by Simon Keane

Landsbanki’s Ian Poulter has retreated from a cautious stance on International Personal Finance (IPF), having made significant upward adjustments to his earnings forecasts.

Poulter has increased next year’s earnings per share (EPS) prediction for the globally diversified doorstep lender by 24% from 17p to 21p.

That revision takes the analyst from second from bottom of the forecast range to second from top. Up until last week’s interim management statement (IMS) Poulter had been fretting over increased competition in IPF’s key Polish market and spill over from the US downturn prompting bad debts in Mexico.

It seems the IMS has prompted Poulter to take a second look: ‘We feared competitive pressures in Poland and economic pressures in Mexico would impinge on revenues and impairment charges respectively,’ says Poulter. ‘IPF continues to report no sign of either concern.’

More favourable exchange rates, as sterling continues to depreciate against European currencies, were also behind the upgrades, which included a 6% mark up for 2006 (15.2p to 16.2p) and 25% revision for 2010 (17p to 21p). Despite the upgrades, Poulter remains lukewarm with a ‘hold’ rating and price target of 275p versus today’s 260.5p.