Berenberg Maintains Geberit's Buy Rating After 'Strong' H1 Performance

06:35 AM EDT, 08/20/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Berenberg affirmed its investment opinion on Geberit (GEBN.SW) after "strong" first-half results for the sanitary products manufacturer. "The key highlight was Q2: sales increased 8.8% in local currencies, accelerating sharply from +3.4% in Q1. Growth was broad-based across regions and all three product areas, while margins remained remarkably resilient despite higher material costs. Overall, the results are ahead of both our and consensus expectations and, importantly, stronger than the trajectory embedded in our FY26 forecasts. We reiterate our Buy rating and confirm our price target of CHF650," analysts said Thursday. For the six months ended June 30, Geberit recorded net sales of 1.71 billion francs and EBITDA of 529 million francs with a 30.9% margin. Looking ahead, the company projects full-year 2026 net sales growth of 5% to 6% in local currencies. "The European construction recovery is also becoming increasingly tangible. Yet management is still not assuming a broad-based construction boom, which makes the current growth particularly encouraging: Geberit is benefiting from gradually improving markets while continuing to gain share. Renovation, which accounts for c60% of sales, provides additional resilience," Berenberg wrote. Against this backdrop, the research firm raised its sales projections for 2026 through 2028 by 1% and lifted its EPS estimates for the same three years by 1.6%, 1.3% and 1%, respectively.