Aviva shares dip as annuity rules hit UK business May 15, 2014 BRITISH insurer Aviva has become the latest to be hit hard by the government’s changes to the UK pensions market, as new business fell 22 per cent in the first quarter of the year to £89m from £114m the year before. This fall was offset by strong figures from elsewhere in Europe, and Asia, where [...]
Kier Group trading in line due to recovery in UK construction May 15, 2014 CONSTRUCTION and services firm Kier yesterday said its performance remains on course, thanks to a stream of new contract awards and a recovery in the UK market. The FTSE 250-listed firm said its construction division secured more than £500m of new contracts this year to date and has secured a forward order book of £2.6bn. [...]
Centamin slides as lower gold output causes earnings to fall May 15, 2014 SHARES in Centamin slumped over three per cent yesterday, after the gold miner’s quarterly update showed lower production that led to higher cash costs. The FTSE 250-listed gold miner said core earnings were down 25 per cent quarter-on-quarter and 58 per cent year-on-year to $34.4m (£20.5m). Production fell 19 per cent quarter-on-quarter to 74,241 ounces, [...]
BNP Paribas in Cairn loan deal May 15, 2014 OIL EXPLORER Cairn Energy yesterday said it has secured a $575m (£342m) loan with French bank BNP Paribas to fund two developments in the North Sea. “The cash flow from these fields will underpin delivery of future exploration programmes with appropriate capital allocation within a balanced portfolio,” said the London-listed firm. Cairn began drilling at [...]
Marston’s pubs in sales growth May 15, 2014 MARSTON’S pub chain and brewer yesterday reported that first-half revenue rose 4.5 per cent to £374.3m during the 26 weeks to April on the back of the expansion of its estate. “We’ve seen growth across the business. On strategy we’ve opened 11 new pub-restaurants in the first half of the year and we’re on track [...]
Weak prices hit Vedanta earnings May 15, 2014 FTSE 100-listed metals and mining company Vedanta Resources saw its share price fall almost two per cent yesterday, after it posted an 8.5 per cent drop in full-year earnings and an 11.6 per cent decline in revenue. The India-focused company attributed the fall in earnings to weaker commodity and oil prices, lower production at certain [...]
Tullow falls on Kenya well update May 15, 2014 Tullow Oil, the FTSE 100-quoted energy explorer, yesterday remained upbeat after giving a mixed update on its operations in Kenya. The firm’s share price fell over two per cent, after it said one well had encountered oil with “limited reservoir quality” and another had encountered 150 metres of quality reservoir but just five metres of [...]
Soco International output on track May 15, 2014 Soco International, the FTSE 250-listed oil and gas explorer, yesterday said production for the first four months of the year is in line with the company’s expectations and that the performance of its TGT field in Vietnam is on track. The firm is planning a new exploration programme with two wells located off the Republic [...]
City Moves for 16 May 2014 | Who’s switching jobs May 15, 2014 Fujitsu The technology company has announced the appointment of Michael Keegan as head of UK and Ireland. He has previously held senior leadership roles at Magex, MasterCard, Royal Mail Group and NatWest. KPMG The professional services firm has made four senior appointments to its cyber security practice. Phillip Hodgins has over 12 years’ experience helping executives [...]
Best of the Brokers for 16 May 2014 May 15, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com VODAFONE UBS keeps its “buy” rating on the telecoms group but trims its target from 275p to 255p ahead of the firm’s fourth-quarter results next Tuesday. The broker expects revenues of £43.9bn and adjusted operating profits of £4.9bn, both higher than consensus estimates. [...]
