In Piazza Affari the new week opened with a minus sign for the Ftse Mib which lost ground for the third session in a row, dropping 0.39% in the 19,950 area.
Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo down: weaker than the Ftse Mib
Several blue chips showed more weakness than the reference index and among others we find the banks, with some in particular occupying the last position in the basket of the Ftse Mib.
Sales also hit the two big names in the banking sector, Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo, who moved hand in hand today.
Unicredit, after gaining almost half a percentage point last Friday, fell today by 1.51% to 8.135 euros, stopping at the intraday lows with just under 10 million shares transited on the market, against the average of the last 30 days equal to almost 24 million euros.
Similar is the conclusion of Intesa Sanpaolo which today fell for the third day in a row and after the drop of just over half a point before the weekend, suffered a heavier decline today.
The stock ended trading close to the intraday lows of € 1.8244, with a 1.47% red line and almost 80 million shares traded, compared to the monthly average of over 147 million shares.
Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo today moved in unison, recalling that both reached a period peak on 21 July, from which they then lost ground.
Unicredit further away from the top of the period than Intesa Sanpaolo
For Unicredit the top in question is at € 9.41, from here the prices are over 15%, while for Intesa Sanpaolo the way to go is shorter, given that the highs of July 21 are at € 1.934, around 6 % from current prices.
Which of the two big names in the banking sector should you bet now?
It must be said that both stocks collect positive reviews from various brokers, some of which prefer Unicredit and others Intesa Sanpaolo.
Unicredit among Berenberg’s favorites on the European scene
For example, Berenberg’s analysts are betting on Unicredit, who in the European panorama look more favorably at well-capitalized banks that are well focused on risk.
This group also includes the group led by Mustier, whose shares are hedged with a “buy” recommendation and a target price of 9 euros.
Credit Suisse also likes Unicredit
Credit Suisse is also betting on Unicredit, which has an “outperform” rating and a target price revised downwards from 11 to 9.5 euros.
After the accounts for the first half of the year, the Swiss bank has improved Unicredit’s estimates for 2020 results by 3%, while it has cut those for next year by 15%.
Unicredit under the lens of Oddo BHF and Jefferies
The experts of Oddo BHF also recently reviewed the valuation of the stock and reduced the fair value from 9.6 to 8.3 euros, with a “neutral” recommendation.
The latter move was decided to reflect the cut in Unicredit estimates for the 2020-2022 period, scissored by an average of 15% due to the cost of risk and risks.
The Jefferies analysts are also cautious on the stock, with a “hold” rating, with a target price adjusted 10 days ago from 9 to 8.9 euros.
The broker still sees upside for 2021 consensus estimates, but at the same time signals obstacles on the medium-term revenue front.
Understanding: Jefferies prefers it to Unicredit. Also like Kepler and Equita
Jefferies thus accords its preference to Intesa Sanpaolo, hedged with a “buy” recommendation, with a revised target price from € 2 to € 2.1 after the half-yearly report released by the group which encourages us to look to the future with confidence.
Kepler Cheuvruex is also betting on Intesa Sanpaolo, which supports the purchase of the share with a fair value increased from 2.1 to 2.2 euros, in light of the strong track record of the management in the remuneration of shareholders and in the integration with Ubi Banca .
Good news also from Equita SIM which looks favorably on Intesa Sanpaolo, with a “buy” recommendation and a target price increased from 2.2 to 2.3 euros after the accounts of the first half, in the wake of an increase in 2020- estimates. 2022.
Intesa Sanpaolo: Mediobanca is cautious. Jefferies is bearish
Mediobanca Securities’ view is cautious, which in the first week of August restarted hedging on the stock with a “neutral” rating and a target price of 1.85 euros.
Finally, bad news comes from Berenberg which indicates Intesa Sanpaolo among the banks not recommended, so much so that the stock is covered with a “sell” recommendation and a fair value of 1.5 euros.
–
