WPP gross margins decline
25th Jun 2014 12:20
A 2.5% decline in gross margin during the first five months of the year sent shares in advertising giant WPP lower on Wednesday, as "demanding" markets persisted in western continental Europe. Although reported gross margin was down 2.5% at £3.908bn, it was up 5.9% in constant currency and 4% highe
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Bank of England, US oil, RBS
25th Jun 2014 07:31
Bankers seized on fresh evidence that the housing market may be starting to cool to urge the Bank of England to stay its hand and refrain from widely expected curbs on mortgage lending tomorrow. The British Bankers' Association described new data yesterday showing that mortgage approvals fell for th
Read moreWPP subsidiary acquires stake in Vietnamese digital agency
19th Jun 2014 10:20
Advertising group WPP on Thursday announced that its wholly-owned operating company, XM Asia, has signed a deal to acquire a majority stake in Sofresh, a digital agency in Vietnam. The firm, which was founded in 2007, develops digital strategies, ideas and campaigns, and builds e-commerce platforms
Read moreLondon close: FTSE ends modestly higher ahead of Fed statement
18th Jun 2014 16:59
- All eyes on Fed - Unanimous vote by BoE MPC - Investors poised for "imminent" takeover bid techMARK 2,804.94 +0.37% FTSE 100 6,778.56 +0.17% FTSE 250 15,624.20 +0.25% The FTSE ended today's session higher ahead of the latest statement release by the Federal Reserve and following the publication
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Shire continues to soar on potential bids
18th Jun 2014 15:24
Shire's shares have spiked higher on rumours that Allergan could bid for the company in an effort to fend off a hostile takeover attempt by Valeant Pharmaceuticals. Bloomberg cited an analyst at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey who said that a bid is "imminent" and "makes strategic sense" for the US compa
Read moreWPP's second quarter to improve, says CEO
18th Jun 2014 12:44
WPP Chief Executive Martin Sorrell has said second quarter trading could surpass its robust set of results in the previous three months. "I think we are stronger than the first quarter," he said in an interview with Reuters at the Cannes Lions advertising festival. "April was strong, May was not
Read moreWPP buys marketing consulting firm EffectiveBrands
17th Jun 2014 07:43
Media giant WPP has bought EffectiveBrands, the Amsterdam-headquartered marketing strategy consulting firm. The deal will combine EffectiveBrands with the strategy consulting unit of WPP's brand, media and communications arm Millward Brown to form Millward Brown Vermeer. "Millward Brown Vermeer wi
Read moreLondon pre-open: FTSE to slide lower early on
11th Jun 2014 07:40
Stocks in the UK are expected to ease lower this morning following a more subdued finish to yesterday's session over in the States last night, with City sources predicting the FTSE 100 will open around 10 points below yesterday's close of 6,873.55. Having scorched to a succession of highs in recent
Read moreWPP subsidiary acquires stake in South African creative agency
11th Jun 2014 07:05
JWT, the wholly-owned global marketing communications agency of WPP, has purchased a stake in The Hardy Boys, a creative agency in South Africa. The business is a multi-disciplinary, brand building agency, with fully integrated activation capabilities. Its client list includes Unilever and Diageo.
Read moreWPP subsidiary snaps up monitoring services business
10th Jun 2014 09:49
Advertising giant WPP's wholly-owned media research and analytics business, Kantar Media, has acquired a majority stake in the issued share capital of Precise Media Group, which provides monitoring and evaluation services. Precise, which employs 430 people servicing 2,500 customers, generated reven
Read moreWPP operating firm buys India's Temple Advertising Private
5th Jun 2014 17:07
WPP announced on Thursday its wholly-owned operating company Bates CHI & Partners has agreed to buy the business and assets of India-based ad agency Temple Advertising Private. Temple has worked with leading Indian brands across media and entertainment, automotive, fashion and retail, foods, educat
Read moreLondon close: FTSE drops on ex-divi stocks, supermarkets, US data
4th Jun 2014 16:59
- FTSE 100 closes 17.67 points lower at 6,818.63 - Ex-divi stocks, Tesco, miners provide drag - Focus on US data misses and tomorrow's ECB meeting techMARK 2,822.66 +0.31% FTSE 100 6,818.63 -0.26% FTSE 250 15,986.47 +0.09% Ex-dividends, supermarkets and miners dragged the FTSE to yet another negat
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Ex-divi and supermarket stocks weigh index down
4th Jun 2014 15:38
National Grid led the fallers after going ex-dividend, with WPP also lower for the same reason. Tesco erased earlier gains and dropped into the red as the decline in like-for-like (LFL) sales at its UK business worsened in the first quarter, with the recent wave of price cuts and competitive measu
Read moreLondon midday: Tesco shares slip as UK stocks fall ahead of ECB
4th Jun 2014 11:37
- Markets await ECB meeting, US jobs data - UK services PMI ahead of expectations - US ADP report in focus later on, US futures fall - Tesco LFL sales worsen amid price cuts techMARK 2,816.15 +0.07% FTSE 100 6,820.85 -0.23% FTSE 250 15,978.73 +0.04% Nervousness ahead of the European Central Bank (
Read moreThursday broker round-up UPDATE
29th May 2014 08:13
AMEC: Berenberg initiates with a target price of 1450p and a buy recommendation. Imagination Technology: UBS ups target price from 200p to 250p and maintains a buy recommendation. IMI: UBS raises target price from 1600p to 1700p upgrading from neutral to buy. John Wood Group: Berenberg initiates
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