Halma margin upgrade drives UBS and Panmure Liberum forecast rise

What Brokers Say Industry & Services Written by: Ian Lyall 09:30 Fri 25 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. Halma PLC ( LSE:HLMA ) View Price & Profile Halma margin upgrade drives UBS and Panmure Liberum forecast rise Published: 09:30 25 Sep 2026 EDT Halma PLC (LSE:HLMA) margin upgrade prompted UBS to raise its target to 5,000p from 4,775p, while Panmure Liberum lifted forecasts but retained its 4,620 pence target. Both brokers maintained their 'buy' ratings following the technology group’s first-half pre-close trading update. Management raised adjusted EBIT margin guidance for the 2027 financial year to 23.5% to 24.0%, from approximately 22.7%, while reaffirming low double-digit organic constant-currency revenue growth. UBS increased its adjusted EBIT forecast by 4.5% to £695 million and diluted earnings per share by 3.4% to 132.03p. Panmure Liberum raised corresponding estimates by 5.7% to £700.6 million and 4.9% to 133.3p, respectively. UBS expects the update to drive about a 4% upgrade to consensus adjusted EBIT forecasts. The stronger margin outlook is underpinned by operational delivery, a favourable product and portfolio mix across Safety, Environmental & Analysis and Healthcare, and contributions from acquisitions and disposals. Management reported order intake ahead of both revenue and the previous year, supporting its growth outlook. UBS said revenue guidance implied approximately 30% organic growth in Photonics, adding around five percentage points to group growth. Halma has invested a record £515 million in six acquisitions this financial year, offset by approximately £83 million from three disposals. Panmure Liberum estimates acquired businesses carry a weighted-average EBIT margin of about 35% and believes the higher group margin is sustainable. The broker raised its year-end net debt forecast, including leases, from £441.9 million to £747.6 million. It sees capacity for further acquisitions, with forecast net debt/EBITDA of 1.0 times below the 2.0 times upper limit. Management also expects a slight 0.3% currency headwind if prevailing exchange rates persist. In the near term, Panmure Liberum expects first-half cash conversion of approximately 88% as Halma invests for second-half delivery, with improvement thereafter. Half-year results are due on 19 November 2026. Continue reading