FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - Shares in Heidelberg Materials continued their upward trend on Wednesday following a recommendation from Bank of America (Bofa). They rose by 2.5 percent to 85.40 euros around noon, reaching a high since February 2018. Only the shares of real estate group Vonovia recorded more significant gains in the DAX at midweek, rising 2.8 percent.

Heidelberg Materials made it to second place in the Dax in 2023 with a price increase of almost 52%. The building materials group benefited from a good order situation for infrastructure projects and parts of the commercial construction sector. This partially offset declines in residential construction. In addition, the situation on the energy market eased in 2023 after prices had skyrocketed a year earlier as a result of the war in Ukraine. As cement production in particular consumes a lot of energy, Heidelberg Materials also countered this with price increases.

Analyst Arnaud Lehmann from Bank of America sees further upside potential for Heidelberg Materials even after the recent rally. He raised the target from 78 to 105 euros and upgraded the shares from "Neutral" to "Buy". The expert is also optimistic about CRH. The stock is a "top pick" for him. CRH shares rose by around one percent in London.

However, Lehmann became more cautious for other sector stocks: he downgraded the shares of Swiss Heidelberg competitor Holcim from "buy" to "neutral", as well as the shares of Saint-Gobain. Both shares fell. In the eyes of the analyst, some shares in the sector have recently risen too sharply. Very optimistic expectations regarding an industry recovery are now priced in, he wrote.

Analyst Elodie Rall from the bank JPMorgan was also positive about Heidelberg Materials following a discussion with Group CEO Dominik von Achten. The manager was optimistic about business development. The European construction market is still weak, but there are some signs of stabilization, especially in residential construction. With a view to the USA, the markets remain strong./mis/ck/jha/