UK MARKET TALK ROUNDUP: SHARES LOSING

13th Jul 2010 09:37

Stocks on the fall in the UK today. Compiled by Dow Jones Newswires Markets Desk, [email protected] Contact us in London. +44-20-7842-9464 [email protected] 0837 GMT [Dow Jones] Investec raises Tate & Lyle (TATE.LN) price target to 550p from 475p. Thinks the move to dispose of its European sugar assets is a good deal for Tate as a break-even business with a challenged model has been disposed of for GBP211M. Also, says any thoughts that the chief executive might be "long on management speak and short on action" have been dispelled. Says Tate is closer to fair valuation range and thinks consensus is suitably cautious. But adds, "the market will enjoy traveling with the story for a while yet." Keeps at buy. Shares -0.6% at 483p. ([email protected]) 0819 GMT [Dow Jones] Panmure Gordon cuts Luminar (LMR.LN) price target to 6p from 12p following the company's disappointing trading update. Notes trading continues to be very difficult, with like-for-like sales down 19.9% for the first 19 weeks of the year. The brokerage says that without a material improvement in trading, it is difficult to see how Luminar will make inroads into its debt pile. Reiterates sell recommendation. Shares -8.7% at 11p. ([email protected]) 0713 GMT [Dow Jones] Goldman Sachs downgrades Northern Foods (NFDS.LN) to neutral from buy and cuts target price to 49.5p from 100p as it sees few near-term catalysts for a re-rating. Although the shares trade at a significant discount to historical levels, Goldman believes concerns over the company's leverage and pension liability will continue to act as a deterrent and prevent a re-rating. Notes since being added to the buy list on August 7 '08, the shares are down 16% vs the FTSE World Europe and reckons this reflects market concerns. Shares -1.1% at 46p. ([email protected]) 0711 GMT [Dow Jones] Goldman Sachs downgrades Tate & Lyle (TATE.LN) to sell from neutral and cuts price target to 390p from 493p. The shares are trading at a premium to the ten-year historical average in anticipation of improved performance due to a focus on specialty food ingredients, says GS. However, the brokerage says earnings improvements as a result of restructuring will take some time to materialize given underlying operational weaknesses and challenges faced by other divisions. GS adds that the company falls into the bottom quartile of earnings growth relative to mid-cap peers. Shares -1.9% at 477p. ([email protected]) 0710 GMT [Dow Jones] Goldman Sachs downgrades Premier Foods (PFD.LN) to neutral from buy and cuts the price target to 22.5p from 51p. Sees few near-term catalysts for a re-rating. Thinks concerns over Premier's leverage and pension liability will continue to weigh on the shares. Notes that since being added to Goldman's buy list in May '09, the shares are down 48% versus the FTSE World Europe. Thinks this underperformance reflects weak underlying trading and the market's concerns on the pension and debt. Shares are -1.9% at 20p. ([email protected]) Contact us in London. +44-20-7842-9288 [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 13, 2010 04:37 ET (08:37 GMT)