Analyst Views: Has Diageo’s results changed your outlook for this business? July 31, 2014 TREVOR STIRLING | BERNSTEIN RESEARCH Results were broadly in line with our expectations. We believe Diageo offers a balanced mixture of exposure to a resilient US spirits market and high long-term growth in emerging markets, albeit held back by structurally low growth in Western Europe. We rate Diageo “outperform”. WYN ELLIS | NUMIS Diageo, in [...]
Intu’s centres jump in value July 31, 2014 SHOPPING centre giant Intu posted a 7.6 per cent jump in the value of its properties in the first half of the year, increasing its net asset value per share to 372p. The owner of the Metrocentre and Merry Hill said the rise in NAV reflected a £573m valuation gain, as strong demand from investors [...]
Strong growth at Bonmarche July 31, 2014 WOMEN’S clothing retailer Bonmarche yesterday posted strong growth in the first quarter of its financial year, as the UK business continued to be driven by growth in its online business and market share. The retailer, which aims at the over-50s, said sales in the 13 weeks to 28 June grew by almost 16 per cent [...]
Hedgies high on the hog at Hedge Brunch’s Avenue summer bash July 31, 2014 St James's Street played host to a hoard of hedgies last night, as Hedge Brunch threw its summer soirée at Avenue restaurant. Founder of LNG Capital Louis Gargour was there, chatting to Alcova’s Russell Hart and Tom Pontin. “When Gus [Morison – HedgeBrunch founder] told me he was getting out of the industry to [...]
Strong sterling hits British aerospace firms Rolls-Royce and BAE systems July 31, 2014 The pound’s strength yesterday continued to strike a blow to the profits of major British companies. Huge aerospace and defence firms Rolls-Royce and BAE systems, as well as engineering company Weir Group all announced that their profits had taken a hit from the currency’s rise. Both BAE and Rolls-Royce also said they had suffered from [...]
Panasonic joins forces with Tesla for futuristic US battery factory July 31, 2014 Panasonic and US electric car pioneer Tesla Motors yesterday announced joint plans for a groundbreaking lithium-ion battery cell mega-plant. Dubbed “The Gigafactor” – whose location is yet to be decided – it will increase production volume by slashing cost-per-unit figures through economies of scale and improvements in logistical arrangements with suppliers. The announcement builds on [...]
City Moves for 01 August 2014 | Who’s switching jobs July 31, 2014 Deutsche Bank Tiina Lee has been appointed UK chief operating officer at Deutsche Bank. She will become vice-chair of the UK executive committee, and will continue to chair the UK regional governance board. Lee was most recently head of UK regional governance at the bank. Bovill Fiona Richardson has been appointed head of technical at [...]
Best of the Brokers for 01 August 2014 July 31, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com ITV PLC Berenberg has kept its “hold” rating, but upped the target price to 184p from 180p. The broker thinks currency headwinds are an issue, but believes the next stage for ITV will be a shift towards investment in growth, and that extra [...]
London Report: Lloyds and Centrica pull down FTSE but Shell prevents rout July 31, 2014 BRITAIN’S top equity index yesterday fell as Lloyds Bank pulled down financial stocks, while concerns about the impact on Europe from tensions between Russia and Ukraine also made traders wary. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed down by 0.6 per cent, or 43.33 points, at 6,730.11 points. Shares in Lloyds, which had risen for the [...]
New York Report: Dow plunges 317 points July 31, 2014 WALL Street tanked yesterday as economic data sparked concern that the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates sooner than some have expected. Global concerns such as Argentina’s default, also weighed heavily on the market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 317 points, or 1.9 per cent, to 1,6563 and the S&P 500 tumbled 39.7 points, [...]