E-House China Holdings "buy," target price raised - update

11/16/07 - Lazard Capital Markets

NEW YORK, November 16 (newratings.com) - Analysts at Lazard Capital maintain their "buy" rating on E-House China Holdings (EJ), while raising their estimates for the company. The target price has been raised from $23 to $35.

In a research note published this morning, the analysts mention that the company has posted robust 3Q results, with revenues ahead of the estimates due to robust contribution from the primary agency services, secondary brokerage and consulting businesses. While E-House China Holdings’ margins were short of the estimates due to higher-than-expected COGS and a one-time payment, the company’s EPS was ahead of the estimates, the analysts say. E-House China Holdings has a robust new project pipeline, which provides high visibility into the company’s growth in 2008, Lazard Capital adds. The EPS estimates for FY07 and FY08 have been raised from $0.46 to $0.50 and from $0.70 to $0.73, respectively.