Citi raises Associated British Foods target price to £15.50

What Brokers Say Retail & Consumer Written by: Ian Lyall 15:00 Thu 03 Sep 2026 --> Edited by: Jamie Ashcroft Disclaimer No investment advice About this content Editorial Standards & Policies Share article About this content × About Ian Lyall Ian Lyall, a seasoned journalist and editor, brings over three decades of experience to his role as Managing Editor at Proactive. Overseeing Proactive's editorial and broadcast operations across six offices on three continents, Ian is responsible for quality control, editorial policy, and content production. He directs the creation of 50,000 pieces of real-time news, feature articles, and filmed interviews annually. Prior to Proactive, Ian helped lead the business output at the Daily... Read more About the publisher Proactive financial news and online broadcast teams provide fast, accessible, informative and actionable business and finance news content to a global investment audience. All our content is produced independently by our experienced and qualified teams of news journalists. Proactive news team spans the world’s key finance and investing hubs with bureaus and studios in London, New York, Toronto, Vancouver, Sydney and Perth. We are experts in medium and small-cap markets, we also keep our community up to date with blue-chip companies, commodities and broader investment stories. This is content that excites and engages motivated private investors. The team delivers news and unique insights across the market including but not confined to: biotech and pharma, mining and natural resources, battery metals, oil and gas, crypto and emerging digital and EV technologies. Use of technology Proactive has always been a forward looking and enthusiastic technology adopter. Our human content creators are equipped with many decades of valuable expertise and experience. The team also has access to and use technologies to assist and enhance workflows. Proactive will on occasion use automation and software tools, including generative AI. Nevertheless, all content published by Proactive is edited and authored by humans, in line with best practice in regard to content production and search engine optimisation. Associated British Foods PLC ( LSE:ABF ) View Price & Profile Citi raises Associated British Foods target price to £15.50 Published: 15:00 03 Sep 2026 BST Citi has raised its price target for Associated British Foods PLC (LSE:ABF) , the Primark owner, to £15.50 from £13.30 while retaining a sell rating, as it takes a more constructive view of the sugar business. The broker expects sugar to be less of a drag on earnings than previously forecast, with adjusted operating profit estimates raised by £35 million for the financial year ending in September 2026 and £71 million for 2027. It expects the sugar division to post an adjusted operating loss of about £35 million in 2026, improving to a £3 million profit in 2027, compared with previous forecasts for losses of £48 million and £68 million respectively. The changes reflect higher sugar price assumptions and the timing of the impact from a currency devaluation in Malawi, with about £25 million of the effect now expected to fall into the 2027 financial year rather than 2026. Citi expects Primark, Associated British Foods’ largest business, to remain broadly in line with consensus expectations, with the retailer also benefiting from changes to European Union low-value import rules in the fourth quarter. The broker expects the acquisition of Hovis to be marginally dilutive to earnings in 2027, while its revised sum-of-the-parts valuation supports the higher £15.50 target. Associated British Foods is due to provide a trading update on Thursday, with investors watching for further evidence on Primark’s performance and the outlook for sugar. Continue reading