London open: Ex-div stocks offset a surging Admiral
7th Mar 2012 08:34
- Admiral surges 11 percent on full-year results. - Ex-div stocks provide a drag. - Greek debt-swap deadline looms. Following the 2.8 percent tumble over the last three days, the Footsie opened broadly flat on Wednesday ahead of tomorrow's deadline for the Greek debt-swap. A surge in the share pric
Read moreTuesday broker round-up - UPDATE
6th Mar 2012 09:20
Serco: Credit Suisse lifts target price to 650p from 600p, remains at outperform. Capita: Credit Suisse revises target to 820p from 770p, retains outperform. Wolseley: UBS downgrades from buy to hold. Pace: Peel Hunt upgrades from hold to buy, raises target to 99p from 75p. International Power
Read moreLondon close: Miners lead the decline as China cuts GDP forecast
5th Mar 2012 16:36
- Chinese growth forecasts dampens miners. - UK and Eurozone PMIs disappoint. - Steering Committee to participate in Greek debt swap. London's blue chip index fell to its lowest level of the day on Monday as concerns over the global economy dampened the mood. Miners bore the brunt of the sell-off i
Read moreMonday broker round-up - UPDATE
5th Mar 2012 09:03
Weir: Citi cuts to sell from neutral, shaves target to 1,850p from 1,950p. Morrison: Oriel downgrades to sell from reduce. Tesco: Oriel downgrades to reduce from hold. Sainsbury: Oriel downgrades to hold from add. Serco: Bank of America downgrades to neutral from buy. Afren: Credit Suisse rais
Read moreLondon close: Stocks finish higher after volatile session
28th Feb 2012 17:08
- Ireland to hold referendum on fiscal compact. - US economic data comes in mixed. - GKN leads fallers after full-year results. The Footsie finished just 0.2 percent higher on Tuesday as losses over lunchtime were pared in the afternoon with stocks seesawing on some mixed economic data in the US. S
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: GKN drops despite hiking divi
28th Feb 2012 14:49
Automotive and aerospace engineer GKN dropped into the bottom spot despite hiking its total dividend by a fifth after seeing double-digit growth in both sales and profits in 2011. The group did report a subdued performance in GKN Aerospace as it has struggled with governments' defence spending remai
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie edges higher, GKN tumbles
28th Feb 2012 11:48
-Footsie trade within narrow range, edges 0.2% higher. -GKN, Whitbread, Serco disappoint after results/updates. -Persimmon jumps 13% after announcing cash return. London's FTSE 100 index held on to moderate gains by lunchtime, after having traded within a narrow range of just 19 points in the morni
Read moreLondon open: Banks, miners provide a lift early on
28th Feb 2012 08:38
- Banks, miners rise strongly. - GKN drops after full-year results. - Persimmon surges after handing back cash to shareholders. The FTSE 100 opened higher on Tuesday, despite a negative reaction to statements from GKN, Whitbread and Serco, as banks and miners rose strongly following yesterday's bac
Read moreLondon pre-open: German agreement boosts sentiment
28th Feb 2012 07:27
City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open up 9 points from yesterday's close of 5,916, with Germany's agreement to the Greek bailout package providing a boost to investor sentiment. In companies, last year was a record breaking year on many fronts for Rotork with the valve engineering group set
Read moreUS slow-down a concern at Serco
28th Feb 2012 07:11
Outsourcing giant Serco made play of the increasing importance of overseas markets to its revenue stream in its 2011 results but it is the US market that is putting the frighteners on shareholders. The group, which operates the bike hire scheme and the Docklands Light Railway in London, said 2011 w
Read moreTuesday preview: Whitbread, GKN, Serco, Persimmon
27th Feb 2012 18:55
Tuesday will be the day to wake up and smell the coffee as Costa Coffe chain owner Whitbread issues a trading update at 7:00am. Whitbread is not just about Costa Coffee, however; it also owns pub restaurants such as the Beefeater chain, not forgetting the Premier Inn hotels chain. It is the latter
Read moreLondon open: Stocks fall as Greek talks drag on
27th Jan 2012 08:20
UK stocks slipped in early trading on Friday, giving up some gains made yesterday on the back of the post-Fed rally, as focus again returns to Greece with talks over the debt swap continuing to weigh on investors' minds. Both sides taking part in the negotiations over the degree of private sector i
Read moreLondon pre-open: Moderate fall expected
27th Jan 2012 07:22
City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open down 27 points from yesterday's close of 5,795, following in the footsteps of US markets, which yesterday settled lower on poor economic data. Public sector services group Serco has signed a contract with the UK Ministry of Defence to provide training a
Read moreSerco awarded MoD contract
27th Jan 2012 07:01
Public sector services group Serco has signed a contract with the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to provide training and support to the British Army prior to deployment on operations around the world. Serco will provide pre-deployment training including language, culture and operational environment
Read moreBroker snap: Credit Suisse downgrades Bunzl to underperform
16th Jan 2012 10:18
Credit Suisse has downgraded its rating for distribution and outsourcing firm Bunzl from neutral to underperform, saying the "valuation has gone too far". "We appreciate Bunzl's defensive, cash generative qualities at a time of macro concern, but after a strong run (34% in five months vs. FTSE All
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