UBS raised its price targets for Greek banks on Thursday, reiterating its “buy” recommendation, saying valuations remain attractive despite a rally of nearly 70% in banking shares since the start of the year.

The Swiss lender noted that Greek banks are still trading at a discount to their European peers, with price-to-earnings ratios of 7.9 times for 2026 and 6.9 times for 2027, compared with averages of 9.1 times and 8.3 times, respectively, for European banks.

UBS lifted its price target for Alpha Bank to €4.00 from €3.70, implying a 19% upside. Eurobank’s target was raised to €4.10 from €3.64 (28% upside), National Bank of Greece to €14.90 from €13.40 (26% upside), and Piraeus Bank to €8.60 from €7.60 (25% upside).

While valuations remain appealing, UBS said the question is whether Greek banks should continue trading at a discount. “Not necessarily,” the bank said, pointing to a strong macroeconomic recovery, resilient profitability, potential growth from capital deployment, and Greece’s low 10-year bond yield at 3.4% — close to Spain’s 3.2% and Italy’s 3.5%.

The main constraint, UBS added, is relatively modest earnings-per-share growth of about 5% annually between 2024 and 2027, compared with 8% for European peers.

UBS analysts raised their price targets for Greek lenders by 8% to 13%, citing lower cost of equity assumptions due to reduced risk and improved earnings visibility.

Source: tovima.com

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