Market Report: Taking Stock

Securities house Henderson Crosthwaite is taking analysts and fund managers to Israel next month to see the plastic moulding operations of Technoplast, regarded as an industry leader. Since coming to market at 125p earlier this year the shares have drifted to 91.5p. Henderson is looking for profits of pounds 2.4m this year, putting the shares on a prospective p/e of 8.2.

Shares of the 600 Group, the machine tool group, are a recovery buy, believes Henry Cooke Lumsden. The stockbroker has a target of 160p against 135p yesterday. Profits this year is expected to be pounds 11.1m, improving to pounds 11.8m and then pounds 13.9m. The shares have fallen from 300p last year. In January the company warned it was experiencing weak markets in the UK.