BEST OF THE BROKERS May 13, 2010 COMPASS Credit Suisse has increased its target price for Compass to 634p and retained its “outperform” rating. Credit Suisse says that the food group’s growth outlook together with a further targeted margin improvement and acquisition potential justify a premium rating. Increases its 2010 earnings per share forecast to reflect stronger growth. INM Royal Bank of [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 13, 2010 State Street Global Advisors The investment manager has appointed Lynn Blake as head of index equity. Blake, 45, is a long-standing veteran of the firm, having first joined 23 years ago. She has held positions as a portfolio manager and head of non-US markets in the global structured products group. She succeeds Paul Brakke, 53, [...]
Barratt profit on target as house sales rise May 12, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Barratt Developments said it will deliver a profit in the second half as it reported improved sales rates since February. The UK’s third largest housebuilder by market value, said its average selling price is expected to rise by 15 per cent by June 30, thanks to a shift in the type of houses being [...]
Property gets a boost from duty changes March 24, 2010 THE government yesterday handed first-time home buyers a boost by scrapping stamp duty for houses costing less than £250,000 for two years in a measure that will be paid for by those at the higher end of the property ladder. Chancellor Alistair Darling has increased stamp duty on houses worth £1m or more from four [...]
THE TIPSTER March 10, 2010 HOMEBUILDER Barratt Homes is proving an interesting punt at the moment after speculation that rival Persimmon is mounting a bid of 170p per share. Barratt would make an interesting purchase as it is trading at a significant discount to its net asset value and has a large bank of land. ETX Capital is quoting 122.21p-122.79p. [...]
Liberty unveils demerger as profits tumble March 9, 2010 LIBERTY International will split its retail and commercial property businesses in a bid to “achieve greater value for shareholders.” The shopping centres arm of the business will become a real estate investment trust (REIT) called Capital Shopping Centres (CSC) with a market cap of around £2bn. And its London based portfolio will become Capital & [...]
You should shop elsewhere March 9, 2010 LIBERTY didn’t suffer as much as rivals during the recession, which is why it isn’t bouncing back quite so energetically. Consensus forecast for net asset value (NAV) per share was between 480p and 500p, but those expectations were always too high. That said, even the bears were disappointed by the actual NAV per share of [...]
Persimmon is back in black as sales rise March 2, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Persimmon swung back into profit last year after writing up the value of its landbank by almost £75m. Pre-tax profits came in at £77.8m compared to a £780m loss in 2008 when lower property valuations took their toll as the sector was ravaged by the recession. The UK’s largest housebuilder completed 8,976 homes last [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HOW SIGNIFICANT IS PERSIMMON’S UPTURN? March 2, 2010 RACHAEL WARING | PANMURE GORDON “These figures are pretty good and helped by the fact that Persimmon is in a position where it can write up the value of its landbank. However, for the housebuilding market as a whole things don’t look so good, with uncertainty over the election and in the economy as a [...]
Persimmon back in profit March 2, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Persimmon swung back into profit last year after writing up the value of its landbank by almost £75m. Pre-tax profits came in at £77.8m compared to a £780m loss in 2008 when lower property valuations took their toll as the sector was ravaged by the recession. The UK’s largest housebuilder completed 8976 homes last [...]