Sberbank sale met by high investor demand September 18, 2012 STRONG demand for Sberbank stock has kept the share price up despite the Russian central bank selling a huge stake in the firm this week. The central bank is offloading a 7.6 per cent stake, worth $5.2bn (£3.2bn) after pricing shares at 93 rubles last night. That sale will take the state’s holding in the [...]
City Views | Would you buy shares in Direct Line? September 18, 2012 RICHARD MCARTHUR | LLOYDS BANKING GROUP I would have no interest in buying stock shares with Direct Line. The company itself is strong but with the uncertainty in the stock market at the moment, I would not risk it. PAUL HANCOCK | PRUDENTIAL UK I would consider buying shares in Direct Line because it already [...]
Mifid II leaves some behind September 18, 2012 ASSET managers are falling behind broker dealers, retail banks and private banks in preparing for the implementation of the second Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, a survey out today finds. A number of firms will undertake an analysis of the impact before the end of the year but PwC, which conducted the study, found asset [...]
Spanish yields still pressured after bond sale September 18, 2012 INVESTORS yesterday piled further pressure on Spain to request aid and trigger a European Central Bank (ECB) bond-buying programme seen as inevitable to help the country finance its debts, with the benchmark 10-year bond rising to just over six per cent. Short-term lending costs fell slightly from last month but remained high at auction yesterday, [...]
Ex-Nomura trader cuts its ties with bank to spin out new fund September 18, 2012 FORMER Nomura prop trader Borut Miklavcic has launched a new hedge fund, LindenGrove Capital, after severing ties with the bank on an original business venture between the two parties. Miklavcic registered the limited liability partnership LindenGrove Capital in June and is understood to be awaiting approval from the UK Financial Services Authority to launch the [...]
Double broker downgrade hits shares in Aviva September 18, 2012 SHARES in insurance giant Aviva slumped four per cent yesterday after two leading analysts reduced their recommendations on the firm. Bank of America Merill Lynch (BAML) and Deutsche Bank both cut their forecasts after concluding that the company’s stock has risen too much since executive chairman John McFarlane announced a radical restructuring plan in July. [...]
US fiscal cliff seen as a bigger threat to funds than Eurozone September 18, 2012 A US fiscal crisis has surpassed Eurozone sovereign debt funding as the number one fear among European fund managers, as Europe begins to mount a comeback in investors’ portfolio, a poll published yesterday shows. Fears over the US’s so-called fiscal cliff at the start of January 2013, which could reduce aggregate demand in the country [...]
Hermes shareholder activists jump ship to join RWC Partners September 18, 2012 HERMES Fund Managers, one of the largest asset managers in the UK, has sold its $800m (£492.5m) activist shareholder division Hermes Focus Asset Management to London-based boutique fund manager RWC Partners. The three team division, owned by Hermes’ parent company the BT Pension Scheme, will transfer to RWC next month. The funds use shareholder activism [...]
Debenhams up on online sales September 18, 2012 DEBENHAMS, the high street department store, yesterday bucked the retail gloom by reporting a strong summer of sales growth, propelled by a 40 per cent annual increase in online sales. The group increased like-for-like sales excluding value added tax by 3.7 per cent between 24 June and 1 September this year, helping boost annual sales [...]
Analyst Views | How does Debenhams’ strategy compare to rivals such as Next? September 18, 2012 RICHARD HUNTER | HARGREAVES LANSDOWN The overall strategy is similar to many of its rivals in what remains a fiercely competitive environment and, along with the ongoing economic malaise, Debenhams will need to be at the top of its game as time progresses. JEAN ROCHE | PANMURE GORDON We think that the main reason for [...]
