Smith & Nephew shares soar as activist Cevian builds stake
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Jul 04 2024
0mins
Source: reuters
- Smith & Nephew Shares Rise: Smith & Nephew shares rose 7% after activist investor Cevian Capital disclosed a 5% stake in the company, making it the second-largest shareholder.
- Challenges Faced by Smith & Nephew: The company has faced challenges due to pandemic-related surgery delays, supply disruptions from COVID times, and high raw material costs from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
- Cevian's Plans for Smith & Nephew: Cevian aims to improve the operating performance of Smith & Nephew's businesses to create long-term value and expects the board and management to realize this potential.
- Smith & Nephew's Struggles: The company's FTSE 100 shares have struggled to show yearly gains for the past four years.
- Other Investments by Cevian: Cevian is also a major shareholder in CRH and Pearson, but sold its stake in Aviva last year.
Analyst Views on CRH
Wall Street analysts forecast CRH stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for CRH is 142.05 USD with a low forecast of 131.00 USD and a high forecast of 164.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
14 Analyst Rating
13 Buy
1 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 124.490
Low
131.00
Averages
142.05
High
164.00
Current: 124.490
Low
131.00
Averages
142.05
High
164.00
About CRH
CRH PLC is an Ireland-based company. The Company manufactures and distributes a diverse range of superior building materials and products, which are used in construction projects of all sizes. It operates in three segments across two divisions. Its divisions include Americas and International. Its Americas Division comprises two segments: Americas Materials Solutions and Americas Building Solutions. Americas Materials Solutions provides building materials for the construction and maintenance of public infrastructure and commercial and residential buildings in North America. The primary materials produced by this segment include aggregates, cement, readymixed concrete and asphalt. Americas Building Solutions manufactures, supplies and delivers solutions for the built environment in communities across North America. Its International Division, which comprises one segment, International Solutions, is a provider of integrated building solutions primarily across Europe and Australia.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
