Sector movers: DS Smith and Smiths Group boost industrials higher

27th Jun 2013 14:51

Industrial stocks were performing well on Thursday with well-received results from DS Smith and a broker upgrade for Smiths Group boosting the sector higher.FTSE 250 paper and plastic packaging company DS Smith jumped today after seeing annual pre-tax profits soar 51% and revenue surge 86% following a "transformational year". Analysts at Investec said that the results were ahead of forecast on all metrics, highlighting the 36% increase in the dividend to 8.0p which was "significantly more than we had expected (6.5p)".DS Smith said that results were boosted by the €1.6bn acquisition of SCA Packaging in June last year which doubled the size of the business.Smiths Group, the technology business which makes a range of products from contraband detection to medical devices, was a high riser on the FTSE 100 after UBS upgraded its rating from 'neutral' to 'buy'.Smiths, which last month confirmed it had received an approach for its Medical division, is negotiating a potential sale to CareFusion, according to the Financial Times. The unit could fetch £2.8bn and is likely to attract bidders for other Smiths businesses, UBS said on Thursday.Given that a sale would reduce the conglomerate discount that some apply to Smiths' valuation, UBS thinks that the disposal could drive a re-rating, something that is not reflected in current prices.Meanwhile, Rexam, the consumer packaging manufacturer, was also in demand today, rebounding after a heavy fall on Tuesday when the company admitted that full-year trading would be below expectations. Rexam also announced its intention to put its Healthcare division up for sale. Top performing sectors so far todayGeneral Industrials 3,803.29 +2.70%Software & Computer Services 1,086.74 +2.66%Electricity 9,450.18 +2.58%Industrial Engineering 9,098.29 +1.76%Automobiles & Parts 6,995.49 +1.60%Bottom performing sectors so far todayIndustrial Metals & Mining 1,153.95 -1.78%Real Estate Investment Trusts 2,271.90 -0.06%