UPDATE: Deutsche Bank Reiterates Hold Rating, Raises PT on BorgWarner on Q4 EPS

In a report published Friday, Deutsche Bank reiterated its Hold rating on BorgWarner BWA, and raised its price target from $71.00 to $74.00. Deutsche Bank noted, “BWA reported Q4 EPS of $1.16, ex items; ahead of our $1.12 est and cons of $1.14. $0.02 of the upside was related to higher op income, with the rest from lower interest expense, a slightly lower tax rate and share count. Op income of $188M (10.9% margin) was slightly ahead of our $185M est, but still down from $213 M (12% margin) in 4Q11. Half of the yoy margin decline was due to R&D spending. The rest was due to cost/price pressures, which were difficult to offset given limited volume growth. On the top line, BWA outperformed the market (BWA Europe was -4% vs. -11% for the mkt; NA was +10% vs. +8%; Asia was +13% vs. +6%). Maintain Hold rating based on valuation.” BorgWarner closed on Thursday at $75.14.