyone's guess when the day of reckoning will arrive.

As it is, some stocks have overshot their fundamentals and leading brokers have downgraded these four ASX companies.

a woman

Attractive company at an unattractive price

One stock that is shooting past fair value is the Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1) share price, according to UBS and JP Morgan. Both brokers downgraded their recommendation to "neutral" although that didn't stop the stock from jumping 1.7% during lunch time trade to $11.01.

"The business continues to grow at an impressive rate, however we are conscious that the majority of 2Q20 KPIs did not record an acceleration in growth momentum from the previous few quarters," said UBS.

"We like the business and the structural thematics – however we want to see tangible signs of an acceleration in KPI growth rates before getting more positive."

JP Morgan expressed a similar view. The broker likes the stock but thinks the good news is already factored into its share price.

From buy to sell

Meanwhile, the Perseus Mining Limited (ASX: PRU) share price got downgraded by two notches by Credit Suisse.

The broker cut its rating on the gold miner to "underperform" from "outperform" even after the miner posted a good quarterly update.

But the stock is running above its fundamental valuation, in Credit Suisse's opinion – not that it particularly matters to shareholders.

The downgrade isn't hurting the Perseus share price. PRU rallied 2.1% to $1.08 at the time of writing, which is ahead of Credit Suisse's target price of $0.93 per share.

Looking too rich

Others that may also have overshot on the upside are our listed fund managers. The sector posted improving trends in the December quarter, but Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) reckons that the positives are already in the share prices.

The broker downgraded its recommendation on the Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG) share price and the Pendal Group Ltd (ASX:PDL) share price to "underperform".

Brendon Lau owns shares of Macquarie Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of MEGAPORT FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Macquarie Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended MEGAPORT FPO. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

More on Share Market News

Share Market News

Testing again

Read more »

Share Market News

Aaron Test 2

Read more »

Share Market News

Aaron Test

Read more »

Share Market News

JP Test

Read more »

Share Market News

JP Test

Read more »

Portrait of Discovery Fund portfolio managers Mark Devcich and Chris Bainbridge
Share Market News

Test

Portfolio managers Mark Devcich (left) and Chris Bainbridge. Image source: Discovery Fund test test

Read more »

a man in a hoodie grins slyly as he sits with his hands poised on a keyboard. He is superimposed with a graphic image of a computer screen asking for a password, suggesting he is a hacker.
Share Market News

Another ASX 200 company has been hit with a cyber incident. Here's what we know

Hackers have breached the systems of this ASX 200 company.

Read more »

a woman
Broker Notes

5 ASX 200 shares that inflation can't touch: expert

Regardless of whether you're a bull or a bear, cost pressures are a factor when buying stocks at the moment.

Read more »