Broker snap: Nomura reiterates buy rating for Legal and General

Nomura has maintained its buy rating and 182p target price for insurance group Legal and General, saying that the firm's first quarter showed strong asset management inflows.Sales and flow figures were in line or above expectations, says Nomura. Total new business annualised premium equivalent of £434m was in line with consensus forecasts of £433m, while Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM) net flows of £2.6bn were much stronger than the £1.7bn estimate.However, the broker notes that the company reported a slight miss on its key metric, net cash, which was £210m versus the company consensus of £219m. This was held back by weather-related general insurance claims and the later phasing of scheme start dates for group protection contracts.The stock is trading at just 7.7 times 2012 earnings, compared with the UK sector average multiple of 9.6."We think the shares are attractively valued for a stock that has above average return on equity (ROE) and growth prospects, in our view, and we remain buyers."However, the market reaction to Legal & General's results was not as positive on Thursday morning, with shares down 2.1% at 119.2p early on.BC