Week Ahead: Morrisons, Supergroup, BoE rate decision
2nd Sep 2011 12:43
Fast growing supermarket chain Morrisons releases interim results next week, and broker Nomura Securities thinks the group's marketing campaigns such as Biggest Ever Price Crunch and Fuel Britannia will have gone down well with "austerity Britain". The broker reckons the company will unveil 2.0% g
Read moreNorcros sells land to Morrisons
31st Aug 2011 08:57
Norcros, the home products group behind Tritons showers, is to sell land to Morrisons, the supermarket chain, in a deal which could be worth £2.6m. The deal will see Morrisons pay £8.25m to Norcros but only after planning consent is granted. At that point Norcros will have to invest £5.65m in infr
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: United Biscuits, riot fallout, petrol price cuts
14th Aug 2011 19:09
United Biscuits could be broken up as its owners plan to revive attempts to sell the company. The move could see its biscuits business, including the McVitie's brand, separated from its crisps and nuts division, which includes the KP label. The private equity groups Blackstone and PAI Partners have
Read moreTesco cheesed off at price fixing fines
10th Aug 2011 11:52
The Office for Fair Trading (OFT) has fined supermarkets and dairy groups a total of nearly £50m for fixing cheese and milk prices in 2002 and 2003. It has imposed fines totalling £49.51m on all of the big four supermarkets, Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Safeway (which was bought by Morrisons) and f
Read moreMBL in talks to sell two subsidiaries
29th Jul 2011 13:23
Struggling entertainment products distributor MBL Group has confirmed that it is in advanced talks to dispose of two of its subsidiaries. The group released a statement saying: "As of now, no deal has been agreed and there can be no certainty that a disposal will take place. A further announcement
Read moreLondon close: Miners dominate fallers as global worries continue
16th Jun 2011 16:45
Global growth worries dampened the markets on Thursday as all but a few constituents on the FTSE 100 finished in the red. While the Footsie edged higher in the late afternoon, it still closed under the 5,700 level, a level not seen since mid-March. FTSE 100 closed down 44 at 5,699. A lack of clarit
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Autonomy leads the decline
16th Jun 2011 14:12
Just three stocks are making gains, with WPP, Capita and Vodafone edging slightly higher. Meanwhile, Autonomy is the worst performer on the blue chip index, losing over 4%. Engineering peers GKN, IMI and Weir are also lower. The miners are lower today, as global growth fears dampen the markets. Lo
Read moreSector movers: Insurers rise, retailers fall
7th Jun 2011 16:09
The life insurance sector is being boosted higher by the blue chips today, after Resolution announced a share repurchase. UK insurance buyout firm Resolution was the pick of the bunch today, after announcing its plans to return £500m of excess cash to shareholders. Citi has reiterated its 'buy' r
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Insurers dominate the risers
7th Jun 2011 15:34
UK insurance buyout firm Resolution is the pick of the bunch today, after announcing its plans to return £500m of excess cash to shareholders. Citi has reiterated its 'buy' recommendation on the stock, saying that - given lower asset and debt leverage - "the Resolution business should be at a premi
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Glencore, Southern Cross, Morrisons
2nd Jun 2011 06:06
Newly listed commodities trader Glencore has been barred from borrowing from the European Investment Bank (EIB) because of "serious concerns" about how the company is run. The bank, the lending arm of the EU, yesterday said it had frozen all new loans to the Switzerland-based group which floated in
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: Morrisons, executive pay, Northern Ireland
31st May 2011 06:23
Morrisons is aggressively outbidding its rivals to secure new stores, particularly in the southern England, signalling the scale of its ambitions under chief executive Dalton Philips. The Bradford-based grocer is on a mission to grab property for both standard supermarkets and conveniences stores, w
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Morrisons, RBS, Betfair ...
22nd May 2011 11:15
Wm. Morrison, the number four player in the UK supermarket sector, is plotting a £1.5bn bid for Iceland, the frozen food retailer, according to The Sunday Times. A takeover of the chain would nearly triple the number of Morrisons stores and bring its market share to within a whisker of Asda and Sain
Read moreLondon close: Another day of big losses for FTSE 100
5th May 2011 16:51
Stocks fell sharply having started the day well, with banks and miners among the heaviest fallers. First quarter profits fell sharply at part-nationalised lender Lloyds Banking, which closed down 8% today, as the bank took an impairment charge that was half a billion pounds larger than it was expec
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Schroders drops after profit misses targets
5th May 2011 15:26
Asset management firm Schroders has taken a tumble as profits came short of expectations in the first quarter. The group's profit before tax rose to £103.8m, from £93.2m in the first quarter of 2010, but that wasn't enough for investors who were hoping for a figure closer to £117m. Lloyds has also
Read moreLondon midday: FTSE 100 back on the slide
5th May 2011 12:07
The top share index has given up its bright start to resume the slide suffered yesterday, with banks leading the fall. The mining sector, which had started brightly, is also lower. First quarter profits fell sharply at part-nationalised lender Lloyds Banking, as the bank took an impairment charge t
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