On Wednesday I looked at three ASX shares that brokers have given buy ratings to this week.
Unfortunately, not all shares are in favour with them right now. Three that have just been given sell ratings are listed below. Here's why these brokers are bearish on them:
ALS Ltd (ASX: ALQ)
According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts have downgraded this testing services company's shares to a sell rating and trimmed the price target on them to $8.00. The broker made the move due to concerns over the mining backdrop. After looking into global drilling and equity activity, it expects ALS' sample flow softness to persist into the second half and possibly beyond. As a result, it has downgraded its earnings estimates and price target accordingly. The ALS share price is down 5% on the news to $8.95.
Iluka Resources Limited (ASX: ILU)
Analysts at Citi have downgraded this mineral sands company's shares to a sell rating with a $9.00 price target. According to the note, the broker made the move largely on valuation grounds after a solid share price gain in recent months. Since the end of August, Iluka's shares have risen a massive 37%. And while the broker expects the global economy to grow in 2020 and support commodity prices, it isn't enough to stop it from downgrading Iluka's shares. The Iluka share price is down 1.5% to $9.34 on Thursday.
Medibank Private Ltd (ASX: MPL)
A note out of UBS reveals that its analysts have retained their sell rating but lifted the price target on this private health insurer's shares slightly to $2.80. The broker notes that Medibank has had a 3.27% increase in private health insurance premiums approved for 2020. Whilst this is better than many other operators in the industry, the broker appears concerned that Medibank could struggle to maintain its market share. It also previously suggested that weaker margins could mean earnings will decline in both FY 2020 and FY 2021. The Medibank share price is changing hands at $3.26 today.