Cannock Chase looks a typical Stoute prospect in Tercentenary June 18, 2014 SIR MICHAEL Stoute has a powerful army of progressive horses this year and I think he has an excellent chance of landing this afternoon’s Group Three Tercentenary Stakes (3.05pm) with CANNOCK CHASE. Now, those of you who just like to follow ratings won’t agree with me, as Cannock Chase has a handicap mark of 97 [...]
FDM is valued at £300m June 17, 2014 FDM, an IT support services group, yesterday completed a flotation that valued the company at a touch over £300m. The deal, which was advised on solely by Investec, sees the private equity group Inflexion selling its entire shareholding to raise £234.7m. Rowena Murray, who was part of the Investec team on the deal, said the [...]
Analyst Views: Is it time to toast Majestic wine after its full year results? June 16, 2014 KATE CALVERT | INVESTEC Full-year 2014 profit came in £100,000 better than we expected, after a warning in March following weak January and February sales. We believe the longer term growth prospects remain intact with the current valuation supported by an attractive dividend and strong cashflow. NEIL SAUNDERS | CONLUMINO The plans to invest in [...]
Best of the Brokers for 17 June 2014 June 16, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com RIO TINTO Investec has cut the mining group to “hold” from “buy”, and lowered the target price to 3,128p from 3,624p. The broker believes that iron ore’s price slump means that even with some near term recovery, Rio Tinto’s earnings have already been [...]
Petra share price to sparkle as 122.52 carat blue diamond set to be world’s most expensive June 13, 2014 Petra Diamonds has recovered an exceptional 122.52 carat blue diamond its Cullinan site in South Africa. That same mine has produced the largest rough gem diamond ever, the 3,106 carat Cullinan diamond. Martin Potts, an analyst at FinnCap, says that this stone may break the record price paid for a rough diamond. The current record [...]
City Moves for 13 June 2014 | Who’s switching jobs June 12, 2014 Investec Asset Finance Jane Mantell has been appointed head of portfolio risk at the asset finance provider. She joins from Insight Plus, the consultancy, where she has worked since 2007. Mantell previously spent nine years with Foxreed Consulting. UBS Michael Hafner has been appointed head of oil and gas, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) [...]
RBS share price “going down, going down, going down” says analyst June 12, 2014 Despite a 16 per cent rise in the share price of state-backed bank RBS over the past six weeks, one analyst is less than confident that the performance will be sustained. Investec's Ian Gordon writes that "the share price (once again) reflects a triumph of hope over reality and should duly correct". Investec has downgraded [...]
WH Smith halts sales fall with overseas shops June 11, 2014 WH SMITH, the books to stationery retailer, brought years of sales decline to a halt in the last quarter, thanks to its strategy of opening more shops in airports and travel locations around the world. Shares in WH Smith edged up 1.5 per cent yesterday as it revealed that total group sales were flat in [...]
Analyst Views: How impressed were you with Betfair’s annual results? June 11, 2014 JAMES HOLLINS | INVESTECWe are unlikely significantly to adjust full year 2015 earnings estimates. Although the market may be disappointed at no special dividend, we think it will come in the near term (revenue rising and costs very much under control due to actions by the relatively new management). We stay at Hold. NICK BATRAM [...]
GDP back at record level six years after the crash June 10, 2014 THE ECONOMY has finally grown back to pre-recession record levels, according to a group of respected forecasters, bringing an end to six years of recession, stagnation and catch-up growth. The economy grew by 0.9 per cent in the three months to May, finally pushing just above the previous peak level, set in January 2008, according [...]