Standard Life annutiues slip but profits are up February 20, 2015 The figures Shares in Standard Life rose 3.4 per cent in early trading, after it posted figures showing pre-tax operating profit grew 19 per cent to £604m in 2014, as assets under management jumped 38 per cent to £296.6bn. The purchase of Ignis Asset Management helped fee-based revenue rise 14 per cent to £1.4bn, while the company [...]
City watchdog in investment banking probe: What will the FCA do and who’s involved? February 19, 2015 Big investment banks may be too dominant in some areas of the industry, limiting competition and hurting companies and consumers, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) warned yesterday. Prices are not always transparent enough to allow firms to compare banks effectively, the FCA said. The watchdog has received complaints that shares in major deals are allocated to [...]
How GSK and AstraZeneca might stop advancing treatments if drug spend is reduced February 19, 2015 Big pharmaceutical companies thrive off the invention of new drugs, but their success relies on those drugs being purchased at the end of the line. If the maximum amount spent by the NHS on new medicines was seriously lowered, as a report released today suggested, it would not only limit access to some [...]
RSA Insurance sells Indian unit as it disposes non-core assets February 18, 2015 Shares in RSA Insurance Group closed up 1.7 per cent yesterday, as the company continued with its strategy of disposing non-core assets and announced the sale of its 26 per cent holding in Indian insurer Royal Sundaram Alliance Insurance. RSA sold the stake to its joint venture partner, Sundaram Finance, for £46m, and the company [...]
Best of the Brokers for 19 February 2015 February 18, 2015 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com AVIVA Berenberg has reiterated its “sell” recommendation for insurer Aviva. Analyst Matthew Preston says: “Just 24 per cent of the reduction in business unit operational costs has made its way through to Aviva’s operating profit, while cash generation has also remained lacklustre.” LEGAL [...]
Why the City should welcome a Capital Markets Union February 18, 2015 I strongly welcome the Capital Markets Union initiative that the Commission launched today. A Capital Markets Union will not change Europe overnight. But it can create a step change in the availability of finance, provide a new way for businesses to expand, fuel growth and create jobs across Europe and ensure that, should [...]
Hilton shares dip as strengthening dollar spells tough 2015 for US hotels February 18, 2015 Hilton Worldwide Holdings’ share price has dipped in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange as it said a stronger dollar could spell tough times ahead. Shares fell by as much as 2.5 per cent in early trading to $27.9 per share. The figures Hilton’s results for the 2014 calendar year show the hotel group [...]
Insurance sector to be hit by M&A fever as Fairfax buys Brit February 17, 2015 Analysts said yesterday that Brit’s acquisition by Canadian firm Fairfax Financial Holdings could be the precursor to other deals set to sweep the insurance market. Shares in Brit jumped by 11.23 per cent following the news that Fairfax had made an offer of £1.22bn that has been agreed by private equity owners CVC and Apollo, [...]
City Moves for 18 February 2015 | Who’s switching jobs February 17, 2015 Crowdcube Dean Mayer and Stuart Nicol have been appointed head of Debt and growth director respectively by the crowdfunding platform. Mayer is co-founder of Fidelitas, a mini-bond and debt advisory firm, and brings 22 years’ experience. He has worked at Belvall Capital, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, RBS and HSBC Private Equity. Nicol has worked at The [...]
FTSE up on hope that Bank will keep rates low – London Report February 17, 2015 Britain’s top share index yesterday climbed to a five-month high on expectations that the Bank of England would keep interest rates down, after data showed inflation sank to a record low in January. The annual inflation rate fell to 0.3 per cent last month from 0.5 per cent in December, official data showed, largely reflecting [...]