Sector movers: Centrica powers utilities gains

15th Mar 2010 14:42

Centrica is fuelling gains in the utilities sector.Expectations of strong growth in the UK and the US have prompted Nomura to raise its rating on the British Gas owner to 370p from 340p.The broker, which has a 'buy' rating on the stock, notes that Centrica is already the largest energy provider in the UK with 16m accounts and is adding customers due to its competitive prices and an improvement in customer service.CSR leads the technology hardware & equipment sector lower after UBS downgraded the chip-maker to 'neutral' from 'buy'. The broker raises its target price on CSR, which makes chips for Bluetooth and GPS devices, to 540p from 495p, but thinks the stock is reaching fair value levels.Top performing sectors so far todayForestry & Paper 4,966.67 +1.12%Gas, Water & Multiutilities 4,262.27 +0.91%Industrial Transportation 2,305.93 +0.71%Fixed Line Telecommunications 1,840.68 +0.61%Beverages 8,393.95 +0.57%Bottom performing sectors so far todayTechnology Hardware & Equipment 412.79 -1.81%Automobiles & Parts 2,892.19 -1.59%Mining 22,977.95 -1.38%Oil Equipment Services & Distribution 17,409.85 -1.31%Industrial Metals & Mining 5,948.89 -1.17%