Broker snap: Investec downgrades HSBC after recent outperformance
13th May 2013 16:14
Shares of HSBC Holdings are currently close to five-year highs and further upside is limited, according to Investec which has cut its recommendation from 'buy' to 'reduce'. The broker said it was "perfectly comfortable" with HSBC's first-quarter results last week which saw sharply lower impairments
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks snap winning streak as Chinese data disappoints
13th May 2013 11:51
Disappointing economic data from China on Monday put an end to a seven-day winning streak in London which lifted the FTSE 100 to a five-and-a-half-year high last week. London's benchmark index reached a closing price of 6,625 on Friday afternoon, a level not seen since late 2007, meaning that it ha
Read moreLondon open: Markets pause after strong run last week
13th May 2013 08:48
Weakness in the financial sector meant that the FTSE 100 was in the red on Monday morning, with investors pausing for breath after the index reached fresh multi-year highs last week. London's benchmark index reached a closing price of 6,625 on Friday afternoon, a level not seen since late 2007, mea
Read moreMonday broker round-up UPDATE
13th May 2013 07:18
Bioquell: Investec shifts target price from 136p to 141p and keeps a hold recommendation. blinkx: Canaccord Genuity moves target price from 125p to 135p reiterating its buy recommendation. Britvic: Panmure Gordon increases target price from 380p to 460p and retains a hold recommendation. BT Group
Read moreThursday broker round-up UPDATE
9th May 2013 07:23
Alkane Energy: Liberum Capital initiates with a target price of 44p and a buy recommendation. Anite: Panmure Gordon shifts target price from 170p to 171p and maintains a buy recommendation. Atkins: Credit Suisse raises target price from 770p to 822p, but downgrades to underperform. Avacta Group:
Read moreWednesday broker round-up UPDATE
8th May 2013 09:08
Altitude Group: WH Ireland initiates with a target price of 50p and a buy recommendation. Betfair Group: Deutsche Bank increases target price from 725p to 884p, while staying with its hold recommendation. Nomura raises target price from 766p to 883p and reiterates a neutral rating. Exane BNP ups ta
Read moreLondon close: Stocks end higher after Australian rate cut
7th May 2013 16:31
Market Movers techMARK 2,417.98 +0.11% FTSE 100 6,557.30 +0.55% FTSE 250 14,101.42 -0.03% UK stocks charged higher on Tuesday, buoyed by the unexpected cut to Australia's policy cash rate, which prompted a strong start in the US. Stocks also rose on the back of Japanese markets rising to their hi
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: ENRC up after shareholder significantly ups stake
7th May 2013 15:57
Shares in natural resources giant ENRC moved higher after Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov bought a 2.86 per cent stake in the group. Kerimov's purchase, which is estimated to have cost in the region of $176m, takes his share in the company to 3.05%. HSBC was also on the rise after posting a
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks firmer as policy makers move to buttress growth
7th May 2013 11:49
Investor sentiment seems to have firmed a little in the first half of the session. That comes after a cautious start higher after the long weekend and as traders continued to debate about how much further the current push higher in equity markets has to go. Be that as it may, the latest data from t
Read moreHSBC's profits soar in first quarter as bank cuts costs
7th May 2013 09:28
HSBC reported a 95 per cent increase in pre-tax profits in the first quarter as the bank slashed costs and bad debts. Profit before tax for the three months to March 31st came to $8.4bn, up from the previous year's $4.3bn, as revenue rose by 14% to $18.4bn from $16.2bn. The company reduced operat
Read moreLondon midday: Miners buoy Footsie ahead of US jobs data
3rd May 2013 11:43
Strength in the mining sector kept the FTSE 100 in positive territory on Friday morning, though the index was rangebound ahead of the all-important US jobs report due out this afternoon. A surprise drop in American jobless claims yesterday pushed the S&P 500 to a new all-time high last night as mar
Read moreHSBC sells stake in Hana HSBC Life Insurance
29th Apr 2013 13:10
HSBC Insurance, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of banking giant HSBC Holdings, has agreed to sell its 50 per cent stake in Hana HSBC Life Insurance Company to Hana Financial Group. The transaction, which is expected to be completed by May 10th, is part of the company's strategy for the develo
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Lloyds, ENRC, Apple...
24th Apr 2013 06:49
The proposed deal to sell more than 600 Lloyds branches to the Co-op have collapsed after the latter said it could not proceed with the transaction, according to the Financial Times. "The cancellation of the deal, originally worth up to £750m under terms struck last summer, is set to be announced
Read moreHSBC axes further 1,149 UK jobs to cut costs
23rd Apr 2013 13:01
HSBC is cutting a further 1,149 jobs in the UK as bank of its three-year cost-cutting plan. The redundancies come on top of a 2,200 cull a year ago at the bank's UK operations. The bank, which employs just over 47,000 employees in Britain, said 3,166 positions would be affected. However, just
Read moreLondon midday: Banks provide a lift as markets shrug off UK downgrade
22nd Apr 2013 11:20
Markets were making decent gains on Monday morning, shrugging off the news that Fitch had stripped the UK of it prized 'AAA' credit rating, as investors went bargain hunting following some heavy falls the week before. Despite trimming losses after a decent rebound on Friday, the FTSE 100 still fell
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