Broker snap: SSE upgraded on potential 2012 upside
8th Apr 2011 10:03
Credit Suisse upgrades energy supplier Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE) from 'neutral' to 'outperform', saying that while last year's results will see many adverse earnings impacts, earnings growth could be strong from here on. The broker says that volumes in the full year ended March look likely t
Read moreLondon close: Shares in late dive
31st Mar 2011 17:19
A late dive sent London's top share index firmly into the red ahead of the close having been flat all day ahead of Ireland's banking stress test. Ireland's central bank said the ailing economy's banks need €24bn (£21bn) to stay afloat. Gold miner Randgold Resources was the star performer in the m
Read moreLondon afternoon: Weak retailers offset strong miners
31st Mar 2011 14:41
Footsie is stuck in neutral, though the flat performance is largely down to strong demand for mining stocks. Gold miner Randgold Resrouces is the star performer in the mining sector after reporting a 55 increase in its attributable mineral resources and reserves for the year to December 2010. T
Read moreLondon midday: Shares fall back
31st Mar 2011 12:18
Shares have slipped into negative territory after a stuttering start on another bad day for the retailers. Tour operator TUI Travel is higher after saying underlying trading has been "satisfactory" during the last six months. Like Thomas Cook on Tuesday, it has not changed its estimate of the cost
Read moreLondon open: Stocks edge higher
31st Mar 2011 08:29
Stocks have moved in both directions this morning after a raft of updates but the overall trend is upward. Tour operator TUI Travel is higher after saying underlying trading has been "satisfactory" during the last six months. Like Thomas Cook on Tuesday, it has not changed its estimate of the cost
Read moreLondon pre-open: Small lead expected
31st Mar 2011 07:37
UK blue chips look like eking out a handful of gains when trading gets underway at 8am following a decent session in the US last night. In company news, Contract caterer Compass's good start to the new financial year has continued through the six-month period, leaving it comfortable with forecasts
Read moreSSE to pay divi of at least 74.5p
31st Mar 2011 07:09
Energy supplier Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) is on track to report underlying profit before tax for the full year in line with the consensus of analysts' forecasts, which currently stands at £1,301m. The company, which is about to enter its close period on Friday prior to publication of full
Read moreSector movers: ENRC leads miners higher
23rd Mar 2011 17:37
The mining sector was the best performing sector Wednesday, helped higher by strong gains from the blue chips. Kazakhstan-based mining giant ENRC announced that underlying profits more than doubled last year. Shares in Kazakhmys, Xstrata, Rio Tinto and Antofagasta rose in sympathy. The industrial
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: Power suppliers, Budget...
22nd Mar 2011 06:31
The Big Six household energy suppliers have been spared an industry-wide Competition Commission investigation, despite Ofgem finding evidence that they may be profiteering, manipulating their own figures and misleading consumers. Alistair Buchanan, Ofgem's chief executive, said: "Energy companies h
Read moreSector movers: AT&T move gives telecoms sector a boost
21st Mar 2011 16:13
The mobile telecommunications sector is performing well led by blue chip Vodafone, which is rising on the back of AT&T's $39bn bid for Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile USA. If the bid is allowed, the enlarged firm will become number one, but both AT&T and Verizon Wireless - in which Vodafone has a 45% s
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Barclays sells mortgage assets
21st Mar 2011 13:44
Barclays has sold a portfolio of property loans to CreXus Investment Corp, a commercial mortgage REIT, for $586m in cash. CreXus needs to sell shares to raise money via a share issue in order to buy the 30 commercial real estate assets. CreXus is managed by a subsidiary of Annaly Capital Managemen
Read moreOfgem tells energy suppliers to simplify tariffs
21st Mar 2011 09:46
UK energy companies will be referred to the Competition Commission (CC) this year unless they make their bewildering array of tariffs easier to understand. Industry regulator Ofgem says customers are being "bamboozled" by a complex system of tariffs that's risen from 180 to over 300 since 2008. "T
Read moreSector movers: Nuclear closures lift electricity shares
18th Mar 2011 14:33
Electricity stocks are on the rise as the investors assess the impact of the Japanese nuclear crisis on the UK power sector. Broker Panmure Gordon has said that higher gas and electricity prices - as a result of plant closures in Japan and Germany - would be most obviously positive for Drax, labell
Read moreBroker tips: Power companies, Sainsbury, Aveva
18th Mar 2011 13:07
The unfolding events in Japan are likely to have shifted the public's perception of nuclear energy, but it is still very early to say exactly how this will affect the UK power sector, according to broker Matrix. "We have analysed a number of speculative global policy responses to show the impact on
Read moreBroker snap: Nuclear impact on UK power sector
18th Mar 2011 10:14
The unfolding events in Japan are likely to have shifted the public's perception of nuclear energy, but it is still very early to say exactly how this will affect the UK power sector, according to broker Matrix. "We have analysed a number of speculative global policy responses to show the impact on
Read more