Hanson Westhouse

Having pored over strong third-quarter results from Chinese silicon recycler and corporate client ReneSola, genial analyst Barney Gray reckons a share price of around 400p ‘significantly undervalues’ the company. Aggressive capacity expansion plans are on track and Hanson Westhouse is ‘confident’ the company will meet its forecast total output of 124MW of silicon wafers for the full year.

This, allied to a tight rein on administration costs and the ‘likelihood of a lower-than-expected foreign exchange loss in [the fourth quarter]’, leads Gray to ‘modestly’ increase full-year forecast earnings to 17.1p. However, for 2008, he foresees earnings doubling to 39.6p, placing ReneSola on a 2008 multiple of ten.

A pretty picture at cartoon-maker
Meanwhile, analyst Jodi Littlepage has sketched out her views on another shop client, Dutch children’s cartoon-maker BKN International, following its preliminary results for the year to September. The company, which has released an array of new titles including Dork Hunters from Outer Space and Zorro: Generation Z, lifted margins and profits, but ‘the marketplace remains competitive’.

Littlepage believes that, with a burgeoning portfolio sold to broadcasters in 95 countries, ‘longer-term demand for BKN’s series and films will be incrementally fuelled by the streaming of its products through the net’. A new online platform will help drive portfolio sales and strengthen the brands, enabling fans to enjoy free downloads as well as purchase the group’s DVDs and an online-streaming technology is in development. Anticipating that BKN will gain market share as its mainstream brands strengthen, Littlepage has inked in 14.5 per cent growth in pre-tax profits this year to €6.3 million (£4.5 million) and 33c of earnings for a price-to-earnings ratio of below ten.