Wealth manager Mattioli Woods aims high amid shift in savings September 2, 2014 WEALTH firm Mattioli Woods yesterday laid out ambitious growth plans to triple funds under management in future. Chief executive Ian Mattioli told City A.M. the firm had the potential to grow funds managed up to £15bn and revenue up to £100m. The junior stock market listed group yesterday reported a 25.4 per cent rise in [...]
Massive iPhone demand to lift Chinese exports September 2, 2014 THE LAUNCH of Apple’s new iPhone will be so significant that it will add a percentage point of growth to Chinese export growth, according to analysts’ estimates yesterday. Researchers at Bank of America Merrill Lynch say that the release will be so significant it could boost mainland China’s exports by around one per cent for the [...]
Johnsons Dry Cleaners owner boosts dividend by a quarter September 2, 2014 Textile group Johnson Service yesterday announced a 5.7 per cent rise in first-half revenue, at £101.6m improved from £96.1m in the same period last year. The group, which has businesses in workwear, textile rental and dry cleaning sectors, said its pre-tax profits of £6.4m were 45.5 per cent better than the previous year. Meanwhile, after [...]
Dollar General could go hostile in bid for rival Family Dollar September 2, 2014 America’s leading deep discount retailer Dollar General yesterday warned it might go hostile and head straight for Dollar Stores’ shareholders if its rival rejected its latest $9.1bn (£5.5bn) bid. It also said it would pay a break-up fee of $500m if the deal ran foul of competition law, the reason Family Dollar had cited for its [...]
Price of gold falls on stronger dollar as palladium slips from 13-year high September 2, 2014 The price of commodities, including gold, silver and palladium, fell yesterday, as a strengthening US dollar hit investor demand for the precious metals that had heightened on the escalation in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. As the dollar strengthened on better manufacturing data and the prospect of an end to stimulus, gold slipped to [...]
Quindell investors hold strong as £30m joint venture breaks up September 2, 2014 QUINDELL, the Aim-listed insurance firm whose stock price was ravaged by a short-seller attack earlier this year, saw its shares rally nearly six per cent yesterday after it announced it was buying out the RAC’s stake in its Connected Car Solutions (CCS) joint venture. Quindell said it would take full control of CCS, which makes [...]
City Moves for 03 September 2014 | Who’s switching jobs September 2, 2014 Alvarez & Marsal Senthil Alagar has been appointed managing director in the professional services firm’s restructuring and turnaround team in London. He joins from Barclays, where he headed its UK & Ireland business support restructuring team. Alagar has also held roles at Bank of Scotland, PwC and EY. M&G Real Estate Steven Hollands has been [...]
Best of the Brokers for 03 September 2014 September 2, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com CLOSE BROTHERS Berenberg has upgraded Close Brothers to its Alpha stamped conviction “buy” list, and increased the target price to 1,665p from 1,640p. The broker considers Close its top pick among specialist lenders, and thinks there is a good buying opportunity for this [...]
London Report: Mining shares lift FTSE despite doubt over ECB September 2, 2014 BRITAIN’S top share index steadied near a two-month high yesterday, with some caution before the European Central Bank’s policy meeting tomorrow offsetting a rally in miners prompted by stronger metals prices. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index ended 0.06 per cent higher at 6,829.17 points after rising up to 6,849.28 points, the highest level since early [...]
New York Report: Dow Jones falls after a drop in crude oil prices September 2, 2014 US STOCK indexes ended mostly lower last night, retreating from records set the previous month, as falling crude oil prices dragged energy shares down and offset strong manufacturing data. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 30.89 points, or 0.18 per cent, to 17,067.56. The S&P 500 ended down 1.09 points, or 0.05 per cent, at [...]