London afternoon: Footsie holds above 5,600
11th Mar 2010 14:32
A steady decline continued through lunch, but London bounced off 5,600 despite a weak start on Wall Street as mining sector losses narrowed very slightly. Falling commodity prices have damaged miners Thursday. Investors decided to take profits in Fresnillo, Randgold, Rio Tinto, ENRC, Kazakhmys, BHP
Read moreSector movers: Retailers on the rise
11th Mar 2010 13:11
Home Retail Group is among the stocks lifting the retail sector. The Argos and Homebase operator said benchmark profit before tax for the year will be around £290m, slightly ahead of current market expectations. In the 8 weeks to 27 February, total sales at Argos declined by 6.6% to £537m. Total
Read moreLondon midday: Thos. Cook a ray of sunshine
11th Mar 2010 12:08
The Footsie has drifted into the red, weighed down by the weakness of mining stocks. Among the miners Fresnillo, Randgold Resources, Rio Tinto, ENRC, Kazakhmys, BHP Billiton and Xstrata are all on offer, as metals prices retreat. Smith & Nephew is under the weather after coming out on the wrong
Read moreLondon open: Miners lead decline
11th Mar 2010 08:17
London's main index is being dragged lower by mining stocks, though Old Mutual is the weakest link among the blue chips after it published full-year results this morning. South African insurer Old Mutual has resumed dividend payments following a better second half and is exploring the sale of US Li
Read moreDignity profits rise 6%
11th Mar 2010 07:50
The constant nature of Dignity's business helped the funeral service provider post a rise in revenues and profits in the year to 25 December. Pre-tax profits climbed to £37.5m from £35.4m on revenues that rose to £184.7m from £175.8m. During the period the company acquired seven funeral locations,
Read moreRevenue growth eases at Dignity
9th Nov 2009 07:28
Acquisitive funeral services provider Dignity said its businesses continue to trade in line with management expectations. The group, which has acquired seven funeral locations and five crematoria sicne the start of the year, saw revenue rise 5% to £137.3m in the 39 weeks to 25 September, from £130
Read moreLondon close: Upward march recommences
29th Jul 2009 16:47
Footsie was back to winning ways Wednesday as investors digested a stream of company updates. Fund manager Schroders led the way after Morgan Stanley upgraded the firm to "overweight" from "underweight" and raised its price target to 1,045p from 710p. Rexam was the major faller after it launched
Read moreLondon afternoon: Financials lift Footsie
29th Jul 2009 14:33
Risers outnumber fallers by around three to one among FTSE 100 constituents, as the blue-chip index resumes its upward climb following yesterday's pause for breath. Financial stocks lead the advance, with insurers Aviva, RSA and Standard Life to the fore, as is part-nationalised bank Royal Bank of
Read moreFTSE 250 movers: Updates shake up mid-cap index
29th Jul 2009 14:19
With several mid-cap firms in the news today, there has been a lot of movement in both directions. Shares in wireless technology group CSR lead the FTSE 250 higher after it said an end to destocking from customers should have a positive effect on third quarter revenues. Car dealer Inchcape is hot
Read moreBroker tips: Schroders, Dignity, Inchcape
29th Jul 2009 13:35
Fund manager Schroders is seeing strong demand for its European corporate bond product, prompting Morgan Stanley to upgrade the stock. Morgan Stanley (MS) has changed its stance on Schroders from "underweight" to "overweight" and ramped up its price target from 710p to 1045p, arguing that the marke
Read moreBroker snap: Book profits at Dignity
29th Jul 2009 12:42
It is time to take profits at funeral services provider Dignity, reckons broker KBC Peel Hunt, after the share's good run since early May. The broker said Wednesday morning's results were in line with expectations, with the second quarter showing a slowdown from the first. With the shares now tradi
Read moreLondon midday: Blue-chips advance on broad front
29th Jul 2009 11:50
Having seen its winning streak come to an end yesterday Footsie is back on the rise today despite some mixed corporate news. Rexam is the major faller after it launched its well-flagged rights issue to raise £351m at a big discount to the current share price. The interim dividend has also been scra
Read moreDignity profits rise, positive outlook
29th Jul 2009 11:05
Funeral services provider Dignity reported a 7.6% rise in half year profits and said its expectations for the full year continue to be positive. Underlying pre-tax profits rose to £22.7m in the 26 week period ended 26 June compared with £21.1m previously. Revenue rose 5.5% to £95.6m. The group has
Read moreFriday tips round-up: Costain, Diageo, Menzies
26th Jun 2009 06:44
Costain shares are pricey and each time the contractor puts out one of its impressive updates, the share price increases by a little less than last time. The truth is that everyone expects Costain to keep churning out the good results and the stock has become stymied. The Independent, though, argue
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