London midday: Losses pared but Footsie still down

19th Mar 2012 11:42

- Greece 'more than halfway' along path to recovery- Vodafone up on tax benefit reports from CWW takeover- Misys jumps on recommended bid from VistaLosses were halved by lunchtime but the Footsie still remained in the red on a relatively quiet day for company results and economic data. Markets are looking ahead to Wednesday's Budget in the UK, while keeping an eye on Greece as the nation's outlook continues to improve, albeit gradually.Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos told the Financial Times this morning that he is "convinced that we are more than halfway along the path to economic recovery - although the fiscal consolidation process will be longer." He said that positive growth rates should be achieved within two years.Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizlos is to step down from his position after being elected at the weekend to lead the socialist Pasok party in national elections.Meanwhile, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director, Christine Lagarde, said yesterday in Beijing that she saw promising signs of stabilisation in the global economy. Although she recognised that risks still existed, including a small slowdown in emerging market growth, she said she is more optimistic in part due to actions taken by the European Central Bank and the improvement in US macro data. Closer to home, the annual Budget is looming and never before has the build-up proved to be so contentious. The rumour mill is working overtime and demands are being made on Chancellor George Osborne from all sides. And in the current climate, this puts him in a perilous political position with little room for manoeuvre. VODAFONE RISES ON CWW SYNERGIESTelecoms giant Vodafone was on the up after the Sunday Times said that the it could save up to £1bn in taxes if it succeeds in its takeover of Cable & Wireless Worldwide. CWW's shares were also advancing on the second-tier index.Insurance group Resolution was a high riser after JP Morgan Cazenove raised its target price from 251p to 267p. However, the broker did maintain its underweight position on the stock, while Oriel Securities reiterated its hold rating. In other broker ratings changes, Resolution's sector peer Standard Life was taken down a peg by Credit Suisse which cut its recommendation from neutral to underperform. Tullow Oil has been downgraded by at least two brokers today, UBS and HSBC. Bank of America-Merill Lynch has taken a swipe at National Grid, downgrading the utilities stock from buy to neutral.Construction giant CRH and real estate investment trust Land Securities were under the weather ahead of Wednesday's Budget. In a research note this morning, Jefferies said that potential stamp duty reforms could adversely affect commercial property. Investors of Burberry were being scared off by reports that potential income tax and VAT increases in France could affect the demand for luxury goods. InterContinental Hotels was out of favour after launching a new brand, HUALUXE, of hotels and resorts in China, which will look to tap into the growth of domestic travellers and the increase in outbound international travel by Chinese peopleFTSE 250: MISYS RECEIVES 350P-A-SHARE OFFER FROM VISTA The big news of the morning was surrounding FTSE 250 financial software developer Misys, which has recommended to it shareholders a 350p-a-share cash offer by Magic Bidco Limited, an investment vehicle indirectly owned by Vista Funds. The offer equates to 22 times clean 2012 EV/NOPAT, according to Merchant Securities analyst Roger Phillips, which is an "amazing multiple given moribund organic performance over the last five years," he said.Shares were up nearly 8% despite the firm also revealing that revenues are down 3% in the year-to-date, affected by the "cautious approach" adopted by customers and continuing challenging conditions in financial markets. The company also withdrew its medium-term revenue and margin targets.House builder Berkeley was flat despite saying that it has delivered a robust trading performance in the four months to February 29th. The group said that demand for its residential property in 2012 has remained resilient, encouraging it to top up its land bank. Northern Russia-focused oil producer Exillon Energy fell after delaying its short-term output target due to "operational difficulties". Pre-tax loss totalled $7.1m in 2011, compared to a loss of $3.7m the year before, on revenue that surged from $84.8m to $203.0m.BCFTSE 100 - RisersResolution Ltd. (RSL) 283.90p +1.83%BT Group (BT.A) 217.90p +1.07%ARM Holdings (ARM) 582.00p +0.95%Hammerson (HMSO) 427.40p +0.56%Vodafone Group (VOD) 167.25p +0.54%Polymetal International (POLY) 966.00p +0.47%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 28.25p +0.39%Old Mutual (OML) 163.70p +0.31%Kingfisher (KGF) 303.20p +0.30%Whitbread (WTB) 1,719.00p +0.29%FTSE 100 - FallersCRH (CRH) 1,375.00p -2.41%National Grid (NG.) 632.50p -1.79%International Power (IPR) 358.50p -1.78%Fresnillo (FRES) 1,765.00p -1.78%Evraz (EVR) 403.70p -1.68%Standard Life (SL.) 246.60p -1.64%GKN (GKN) 213.70p -1.61%Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,637.50p -1.50%Land Securities Group (LAND) 732.50p -1.41%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 489.70p -1.33%FTSE 250 - RisersGem Diamonds Ltd. (DI) (GEMD) 281.00p +11.51%Misys (MSY) 355.70p +7.95%Essar Energy (ESSR) 131.50p +5.28%Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CW.) 34.58p +3.25%Halfords Group (HFD) 304.60p +2.97%Dixons Retail (DXNS) 17.50p +2.94%Northgate (NTG) 227.10p +2.76%BH Global Ltd. USD Shares (BHGU) 11.9 +2.59%Rank Group (RNK) 133.00p +2.47%Ophir Energy (OPHR) 447.10p +2.24%FTSE 250 - FallersComputacenter (CCC) 441.60p -4.39%Petra Diamonds Ltd.(DI) (PDL) 174.90p -3.77%Ocado Group (OCDO) 127.30p -3.41%Exillon Energy (EXI) 210.80p -3.30%Telecom Plus (TEP) 663.50p -3.14%New World Resources A Shares (NWR) 434.30p -2.82%International Personal Finance (IPF) 265.30p -2.25%Drax Group (DRX) 516.00p -2.18%Heritage Oil (HOIL) 159.80p -2.14%Soco International (SIA) 324.40p -2.02%