Thursday broker round-up - UPDATE
12th Jan 2012 09:08
Reckitt Benckiser: J.P. Morgan Cazenove downgrades to neutral from overweight. Tesco: Nomura reiterates buy rating and 500p target; Panmure Gordon cuts target from 500p to 440p, buy rating unchanged. Royal Bank of Scotland: Shore Capital reiterates sell. Tesco: Shore Capital downgrades to hold fr
Read moreJD Sports LFL sales jog up over festive period
12th Jan 2012 08:02
Sports fashion wear retailer JD Sports Fashion has reported positive trading for the five weeks to 7 January. During the period gross like-for-like (LFL) sales in the core UK and Ireland fascias increased by 1.6% (Sports Fascias +2.3%: Fashion Fascias -0.7%), while net LFL sales increased by 0.1%.
Read moreLondon close: Footsie drops after Merkozy meeting
9th Jan 2012 16:59
The FTSE 100 finished close to its lowest levels of the day with resource, pharmaceuticals and banking stocks providing a drag in the afternoon session. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy gave a press conference earlier today in which they outlined details of their
Read moreFTSE 250 Movers: JD jumps on Blacks talks
9th Jan 2012 16:04
Sports fashion wear retailer JD Sports Fashion jumped after confirming press speculation that it is in talks to buy assets of struggling camping equipment retailer Blacks Leisure and that talks are at an advanced stage. Shares in Blacks Leisure were suspended on 6 January as the company enters an ad
Read moreLondon midday: Eyes on Merkozy meeting as Footsie falls
9th Jan 2012 11:43
London's blue chip index was trading slightly lower by midday, following a moderate rise early on, with all eyes on the meeting between Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy. The German Chancellor and French Prime Minister are to hold a press conference in the next hour in which they are expected to d
Read moreJD Sports confirms Blacks talks
9th Jan 2012 08:11
Sports fashion wear retailer JD Sports Fashion has confirmed press speculation that it is in talks to buy assets of struggling camping equipment retailer Blacks Leisure and that talks are at an advanced stage. A further announcement will be made on conclusion of those discussions. On December 7
Read moreJD Sports front-runner to acquire Blacks Leisure
6th Jan 2012 17:46
Retailer JD Sports Fashion is reportedly in the box-seat to scoop up the juicy bits of Millets stores owner Blacks Leisure after the outdoor goods group goes into administration. A source familiar with the situation has informed news agency Reuters that the sports fashion-wear seller has out-bid Sp
Read moreFTSE 250 movers: SVG Capital rockets 20%
20th Dec 2011 16:13
The big mover of the day was private equity firm SVG Capital, which jumped over 20% after revealing that it return up to £170m to shareholders via share buy-backs and tender offers as part of a new investment strategy. SVG reported that it had strengthened its balance sheet with cash balances stan
Read moreLondon midday: Banks and pharmas drag Footsie lower
20th Dec 2011 11:54
London's blue chip index was slightly down at midday, despite a temporary stint in the blue, with heavyweight banking and pharmaceuticals stocks providing a drag. The Footsie nevertheless has been trading within a narrow range, with just 33 points separating the intraday low and high. The European
Read moreLondon close: Banks tumble as Osborne speaks
19th Dec 2011 16:19
The Footsie tanked in late afternoon trade with the government's response to Sir John Vickers banking report weighing heavily on the banking sector. In a debate in the House of Commons, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne said that lenders should be forced to ring-fence their high street len
Read moreFTSE 250 movers: Ocado drops as Q4 fails to deliver
19th Dec 2011 15:33
Online grocer Ocado sank after revealing that it had to operate "under capacity constraints" at its Hatfield distribution centre in the fourth quarter. Profit margins had been hit by production issues as well as the cost of employing extra staff as it installed further capacity, the company said. S
Read moreFTSE 250 Movers: Christmas comes early for Thomas Cook
25th Nov 2011 13:23
Thomas Cook and market competitor TUI Travel were both on the up after it was reported that the cash-strapped Thomas Cook is set to survive though the Christmas period thanks to the support of its banks. According to speculation, the firm will recieve £100m to keep it afloat in the coming days. A
Read moreLondon close: German bond auction response unnerves investors
23rd Nov 2011 17:05
After an uneventful morning session that came as a relief after the turbulent events of recent days, shares turtned sharply lower in the afternoon session, as US markets took a bath. The results of this morning's German bond auction set nerves a-jangling. Germany issued €3.644bn in 10-year bonds
Read moreFTSE 250 Movers: Thomas Cook regains lost ground
23rd Nov 2011 15:33
Thomas Cook was regaining lost ground after plummeting on Tuesday on the revelation that it would delay the release of its results until it has asked its banks about borrowing more money. The company is running short of cash due to a "deterioration of trading in some areas of the business in the cur
Read moreLondon midday: Reassuringly dull morning session
23rd Nov 2011 12:01
It has been a comfortingly dull morning session in London after all the excitement of recent weeks, though there is no sign of Footsie bringing an end to its losing streak, though its cause is not helped by the index constituents Man, Next and Standard Life trading in ex-dividend form. MINERS HEAD
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