Wednesday newspaper round-up: BP, Bank capital, Direct Line
10th Oct 2012 06:30
Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, has stamped her seal of approval on Greece's austerity plan and vowed to stand by the country as "partner and friend", signalling almost certain approval for the next tranche of EU-IMF Troika aid. The German leader - protected by 6,000 police - braved hostile cr
Read moreLondon open: Footsie bolstered by miners ahead of US data
5th Oct 2012 08:48
- Burberry, Wood Group and miners lift FTSE 100 early on - Markets await US payrolls data - IMF to cut global GDP forecast Stocks edged higher on Friday morning ahead of some closely-watched jobs data from the US later today; Burberry, Wood Group and the miners were among the highest risers on the
Read moreFriday broker round-up
5th Oct 2012 08:19
Anglo American: AlphaValue upgrades from add to buy. Betfair: Panmure Gordon cuts target from 1,000p to 977p, buy rating kept. BHP Billiton: AlphaValue downgrades from add to reduce. Burberry: Morgan Stanley upgrades to overweight, target kept at 1,190p; UBS keeps neutral rating and 1,170p target
Read moreLondon close: Stocks end flat after BoE and ECB decisions
4th Oct 2012 17:02
- BoE and ECB hold rates - US data beats estimates - Next leads risers after broker comments The Footsie swung between gains and losses for most of Thursday's session but finished the day broadly flat following a busy day on the global economic calendar, which saw policy decisions in the UK and Eur
Read moreWalker Greenback's CEO sells 100,000 shares
3rd Oct 2012 16:08
Walker Greenback's Chief Executive Officer, John Sach, has sold 100,000 ordinary shares in the company on the same day the luxury interior furnishings group reported an increase in half year sales. The boost to sales came after an upturn in the US interior furnishings industry despite the fact tha
Read moreFriday tips round-up: Compass, Kingfisher, Diageo
28th Sep 2012 07:17
Compass, the world's largest catering company, has proved an impressive investment through the financial crisis, with the shares up almost 200 per cent from their 2008 lows, but even this most defensive of companies cannot escape the fallout from the Eurozone debt crisis. Compass has responding by s
Read moreKingfisher CEO ditches exercised options
25th Sep 2012 16:26
Kingfisher's Chief Executive Officer, Ian Cheshire, has exercised options over 164,144 shares and subsequently sold 143,040 of them less than a fortnight after the B&Q owner admitted that miserable weather in the UK and northern Europe had a serious impact on footfall in the first half of its financ
Read moreBroker tips: Smiths, Ashtead, Kingfisher
19th Sep 2012 13:18
On the whole analysts at Credit Suisse have a favourable opinion of the final results posted today by Smiths Group. They thus describe the company´s second half performance as "solid," while highlighting the 10% top line growth and 19.2% margin achieved. Nevertheless, they also take note of the com
Read moreBroker snap: Nomura downgrades Kingfisher to neutral
19th Sep 2012 13:14
Nomura has this morning downgraded its view on the shares of do-it-yourself retailer Kingfisher to neutral from buy. This as housing starts in France have been declining since the start of the year, which should weigh on Brico's performance, thus creating uncertainty around near-term trading for t
Read moreKingfisher beefs up board
19th Sep 2012 09:53
DIY retailer Kingfisher has beefed up its board with the appointment of three new executive directors. Karen Witts, who was named as Group Finance Director in July, will take a seat on the board on October 1st when she joins the company. Sitting around the table she will find new boys Euan Sutherl
Read moreThursday broker round-up
13th Sep 2012 09:17
Anite: Jefferies keeps buy rating and 160p target. BAE Systems: Investec downgrades from hold to sell, target raised from 350p to 290p; Societe General downgrades to sell; Oriel Securities downgrades to hold, target lifted from 350p to 370p. Bank of Georgia: Seymour Pierce keeps buy rating and 1,6
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: German ruling boosts financials
12th Sep 2012 13:48
UK banking stocks advanced after Germany's high court approved the Eurozone's new rescue fund, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), with Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Standard Chartered and HSBC were making gains by this afternoon. RBS was also benefiting after Liberum Capital lifte
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks rally after German vote on ESM
12th Sep 2012 11:48
- Stocks jump after ESM vote in Germany - Spain considering ECB bond purchases - Banks lead the rally The FTSE 100 had swung into positive territory by Wednesday lunchtime with banking stocks in the lead after Germany's high court approved the Eurozone's new rescue fund, the European Stability Mec
Read moreBroker tips: Kingfisher, Wolseley, Barratt
12th Sep 2012 11:10
Seymour Pierce has downgraded its rating for B and Q owner Kingfisher from 'hold' to 'sell' and trimmed its target price from 290p to 240p following the group's first-half results which were significantly affected by the weather and foreign exchange losses. "Despite downgrades in recent weeks, inte
Read moreBroker snap: Seymour Pierce downgrades Kingfisher to 'sell'
12th Sep 2012 09:07
Seymour Pierce has downgraded its rating for B and Q owner Kingfisher from 'hold' to 'sell' and trimmed its target price from 290p to 240p following the group's first-half results which were significantly affected by the weather and foreign exchange losses. "Despite downgrades in recent weeks, inte
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