Shares in automotive and aerospace engineer GKN were performing strongly ahead of the firm's trading update later this week, providing a lift to the automobiles and parts sector on Monday afternoon.

Credit Suisse upgraded its rating on the firm on Thursday (April 12th) from neutral to outperform, highlighting the stock's recent underperformance. The group has made headlines in recent months due to the rumoured acquisition of aircraft engine group Volvo Aero, however over the last month (prior to Thursday), the share price had fallen by 11% and underperformed the sector by 4%. The broker said that any concerns surrounding the acquisition are now discounted in the current price.

Meanwhile, Jefferies reiterated its buy recommendation for GKN on Thursday as well, saying that the read-across from last week's takeover of Umeco (from US-listed Cytec Industries) "is perhaps a timely reminder that within GKN, the Aerospace division may represent a store of significant incremental value for shareholders at some point."


Top performing sectors so far today
Automobiles & Parts 4,816.42 +3.41%
Forestry & Paper 6,048.12 +2.00%
Electricity 8,564.12 +1.55%
Food Producers & Processors 5,465.61 +1.52%
Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology 9,655.12 +1.36%

Bottom performing sectors so far today
Life Insurance 4,176.78 -0.98%
Real Estate Investment Trusts 1,883.05 -0.90%
Software & Computer Services 791.12 -0.85%
Financial Services 4,949.03 -0.73%
Insurance (non-life) 1,415.87 -0.44%

BC

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GKN (GKN) share price