Wednesday preview: FTSE 100 big hitters swing results
22nd Jan 2013 15:53
A parade of FTSE 100 companies will be under the spotlight Wednesday as Unilever, BHP Billiton, Land Securities Group and Sage Group release their latest results. Consumer goods giant Unilever will release its fiscal year statement. Consensus expectations are for fiscal year 2012 revenue of €51,29
Read moreSABMiller Marketing Director trades in shares
15th Jan 2013 16:53
Nick Fell, the Marketing Director of SABMiller, has sold 12,400 shares, it was announced Tuesday. The transaction, which took place last week, saw Fell trade in the shares at 2,886.82p per share, pocketing a total of £357,966 before tax. At the end of November the company reported that it had bee
Read moreLondon close: Markets nervous ahead of Bernanke Q&A
14th Jan 2013 16:48
- Bernanke could spark market volatility - Traders cautious ahead of US earnings season - Eurozone industrial production disappoints Dovish comments from a member of the Federal Reserve weren't enough to lift stocks on Monday, as markets remained cautious ahead of a speech by Ben Bernanke this even
Read moreLondon midday: Financials lead markets higher
14th Jan 2013 11:46
UK stocks were trading cautiously on Monday morning ahead of the official start of US corporate earnings season. However, markets were registering slight gains after dovish comments from a member of the Federal Reserve Stateside. Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans said that the
Read moreThursday broker round-up UPDATE
10th Jan 2013 07:10
Afren: Morgan Stanley takes target price from 215p to 220p and reiterates an overweight rating. Alent: Bank of America starts with a target price of 370p and a buy recommendation. Associated British Foods: Goldman Sachs moves its target price from 1160p to 1190p and maintains a sell rating. AVEVA
Read moreLondon close: Stocks edge higher as markets look to US jobs report
6th Dec 2012 16:33
- BoE and ECB keep policy on hold - Draghi says ECB discussed rate cut - Eyes turn to US employment report London's blue-chip index finished with slight gains on Thursday after central banks in the UK and Europe announced that they had kept policy on hold, with the market's focus now turning to the
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Rolls-Royce drops on fraud investigation
6th Dec 2012 15:42
Power systems giant Rolls-Royce tanked after saying that it is to report to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) after matters of bribery and corruption involving so-called 'intermediaries' were discovered in Indonesia and China. BAE Systems performed well today. Lockheed Martin is close to winning Pent
Read moreLondon midday: Gains erased as investors await ECB decision
6th Dec 2012 12:08
The Footsie had erased most of the morning's gains by Thursday lunchtime, as investors awaited a policy rate decision in Europe and some jobless claims figures in the US later this afternoon. As expected, the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted to maintain the Bank Rate at 0.5% at tod
Read moreBroker tips: StanChart, Sage, Premier Farnell
6th Dec 2012 11:22
Investec has reiterated its 'buy' rating and 1,800p target price for emerging markets lender Standard Chartered following the group's pre-close trading update, saying the business is 'sitting pretty'. "STAN may have travelled well ahead of today's statement, but with improving momentum into 2013e,
Read moreBroker snap: Upgrades unlikely for Sage, says UBS
6th Dec 2012 10:07
UBS has cut its target price for accountancy software group Sage from 305p to 300p and kept its 'neutral' rating for the stock, saying that the second half was 'solid' but upgrades to forecasts are unlikely. Full-year results announced on Wednesday were broadly in line with expectations at the oper
Read moreThursday tips round-up: Sage, Numis and Tesco
6th Dec 2012 06:46
Tempus writes that business solutions provider Sage, which enjoys a market rating a little more than 13 times this year's earnings that would be more appropriate to a fast-growth business, seems to have gone ex-growth. Two points stand out from yesterday's results. One, a positive, that Sage is doi
Read moreLondon close: Markets unfazed by Osborne's budget
5th Dec 2012 17:10
- Miners gain on Chinese optimism - OBR cuts GDP forecasts - US ISM data lifts markets in afternoon trade The Footsie finished the day with decent gains on Wednesday as investors mostly shrugged off Chancellor George Osborne's budget statement, with the upbeat mood helped by economic data from the
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Miners lead the way
5th Dec 2012 15:16
Mining stocks were performing well today on increasing optimism about China; Vedanta, Kazakhmys, Anglo American and Rio Tinto were all making decent gains. Precious metals giant Polymetal also advanced after saying it was giving $191m dollars back to shareholders by way of a special dividend. Su
Read moreSector movers: Sage drags IT sector lower after full-year results
5th Dec 2012 14:57
A sharp fall by Sage saw the software and computer services sector drop to the bottom of the pile on Wednesday afternoon. Sage Accountancy software group Sage reported broadly in-line full-year figures with organic revenue growth up 2%, marking a slowdown from the 4% growth in 2011. Chief Execut
Read moreLondon midday: Tesco and miners gain ahead of UK budget
5th Dec 2012 11:40
The FTSE 100 had come off its earlier highs but was still trading in positive territory by Wednesday lunchtime, as markets await the Autumn Statement from Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne. He is set to say: "In this Autumn Statement, we show that this coalition government is confronting t
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