Bottom Line: Bus stop only temporary for FirstGroup April 2, 2014 BAD NEWS, like buses, has come in threes for FirstGroup. Less than a year after the travel outfit was forced to defend its credit rating with a £615m rights issue, weather trouble has dented First’s US arm while analysts grumble that the Thameslink franchise could be slipping from its grasp. Yesterday’s trading update revealed the [...]
Workspace site gets go-ahead April 2, 2014 SMALL business landlord Workspace has won planning consent for the second phase of its redevelopment of the Filaments site in Wandsworth. The 20-storey scheme will create 77 flats and 18,000 square feet of new office space for the group, which leases space to companies like Moonpig and White Stuff. The first phase is already underway [...]
Mango’s juicy online sales April 2, 2014 SPANISH fashion outfit Mango yesterday reported a 77 per cent increase in online sales last year. The group, which gets 83 per cent of its turnover from outside Spain, said revenues and profits for 2013 both rose nine per cent to €1.846bn (£1.5bn) and €120.5m respectively. Online sales accounted for just under seven per cent [...]
Microsoft to offer Windows free on phones April 2, 2014 MICROSOFT said yesterday it will give away its Windows operating system to makers of smartphones and small tablets as it seeks to grab a toehold in the fast-growing markets. It comes a week after new boss Satya Nadella unveiled new versions of Word, PowerPoint and Excel for Apple’s iPad.
City Moves for 03 April 2014 | Who’s switching jobs April 2, 2014 Waverton Investment Management The investment management firm has appointed Ian Enslin to its charities team. He joins from Newton Asset Management, and has previously worked at Barings, Invesco and Norwich Union. City Financial The asset management business has hired Mark Pearson as marketing director. He was formerly head of investment strategy and communications at Aegon [...]
Best of the Brokers for 03 April 2014 April 2, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com TESCO HSBC cut its price target for the supermarket from 300p to 260p due to the structural changes in the sector and the need for Tesco for take decisive action such as investing its margin before it’s eroded. The broker cut its earnings [...]
London Report: Rise in miners and banks helps drive FTSE to 3-week high April 2, 2014 BLUE chip shares inched higher yesterday, propped up by cyclical banks and mining companies on encouraging economic news in the United States. The FTSE 100 ended up 6.43 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 6,659.04 points, its highest close since 11 March, with the UK banking index up 0.7 per cent, and the mining index [...]
New York Report: S&P 500 soars to fresh record April 2, 2014 THE S&P 500 closed at another record high yesterday as signs of steady private-sector hiring suggested that the economy was slowly building momentum after a winter-related pullback. That also put more focus on Friday’s government jobs data, which is among the most widely watched economic indicators. Yesterday’s data from payrolls processor ADP showed US private-sector [...]
Letters to the Editor – 03/04 – Royal Mail, City villages, Best of Twitter April 2, 2014 Royal Mail It’s impossible to accurately price something in the absence of a market, but that does not excuse the government for wasting taxpayer money on the Royal Mail float. Business secretary Vince Cable’s search for long-term investors inevitably reduced demand. And it should come as no surprise that many investors identified as long-termists didn’t [...]
Living in a gamers’ paradise April 2, 2014 The trio of much-hyped next generation consoles have taken their time to bed in but we’re set for a glut of A-list titles – here are the ones to watch out for this year, whether you’re into racing, sports or shooting things in the face NINTENDO WII U MARIO KART 8 RACING; 30 MAY The [...]
