London open: AstraZeneca leads markets lower as shares sink

19th May 2014 08:33

- AstraZeneca drops sharply after rejecting Pfizer offer - Banking, mining stocks fall - China property concerns weigh on sentiment techMARK 2,714.40 -1.13% FTSE 100 6,823.23 -0.48% FTSE 250 15,475.65 +0.50% UK stocks fell on Monday morning with AstraZeneca leading the decline after rejecting a fi

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Wednesday broker round-up UPDATE

14th May 2014 09:34

African Minerals: Deutsche Bank lowers target price from 335p to 324p maintaining a buy recommendation. Aveva: Panmure Gordon downgrades from buy to hold with a target price of 2199p. Aviva: Panmure Gordon ups target price from 540p to 585p and keeps a buy recommendation. boohoo.com: Investec ini

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Wednesday newspaper round-up: Deflation, HSBC, GSK

14th May 2014 07:13

A sustained period of deflation in the Eurozone could derail Britain's recovery, a group of leading economists has warned. Almost half of the economists surveyed by the Centre for Macroeconomics, a joint study between the Bank of England, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research and th

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HSBC sells Pakistan bank

9th May 2014 12:45

HSBC Middle East has entered into an agreement to sell its banking business in Pakistan to Meezan Bank. The move comes less than a year after failing to receive regulatory approval to sell it to another company, according to Reuters. The Pakistan-based unit has 10 branches along with gross assets

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Sector movers: Barclays and StanChart give banks a boost

8th May 2014 15:36

Well-received first-quarter updates from the likes of Barclays and Standard Chartered gave UK banking stocks a boost on Thursday. Barclays led London's blue chips higher in afternoon trade, up 8.6%, after it pleased the City with plans to slash 14,000 jobs in 2014 across the group as it aimed to be

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Broker tips: Barclays, HSBC, Sage, WM Morrison

8th May 2014 12:48

Investec has applauded Barclays' Group Strategy Update on Thursday, after the bank announced a new round of jobs cuts, mainly in its investment bank (IB), as part of its 'bold simplification'. "Barclays is already a low-risk, profitable bank, but today's 'reset' is about rightsizing the bank to ref

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UBS cuts target for HSBC after weak Q1 revenue performance

8th May 2014 10:01

UBS has lowered its target price for HSBC from 665p to 630p and kept a 'neutral' rating following the bank's first-quarter results, saying that it is still waiting on revenue momentum to resume. HSBC's pre-tax profit fell 20% year-on-year to $6.8bn, slightly below UBS' forecast for $6.9bn, though t

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Thursday broker round-up UPDATE

8th May 2014 08:40

Anglo American: Deutsche Bank ups target price from 1510p to 1550p and retains a hold recommendation. Balfour Beatty: Berenberg reduces target price from 350p to 290p and keeps a buy recommendation. BBA Aviation: JP Morgan cuts target price from 386p to 369p retaining an overweight rating. Bodyco

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Thursday newspaper round-up: Housing, Barclays, Reckitt Benckiser

8th May 2014 07:05

HSBC said it was on alert for the Bank of England to intervene in the housing sector amid growing concern that a collapse in the booming London market could threaten Britain's economic recovery. The bank's finance director, Iain Mackay, said: "What we are all are all waiting for or perhaps wondering

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Broker tips: HSBC, AstraZeneca, Rolls-Royce...

7th May 2014 13:34

HSBC shares will continue to underperform the wider banking sector following the company's 'mixed' first-quarter results, according to wealth manager Brewin Dolphin. Overall, we would argue that this is a mixed set of results: costs, impairments and capital were all either better or in line with ex

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Brewin expects HSBC shares to underperform after mixed Q1

7th May 2014 13:10

HSBC shares will continue to underperform the wider banking sector following the company's 'mixed' first-quarter results, according to wealth manager Brewin Dolphin. The bank reported a pre-tax profit of $6.79bn in the first quarter, down 20% year-on-year but above the company-compiled consensus es

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London midday: Stocks slip on mixed earnings, Ukraine tensions

7th May 2014 11:57

- Markets give mixed reaction to corporate earnings - Ukraine tensions continue to rise - Investors nervous ahead of Yellen speech techMARK 2,783.30 -0.31% FTSE 100 6,773.54 -0.37% FTSE 250 15,890.46 -0.30% A flurry of mixed corporate earnings pushed UK markets lower on Wednesday morning, while in

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HSBC´s first quarter revenues weighed down by Asia and Latam - UPDATE

7th May 2014 09:34

- Pre-tax profit down 20 per cent  - Impairments, costs fall  - Revenue declines 14 per cent  - 'Muted' customer activity noted in April  Global banking giant HSBC reported a 20 per cent drop in profits in the first quarter despite lower impairments and costs, mainly as revenues fell in Asia and La

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Earthport wins multi-year contract with HSBC

6th May 2014 09:35

AIM-listed Earthport, the cross-border payments service provider, announced it has signed a multi-year contract with HSBC with a 'significant' minimum revenue commitment. The contract will allow the group to expand the coverage of its global disbursements product across countries in Central and Eas

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Sunday newspaper round-up: AstraZeneca, Barclays, Mothercare

4th May 2014 12:49

Pfizer is preparing to put AstraZeneca in a "bear hug" by stating it will not increase its 63 billion pounds offer without getting a closer look at the UK company's drug prospects, the Sunday Times reported. The US giant will lobby Astra's shareholders to force it to enter talks and will also talk a

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