Wednesday broker round-up UPDATE
23rd Apr 2014 09:04
AB Foods: Numis upgrades from sell to reduce with a target price of 2240p. AstraZeneca: Citi raises target price from 3500p to 4900p and upgrades to buy. Fenner: Investec cuts target price from 375p to 360p and reiterates its sell recommendation. Genus: N+1 Singer upgrades to hold with a target p
Read moreLondon pre-open: FTSE to open marginally lower
23rd Apr 2014 07:40
Following yesterday's surge on the back of bid speculation and M&A activity within the pharma sector, today's session looks set for a fairly flat start, with the top tier expected to inch marginally lower early on. City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open around seven points below yesterday's c
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Barclays leads banks higher on shake-up speculation
17th Apr 2014 14:07
The share price of Barclays rose strongly on Thursday amid speculation the bank could announce thousands of further job cuts in its investment banking division as part of a corporate shake-up. Barclays released a statement today which announced that it would update shareholders next month on its s
Read moreLloyds agrees retail ECN swap
17th Apr 2014 07:37
Lloyds Banking Group has received demand from retail investors to swap 58.5m pounds worth of its Enhanced Capital Notes (ECNs) for new additional Tier 1 (AT1) capital bonds. The FTSE 100 group said it had also now issued around £5.35bn of new AT1 bonds in exchange for £5bn of ECNs as part of separa
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Ukraine, Lloyds, Yahoo
16th Apr 2014 07:20
In the early hours of the morning Ukraine began its "anti-terrorist" operation in the northern part of the Donetsk region. The country's President described it as "phased, responsible and balanced". Ukrainian military units took up positions around the region, setting up checkpoints along key roads.
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Lloyds Banking, Rio Tinto, Tesco
13th Apr 2014 16:14
Lloyds Banking Group is planning to begin the sale of its TSB division in mid-May despite recent market ructions, the Sunday Telegraph said. The initial public offering would see TSB listed on the stock exchange by the end of May. Some investors are questioning the value of 1.5bn to 2bn pounds place
Read moreFCA ponders changes to bank overdrafts
10th Apr 2014 14:20
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has proposed working with the competition regulator to ensure banks' overdraft mechanisms and fees are fairer. As overdraft fees generate a third of the revenue from personal account banking in Britain, the prospect of the financial watchdog imposing changes c
Read moreBarclays tops UK watchdog's complaints list
9th Apr 2014 12:32
Barclays Bank faced more controversy on Wednesday as it topped a watchdog's list of the UK's most-complained about banks, but gripes about financial service companies fell overall. Retail customers launched nearly 310,000 complaints against Barclays between July and December last year, the Financia
Read moreMetro Bank founder to launch online bank Atom
9th Apr 2014 12:22
Anthony Thomson, the founder and former Chairman of Metro Bank has unveiled plans to launch Atom, the first 'truly digital' retail and business bank. The new online bank, which is due to open in 2015, will offer both consumer and business banking. Thompson, who will take on the role of Chairman,
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Sports Direct shares dive
8th Apr 2014 14:41
Sporting goods retailer Sports Direct sunk sharply after it was reported that Founder Mike Ashley is selling 200m pounds-worth of shares, taking his stake from 62 per cent to 58 per cent. Goldman Sachs said it will place up to 24m shares acquired from MASH Holdings, Ashley's investment vehicle, wi
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks at two-week low as Sports Direct and grocers fall
8th Apr 2014 11:52
- FTSE 100 at lowest since March 24th - Ukraine tensions flare up - US stocks fall ahead of Q1 earnings season - Sports Direct sinks on Ashley share sale, grocers fall techMARK 2,697.79 -1.18% FTSE 100 6,559.14 -0.96% FTSE 250 16,015.95 -1.52% UK stocks fell one per cent by Tuesday lunchtime, tra
Read moreUK banks pay out 600m pounds for mis-selling, FCA says
8th Apr 2014 10:43
Britain's biggest banks have so far paid around 600m pounds for mis-selling interest rate hedging products, according to the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The banks have set aside £4bn to compensate small firms. Banks including Barclays, HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Gr
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Insurance, Sports Direct, Tesco
6th Apr 2014 08:57
The Financial Conduct Authority ignored Bank of England warnings that it had created a false market in insurance shares for more than five hours, the Sunday Times writes. A newspaper report that the FCA planned a clampdown on insurance policies going back up to 30 years caused shares of Legal & Gene
Read moreUS demand for Cocos takes Lloyds ECN swaps to 5.4bn pounds
3rd Apr 2014 11:54
Lloyds Banking Group has received institutional demand to swap 1.6bn dollars worth of its Enhanced Capital Notes (ECNs) for new additional Tier 1 (AT1) capital bonds. ECNs were bonds issued to help bail out the bank in 2009 and are also known as contingent convertibles or Cocos. The bank will have
Read moreBroker tips: Weir, Lloyds, SABMiller, Babcock
1st Apr 2014 12:52
Canaccord Genuity has retained its 'buy' recommendation for engineer Weir Group on the back of a possible merger with Finnish peer Metso, saying that "this deal has the potential to be very exciting". "Our first thoughts are on a strategic basis, a deal would make considerable sense with scope for
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