Mid-cap mania to dominate corporate news this week August 31, 2009 THIS week is shorter than usual due to the bank holiday and trading volumes are likely to remain low, but there are enough mid-cap firms reporting to keep life interesting. FTSE 250 biotechnology firm Dechra Pharmaceuticals kicks the week off with its final results, which are not expected to add very much to its pre-close [...]
HOW DID THE MARKET REACT TO RIO TINTO’S RESULTS? August 20, 2009 IVOR PETHER ROYAL LONDON ASSET MANAGEMENTThe results were a bit below consensus, and that was largely to do with the short fall in iron ore. But it is more about the outlook from here than the results that they reported. If you factor in current commodity prices they could see a substantial lift moving forward, [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS August 17, 2009 AEGONNomura said that it sees Aegon’s capital position as being very solid and views the firm as having a “belt and braces” approach to capital management. The broker thinks that the firm’s economic rationale for early repayment to the Dutch government is compelling and rates the stock a “buy” with a €7.00 target price. HAMPSON [...]
Slump hits Fresnillo August 17, 2009 FRESNILLO, the world’s largest silver producer, yesterday said its profits in the first-half had slumped 10.8 per cent, as prices for the precious metal tumble in the downturn. The Mexican company, which is listed in London, said pre-tax profits for the period were $179.9m (£110.3m) down from $201.6m the previous year.But the miner said it [...]
DO MICHAEL PAGE’S RESULTS SPELL BETTER NEWS FOR THE JOBS MARKET? August 17, 2009 ROBERT MORTON INVESTECToday’s announcement covers another very difficult trading period, with activity continuing to weaken across the group. But, as with its peer group, Michael Page’s share price rests on recovery prospects rather than current trading, and we continue to rate the stock a “hold”. PAUL JONES PANMURE GORDONThe results were as expected. In terms [...]
WILL FEWER PEOPLE BE TAKING A WINTER BREAK IN THE RECESSION? August 12, 2009 SAM HART CHARLES STANLEYWinter 2009/10 is expected to be the toughest period in the current downturn, as winter holidays tend to be more discretionary than summer holidays. Bookings for winter appear to have got off to a slow start, but it remains early in the booking cycle and trading has strengthened in the last four [...]
BANK SHOCKS WITH NEW 50bn BOOST August 6, 2009 THE Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) shocked the markets yesterday with an unexpected increase of its quantitative easing programme to £175bn, equivalent to 12 per cent of GDP and above the maximum authorised by chancellor Alistair Darling in March. Sterling fell more than a cent against the dollar after it hit nine-month highs [...]
ARE YOU CHEERED BY UNILEVER’S RETURN TO GROWTH? August 6, 2009 GRAHAM JONES PANMURE GORDON“Unilever certainly deserves credit for restor-ing volume growth more strongly than we had expected, with two per cent growth in the second quarter after a fall. While we are trimming our sterling profit forecasts by four to five per cent to reflect recent sterling strength, we are raising our price target to [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS August 5, 2009 NATIONAL EXPRESSInvestec has retained its “buy” recommendation for National Express. It says that a month of high drama including takeover approaches and a profits warning has left the company fighting for its future. But the broker still believes that despite a likely break-up, the group is trading in line with its peers and therefore risks [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS August 4, 2009 RECKITT BENCKISEREvolution Securities maintains its “Add” recommendation for household and health provider Reckitt Benckiser and raises its price target for the shares to 3,050p. Despite forecasted profit losses in the next year, the broker sees a strong new product pipeline and focus on volume growth as spelling encouraging progression. MARKS & SPENCERGoldman Sachs predicts significant [...]