You may not have heard of Ashtead Group yet. It is a British company specializing in the rental of capital goods. Their portfolio includes scissor lifts, construction equipment, pumps, generators, and safety barriers. The group operates in the United Kingdom under the name A-Plant and in the United States and Canada as Sunbelt.

Despite an increase in revenue and profits, expectations were not met. The attributable profit for the six months was $941.4 million US dollars, compared to $891.2 million US dollars a year ago. Earnings per share were $2.14 US dollars, compared to $2.01 US dollars. Revenue amounted to $5.57 billion US dollars, compared to $4.80 billion US dollars in the previous year. Analysts had expected a net profit of $983.9 million US dollars or $2.24 US dollars per share, while revenue was estimated at $5.56 billion US dollars.

Ashtead pays higher interim dividend The board declared an interim dividend of $0.157 US dollars per share, payable to registered shareholders on February 8, 2024. A year ago, the company paid $0.150 US dollars per share.

Expectations lowered for 2024 For the fiscal year 2024, the company lowered its expectations for rental income growth to 11% to 13% from its previous forecast of 13% to 16%. But what potential does the construction equipment supplier offer in light of this mixed background?

Analysts see potential for 52% increase Conclusion: As you can see from the above chart, the stock had a very volatile performance this year, but overall, not much has happened. A look at analyst expectations looks much more positive. 14 out of 18 analysts recommend buying and 4 recommend holding. The average analyst target price is 60 British pounds. However, the highest analyst target price is 82 British pounds, which would offer a maximum potential of 52%.