London midday:Trade figures derail rally
9th Mar 2010 12:05
Disappointing trade figures announced at 9:30 nipped an attempted rally in the bud and shares spent the rest of the morning in retreat. Data from the Office for National Statistics showed the UK's deficit on trade in goods widened to £7.99bn from £7.01bn the previous month, about £1bn more than ec
Read moreSt Ives profit rises in difficult markets
9th Mar 2010 07:59
Printer St Ives posted an increase in half year profit as it reduced costs but warned that it does not expect any immediate improvement in its underlying markets. Underlying profit before tax from continuing operations rose to £8.4m for the 26 weeks ended 29 January 2010 from £6.2m a year earlier.
Read moreSt Ives awaits recovery, margins improve
26th Jan 2010 17:37
Printer St Ives still hasn't seen any improvement in underlying markets, although margins have improved and its financial position remains 'robust'. 'Whilst sales are expected to be lower in the first half of this financial year than the comparative period for the prior year, margins have improved,
Read moreSt Ives sees no print recovery
30th Nov 2009 07:38
Printer St Ives' sales fell by a further 9% in the last 13 weeks compared to last year, though heavy cost-cutting maintained profitability in line with its targets. The book business continues to benefit from steady demand, though magazine volumes have shown no sign of improvement as pagination con
Read moreTuesday tips round-up: Yule Catto, Hardy Underwriting, St Ives
20th Oct 2009 06:46
The upgrades to earnings forecasts after specialist chemicals group Yule Catto's latest tading update yesterday ? the third in four months ? imply that Yule will achieve pre-tax profits this year of £39m, 19% higher than last. Yule still trades at a reasonable nine times next year's earnings, despi
Read moreLondon close: Oil fired Footsie
19th Oct 2009 17:10
Boosted by a bright start on Wall Street equities finished the day with a flourish in London with the FTSE 100 index close to racking up a triple digit gain. Energy stocks saw some late interest as the price of oil moved higher. At midday in New York the price of the most widely traded oil futures
Read moreLondon afternoon: Shares consolidate gains
19th Oct 2009 14:39
After racing off to a fast start leading equities have largely consolidated the gains made in the first hour of trading. Property stocks are among the best performers after a positive note on the sector from Evolution Securities, which has upped its ratings for British Land, Liberty International
Read moreLondon midday: More gains for Footsie
19th Oct 2009 12:14
Mining and property stocks have sparked another strong morning for the FTSE 100 index. Miners Fresnillo, Kazakhmys, Vedanta, Anglo American, Xstrata and Antofagasta are leading the way. Property stocks are lifted by a positive note on the sector from Evolution Securities, which has upped its rat
Read moreLondon open: Bright start as buyers keep at it
19th Oct 2009 08:34
London's blue chips are storming forward again helped by another possible bid emerging for National Express and a lack of anyone selling. Only five Footsie stocks are currently in the red with Cable & Wireless the worst performer, but it is down less than 1%. Fresnillo,Vedanta and British Land are
Read moreLondon pre-open: Higher start expected
19th Oct 2009 07:49
Footsie is expected to edge higher in early dealings. National Express has confirmed it is considering a possible merger proposal from rival bus and train group Stagecoach but is also pressing ahead with its plans for an equity issue to relieve its debt burden. Distribution group Bunzl said it ha
Read moreSt Ives swings into FY loss
19th Oct 2009 07:27
Printing group St Ives reported a full year loss as the group battles against extreme competition and an oversupplied market. The group, which prints the Economist and Vogue magazines, said loss before tax came in at £7.2m for the 52 weeks ended 31 July 2009 compared with a profit of £30.6m. Revenu
Read moreSt Ives slumps on new warning
2nd Jun 2009 08:07
Shares in printer St Ives slumped by a fifth as it issued yet another profit warning with prices under pressure and margins being squeezed. Total sales for the 39 week period from 2 August 2008 to 1 May 2009 rose by 2.7% but the mix of sales was less beneficial with a higher proprotion of bought-i
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