Analyst Views: Following its results, do you think Mulberry is positioned for growth? June 12, 2014 HELEN NORRIS | BARCLAYS We would expect improvements as the year progresses against easier comparatives and with product launches. The recent Tessie Bag introduction has been received very well with full price like-for-likes recovering and there are hopes for the Cara Delevingne’s collection in September. JOHN CUMMINS | WH IRELAND Following the results, we leave [...]
B&M Retail bags £1.1bn to buck market gloom June 12, 2014 B&M RETAIL yesterday shook off the gloom in the new issues market to debut the biggest stock market flotation in London since Royal Mail. The budget chain, chaired by former Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy, raised £1.1bn by selling 40 per cent of the company to City investors. Shares rose in informal trading to close [...]
Small firms missing out on £46m swaps compensation from banks June 12, 2014 BRITAIN’S biggest banks have contacted every firm that might have been mis-sold interest rate swaps, the City watchdog said yesterday as the final 500 letters were sent out this month. So far, more than £1bn has been paid out in compensation. The year-long task took one month longer than planned. But now the process of [...]
Pfizer blames price for Astrazeneca deal collapse June 11, 2014 Drug giant Pfizer yesterday said the £69bn bid to take over UK rival Astrazeneca collapsed due to price disagreements, as shares in the UK company rallied in the hope of a revival of talks. Pfizer finance chief Frank D’Amelio told a US healthcare conference yesterday that the two sides did not come to a deal [...]
City Moves for 12 June 2014 | Who’s switching jobs June 11, 2014 JLL The real estate services firm has announced the appointment of Paul Hodge as a director of loan valuation. He joins from CBRE, where he was an associate director in its real estate finance team, responsible for the development of its loan valuation business. Deutsche Bank The investment bank has appointed Marc Benton as head [...]
Hollande snaps up Bank of America’s Boone June 10, 2014 CHIEF European economist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Laurence Boone, has been snapped up by French President Francois Hollande to be his new economic adviser after Emmanuel Macron stepped down. Boone was previously an economist at Barclays in Paris.
Barclays fears tech firms could replace banks June 10, 2014 BANKS must continue to invest in new technologies and customer service if they want to avoid being replaced by firms such as PayPal and Amazon, Barclays’ boss said yesterday. Chief executive Antony Jenkins said customers were increasingly happy to manage their finance online and banks must give them a reason to stay with traditional lenders [...]
Barclays fears Amazon and Google threaten traditional banks June 10, 2014 Customers will soon use tech firms like Amazon, Google and PayPal instead of banks, Barclays’ chief Antony Jenkins said today, promising to innovate more to compete with digital giants. The sector is already being shaken up by new banks being established, and big firms like Tesco offering current accounts. But Jenkins believes the [...]
Cinven clinches €510m fibre broadband move June 9, 2014 PRIVATE equity group Cinven has won a hotly contested auction to buy a Spanish fibre broadband company and take advantage of sector’s blossoming role in Europe and emerging markets. The group, based in Paternoster Square, will pay €510m (£413m) to carve out the telecoms unit of Gas Natural Fenosa, a Spanish utility company. The unit, [...]
Best of the Brokers for 10 June 2014 June 9, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com 3I GROUP Barclays has kept its “overweight” rating for 3i Group, while increasing the target price to 485p. The broker thinks there is a chance of higher capital returns and a pipeline for asset management expansion at the firm. COCA COLA HBC Deutsche [...]