Brokers' views: Edison Investment Research

In a note entitled ‘Ready for lift-off’, Edison outlines the merits of AIM-listed Byotrol, the company behind ‘a unique technology to facilitate the safe eradication of harmful microbes’ including MRSA, swine flu and C-difficile.

Analysts Nigel Harrison and Neil Shah note that, after a prolonged period of development, as well as the appointment of a new CEO, research client Byotrol, which grew sales threefold to £3.15 million in the year to March, has a renewed focus on business generation, ‘with many projects moving inexorably from trials towards the launch pad’.

Confessing that the timing is tough to assess, the duo are nevertheless ‘optimistic that the group will move into profitability and become cash generative towards the end of the current trading year’ and argue that the 14.5p shares are now ‘looking very interesting’, adding that the £12 million market capitalisation ‘seriously undervalues the quality of the technology’.

Medical mover
In a similar vein, Edison thinks the market is missing a trick with regard to global medical devices concern Consort Medical – currently 371.25p – providing ‘a defensive and dividend-paying growth opportunity for investors’ and with a device development and manufacturing business that is ‘cash generative and forms the foundation for future growth’.

This year, Edison envisages ‘normalised’ profits of £16.9 million on improved turnover of £120.1 million, giving earnings of 44.5p and a 19.1p dividend. This places Consort’s shares on a forward multiple of 8.3, where they offer a 5.1 per cent yield. ‘On a p/e basis,’ writes Edison, ‘Consort looks attractively priced and also has a better dividend yield compared with peers.’