Broker tips: Insurers, Housebuilders, Lloyds, RBS, Anglo American
5th May 2015 11:43
Barclays Capital has lowered its recommendation for the entire European insurance sector from 'neutral' to 'negative'. The broker said companies are facing "significant and growing" capital and earnings headwinds, particularly in parts of the life insurance sector. As part of the sector-wide downgra
Read moreLondon midday: Markets up but gains limited ahead of election
5th May 2015 11:37
Stocks started the shortened trading week positively on Tuesday, taking their cue from gains in Europe and the US the previous day. After being closed on Monday for the bank holiday, the FTSE 100 was up 0.38% at 7,012.52 by midday, rising for the third straight session. However, falls from HSBC, mi
Read moreNomura upgrades RBS to 'neutral' after recent weakness
5th May 2015 10:21
Nomura has raised its rating on banking group RBS from 'reduce' to 'neutral' after the recent fall in the stock. "Exposure to UK and Irish macro strength, release of excess capital from Citizens, and underperformance of c24% against SX7P [Stoxx Europe 600 Banks index] offset the litigation and execu
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: RBS, Labour, First-time buyers
5th May 2015 06:44
The Times has said that RBS was under pressure to strip companies of their assets to improve its balance sheet. "The bank's global restructuring group, which was supposed to help businesses in trouble with debt, was given a remit by RBS's management to focus on reducing exposure to businesses that h
Read moreThursday broker round-up
30th Apr 2015 18:01
Schroders: Credit Suisse reiterates outperform and 2,770p target price. Tesco: UBS restarts coverage at buy with 260p target. Pearson: Westhouse Securities reiterates sell and 1,185p target price. RBS: Shore Capital reiterates hold, Numis reiterates add (with 400p target), Investec reiterates hold
Read moreLondon close: Stocks edge higher despite mixed earnings, data
30th Apr 2015 16:23
UK stocks managed to erase earlier losses to settle in positive territory on Thursday as investors picked up bargains following heavy losses over the last two sessions. The FTSE 100 finished 0.21% higher at 6,960.63, bouncing back after hitting a low of 6,906.24 early on amid a mixed batch of corpor
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Shire surges on earnings growth, RBS hit by weak revenues
30th Apr 2015 13:04
Shire surged after reporting that earnings rose 20% in the first quarter as sales at the Dublin-headquartered drug company overcame a sharp drop in its Intuniv attention deficit disorder drug and dollar headwinds. Royal Dutch Shell was trading higher after revealing a better-than-expected 56% drop i
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks erase losses but weak earnings limit upside
30th Apr 2015 12:02
Uncertainty surrounding US monetary policy and a raft of poorly-received corporate earnings kept the FTSE 100 flat on Thursday morning, with the index fluctuating at its lowest in three weeks. The FTSE 100 was up just 0.09% at 6,952.66 by midday, with RBS, IAG and Schroders limiting upside after dis
Read moreBroker tips: RBS, British American, Shell, RPS Group
30th Apr 2015 11:51
A quick reaction note from Bernstein on Royal Bank of Scotland praised a "strong beat" on operating expenses and lower restructuring costs than it expected, with its 'outperform' rating maintained and target price moved to 450p. Delivering its investment case, Bernstein said that once the restructur
Read moreJefferies sees good progress on rebuilding capital at RBS
30th Apr 2015 09:52
Revenues at RBS weakened over the first three months of the year as £856m in litigation and conduct charges left a gaping hole in the bank's bottom line. Instead of the £306m in statutory profits expected by analysts the lender registered a loss of £446m, as conduct and litigation had been expected
Read moreLondon open: IAG, RBS and Schroders lead UK markets lower
30th Apr 2015 09:13
UK stock markets picked up where they left off on Thursday, falling for the third straight day on the back of mostly worse-than-expected corporate earnings and hawkish comments from the Federal Reserve. The FTSE 100 was trading 0.43% lower at 6,916.69 early on, with heavyweights IAG, RBS and Schrode
Read moreBernstein bullish on RBS despite larger losses
30th Apr 2015 09:05
A quick reaction note from Bernstein on Royal Bank of Scotland praised a "strong beat" on operating expenses and lower restructuring costs than it expected, with its 'outperform' rating maintained and target price moved to 450p. The broker predicted RBS will spend roughly £9bn in litigation and rest
Read moreRBS reveals larger losses than feared after forex rigging charges hit
30th Apr 2015 07:16
Royal Bank of Scotland made a £446m loss in the first quarter of the year, more than double what had been feared as it was hit by £453m of restructuring costs and set aside £856m for litigation and conduct charges. RBS had been expected to report an attributable loss of £176m in the three months to
Read moreThursday preview: UK corporate giants RBS, Shell, IAG report interims
29th Apr 2015 13:25
A raft of company results from the likes of Royal Bank of Scotland, Royal Dutch Shell and International Consolidated Airlines (IAG) will dominate the UK earnings session on Thursday. RBS is likely to report a significant drop in statutory pre-tax profit in the first quarter amid the lender's major o
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Weir rockets on quarterly beat, Antofagasta hit by production cuts
29th Apr 2015 13:19
Industrial engineer Weir Group topped the risers after delivering a better-than-expected first quarter from minerals, its largest division. However, the company did say it was "taking further action to support profitability" in its oil and gas division amid tough conditions. Shares of Intercontinent
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