Wednesday broker round-up UPDATE
25th Sep 2013 09:46
Amec: JP Morgan reduces target price from 1301p to 1243p and stays with its neutral rating. Amlin: UBS ups target price from 400p to 450p upgrading from neutral to buy. BAE Systems: UBS takes target price from 450p to 490p and maintains a buy recommendation. BHP Billiton: Alphavalue shifts target
Read moreCentrica criticises Labour plans to freeze energy bills - UPDATE
25th Sep 2013 08:37
Utility group Centrica has criticised the Labour party for its plans to halt rising energy prices. On Tuesday, Ed Miliband pledged to freeze gas and electricity bills from May 2015 to January 2017 if his party were to return to power in 2015. That would equal average savings of £120 for househol
Read moreLondon open: Stocks pull back from four-week high
11th Sep 2013 08:19
FTSE 100 opened slightly lower on Wednesday morning as markets paused for breath to digest recent developments in Syria after the government agreed to hand over its chemical weapons. London's benchmark index finished Tuesday's session at 6,583.99, its highest closing price since August 14th when it
Read moreTuesday broker round-up UPDATE
10th Sep 2013 08:17
African Barrick Gold: Investec shifts target price from 135p to 137p, while downgrading from hold to sell. Aquarius Platinum: JP Morgan moves target price from 39p to 49p, while downgrading from neutral to underweight. Citi lowers target price from 66p to 54p and downgrades from buy to neutral. As
Read moreLondon midday: Miners lead markets lower, Fed in focus
19th Aug 2013 12:09
The FTSE 100 was trading slightly lower on Monday morning with heavyweight mining stocks providing a drag as investors scaled back their appetite for risk. Markets were rangebound today with less than 30 points separating the FTSE 100's intraday low (6,477) and high (6,506). This follows the index'
Read moreMonday broker round-up UPDATE
19th Aug 2013 08:27
Arcontech Group: Northland Capital shifts target price from 0.16p to 0.18p and maintains a buy recommendation. Balfour Beatty: Deutsche Bank ups target price from 220p to 280p and upgrades to buy. Bovis Homes Group: Jefferies raises target price from 909p to 995p and keeps a buy recommendation.
Read moreLondon open: Markets lower, but Kentz rockets after AMEC approach
19th Aug 2013 08:27
The FTSE 100 opened slightly lower on Monday morning as traders continue to speculate about the future of the Federal Reserve's quantitative easing programme. The weak start follows the London benchmark's second weekly decline in a row last week and the worst weekly performance on New York's Dow Jo
Read moreLondon open: Stocks fall as markets await Carney's forward guidance
7th Aug 2013 08:31
Markets opened with moderate losses on Wednesday morning as investors turned nervous ahead of the Bank of England's inflation report, the first under the governorship of Mark Carney. The heavyweight mining sector was again providing a drag on the FTSE 100 as metals prices fell, while a number of b
Read moreLondon close: Stocks rally on US data as eyes turn to Fed
31st Jul 2013 16:39
After a cautious start, the FTSE 100 rallied strongly in afternoon trade following some strong economic data from the US, though markets pulled back slightly from their intraday highs by the close as investors awaited a key policy announcement from the Federal Reserve. London's benchmark index fini
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Investors toast solid annual results from Diageo
31st Jul 2013 15:11
Diageo, the beverages company behind the Guinness, Baileys and Smirnoff brands, was a high riser on Wednesday after delivering a solid five per cent increase in full-year net sales, driven by strength in the North American and spirits markets. Drinks company SABMiller was also making gains. Centric
Read moreLondon midday: Markets celebrate fall in Eurozone unemployment
31st Jul 2013 12:03
A fall in unemployment in Europe and some well-received corporate earnings pushed the FTSE 100 into positive territory on Wednesday morning, as traders showed optimism ahead of a policy announcement by the Federal Reserve later this evening. Some 24,000 fewer people were without a job in the Eurozo
Read moreLondon open: Markets flat as investors await FOMC, economic data
31st Jul 2013 09:06
Markets in the UK opened broadly flat on Wednesday morning as investors adopted a wait-and-see approach ahead of a policy announcement from the Federal Reserve. All eyes will be on the Federal Open Market Committee as its two-day meeting comes to a close this evening. While few actually think that
Read moreSSE encouraged despite slip in customer numbers
25th Jul 2013 11:41
Scottish & Southern Energy owner SSE has reported an "encouraging start" to its financial year despite a slight drop in customer numbers. The FTSE 100 group's electricity and gas customer accounts shrank slightly in Great Britain and Ireland dipped very marginally from 9.47m to 9.46m during the th
Read moreLondon midday: FTSE 100 pulls back from seven-week high
19th Jul 2013 11:25
Mining stocks were among the worst performers on Friday morning, providing a drag on the FTSE 100 as risk appetite declined following the index's seven-week high reached the day before. London's benchmark index closed at 6,634 on Thursday; the last time the index finished higher was on May 30th whe
Read moreLondon open: Stocks fall after gloomy figures from Microsoft, Google
19th Jul 2013 08:13
The FTSE 100 pulled back from a seven-week high on Friday morning after disappointing results from some Wall Street heavyweights last night. London's benchmark index closed at 6,634 on Thursday; the last time the index finished higher was on May 30th when it closed at 6,657. Both the S&P 500 and
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