Kennedy Wilson and Varde buy UK shopping centres for £250m September 5, 2013 US PROPERTY investment and services firm Kennedy Wilson and debt specialist Varde Partners yesterday agreed to buy a portfolio of eight UK shopping centres out of administration for $388m (£250m). Kennedy Wilson did not disclose which shopping malls they had acquired but said they were spread across England and Scotland and spanned a total of [...]
Best of the brokers for 04 September 2013 September 3, 2013 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com ASSOCIATED BRITISH FOODS BNP Paribas has raised its rating on the conglomerate that owns Primark from “underperform” to “outperform” and pushed its target price from 1,728p to 2,400p. The broker believes that AB Foods’ sugar business is poised to benefit from changing market [...]
It’s time we ended the pretence that planning rules come without a price September 2, 2013 MOST agree that the UK housing market has long been stuck in an affordability crisis. Despite a fall in prices since 2007, Nationwide recently calculated that the typical house now costs 5.1 times average earnings, up from 3.9 a quarter of a century ago. In London, the ratio has risen from 5.7 to 7.7. And [...]
Primark is wise to remain offline April 26, 2013 SO many retailers have been trumpeting their online success in recent weeks – with the internet now more profitable than the high street for Debenhams, and John Lewis’ annual website sales topping £1bn – that it’s something of a surprise to be presented with old-fashioned bricks and mortar success. But that’s what Primark delivered yesterday, [...]
Primark sales boost Associated British Foods’ first half earnings February 25, 2013 ASSOCIATED British Foods (ABF) said an “outstanding” performance from the conglomerate’s budget fashion chain Primark will help lift first-half profits ahead of the £412m reported last year. The FTSE 100 group expects Primark sales to be up 23 per cent in the six months to 2 March, with like-for-like sales anticipated to be seven per [...]
FTSE shrugs off downgrade February 25, 2013 THE blue chip index rose this morning – led by headline mining and banking shares – on signs that the US and Japan would continue loose monetary policy for some time. The FTSE 100 was up 0.7 per cent in early deals, as the market brushed off Moody’s downgrade of the UK’s AAA credit rating, [...]
Primark boosts AB Foods outlook February 25, 2013 ASSOCIATED British Foods forecast higher results this year than last, driven by an “outstanding” performance from subsidiary Primark. Adjusted operating profit will be higher than last year, while earnings per share for the first half will be “substantially” ahead of last year, AB Foods said this morning in a trading update. Primark sales in the [...]
Best of the Brokers for 19 February 2013 February 18, 2013 ASSOCIATED BRITISH FOODS UBS has a buy rating on the clothing-to-sugar conglomerate and has raised its target price from 1,705p to 2,000p as currency tailwinds lift the firm. The broker also expects Primark to accelerate further this year, which combined with lower restructuring costs in grocery and ingredients should help deliver double digit earnings growth [...]
British Land in £143m bet on Ealing shoppers February 11, 2013 BRITISH LAND has snapped up a portfolio of London properties from Dutch investment firm Wereldhave for £183.8m, the property giant confirmed yesterday. The biggest asset in the portfolio is Ealing Broadway shopping centre in west London, which is anchored by retailers including Marks & Spencer and Primark and attracts 15m visitors each year. British Land [...]
Best of the Brokers February 4, 2013 ASSOCIATED BRITISH FOODS Shore Capital has downgraded the food and retail group Associated British Foods to “hold” with a target price of 1,762p following several years of sustained share price growth. This is “thoroughly merited given the outperformance of Primark, and the high valuation such a fast growing international retailer should demand” but the broker [...]