(News Bulletin 247) – Barclays on Friday renewed its recommendation to ‘weight online’ on Thales while lowering its target price on the stock from 154 to 148 euros.
In a research note, the design office justifies its decision by the series of acquisitions recently concluded by the French group, from Tesserent (cybersecurity) to AeroComms (communications systems for cockpits).
Barclays estimates that this takeover frenzy will translate into an increase in the company’s net debt, which is expected to increase from 781 million euros in June 2023 to 1.8 billion euros by the end of 2024.
If he says he particularly appreciates the strategic sense of the acquisition of Imperva, which will allow him to strengthen his expertise in civil cybersecurity, the intermediary also notes that the operation will be expensive.
Pending the finalization of the transaction, scheduled for early 2024, it is the digital identity and security (DIS) branch which should determine Thales’ performance in 2023, underlines Barclays, which however evokes a ‘limited visibility’ at this stage. on the dynamism of the division.
From a more general point of view, the analyst recognizes that the group is ‘defensively positioned’, but that its nature is also more cyclical than that of its peers.
Copyright (c) 2023 News Bulletin 247. All rights reserved.
I have over 8 years of experience working in the news industry. I have worked as a reporter, editor, and now managing editor at 247 News Agency. I am responsible for the day-to-day operations of the news website and overseeing all of the content that is published. I also write a column for the website, covering mostly market news.
