FTSE in-depth: Cyber threats a boost for Endace
According to the powers that be, cyber warfare represents one of the greatest threats to Britain's national security.
Foster: 'Six thousand here we come,' was the shout in dealing rooms.
The government recently announced plans to invest £650m to combat these potential threats and that's got to be mega bullish news for AIM-listed Endace.
Its world-class technology enables companies and government agencies to guard against viruses, hackers and other network attacks.
Already in demand on hopes that governments and corporates will move away from less scalable software towards Endace's dedicated hardware kits, its shares rocketed a further 61p to a year's high of 310p.
Buyers dived in on hearing that the company had won a multi-million dollar order from a leading global financial services firm to deploy its EndaceProbes - cyber security monitoring product - at all levels in 15 data centres throughout the bank.
Panmure Gordon said the order raises Endace's profile and may well presage bid speculation. Rival broker Killik agrees and added that Endace would be an easy target for a large, cash rich technology company.
It may have been the worst kept secret in the world, but the long-awaited decision by 'uncle' Ben Bernanke and his team at the Federal Reserve to pump $600bn into the flagging US economy lit the blue touch paper in the City.
'Six thousand here we come,' was the shout in dealing rooms as the fabulous Footsie soared 113.82 points to 5,862.79 - its highest level since June 2008. The FTSE 250 jumped 140.18 points to 11,016.46. With the uncertainty over and Wall Street trading up more than 180 points early on, buyers had a field day.
Broker Credit Suisse revealed it remains overweight on the UK market as it sees equities as the cheapest available inflation hedge. The Bank of England's decision to keep UK interest rates unchanged at 0.5% and the level of quantitative easing on hold at £200bn came as no surprise.
Heavyweight miners were in the vanguard of the advance as the dollar weakened and commodity prices moved sharply in the opposite direction. Additionally, relieved that its $40bn bid for Potash had been stymied by the Canadian government, BHP Billiton rose 150p to 2430.5p. Xstrata added 90p to 1366P, Eurasian Natural Resources 61.5p to 949.5p, Kazakhmys 93p to 1462p and Fresnillo 74p to 1367p.
Royal Bank of Scotland, which is more than 80% owned by the UK taxpayer, added 1.97p to 47.15p and HSBC advanced 25.1p to 695.2p ahead of their respective third-quarter trading statements today.
Housebuilders erected good gains after the latest survey from the Halifax said that house prices surged 1.8% in October and interest and mortgage rates look to be remaining at mezzanine levels for some time to come. Persimmon climbed 25.7p to 361.6p, Barratt Developments 5.85p to 83.55p and Taylor Wimpey 1.93p to 25.06p.
Industrial engineer Charter International slumped 45.5p or 6% to 682.5p after warning that full-year profits will be at the lower end of analysts' expectations. Broker KBC Peel Hunt downgraded its December 2010 pre-tax profit forecast by 3% to £145m but advised clients to buy the stock on weakness.
Titanium minerals miner Kenmare Resources firmed 2p to 22.99p on a Bank of America Merrill Lynch recommendation and target price of 30p. The broker reckons its world class assets could make it a potential takeover target.
Pubs group JD Wetherspoon frothed up to 417p following a robust first-quarter trading statement and then hit profit-taking to close 10p off at 404.9p. Underlying sales for the 13 weeks to October 24 rose 1.6% and total sales grew at 7.3% reflecting the contribution from the new sites which opened last year. The group remains on track to open 50 sites in the current year with five opened to date.
Perennial takeover favourite TeleCity eased 9.4p to 478.7p despite bullish noises from Deutsche Bank. The broker hosted meetings with the company at its newest data centre in Paris and came away positive about the quality of the business and trading prospects. Its price target is 560p.
Cove Energy, the oil and gas explorer with activities in East Africa, put on 1.25p to 80.75p following a placing of 144.7m shares at 76p a share to raise £110m. The cash proceeds will be used to fund costs associated with the groups existing assets in Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya.
Reflecting vague takeover gossip and the recent appointment of Mike Lord as chairman, JSJS Designs edged up 0.05p to 1.575p. The company designs, develops and manufactures home automation systems.
Most watched Money videos
- 'Now even better': Nissan Qashqai gets a facelift for 2024 version
- Inside the new Ferrari V12 Cilindri
- BMW's Vision Neue Klasse X unveils its sports activity vehicle future
- Tesla unveils new Model 3 Performance - it's the fastest ever!
- Mercedes has finally unveiled its new electric G-Class
- Mini celebrates the release of brand new all-electric car Mini Aceman
- Skoda reveals Skoda Epiq as part of an all-electric car portfolio
- Land Rover unveil newest all-electric Range Rover SUV
- Blue Whale fund manager on the best of the Magnificent 7
- Mini Cooper SE: The British icon gets an all-electric makeover
- Volvo's Polestar releases new innovative 4 digital rearview mirror
- 2025 Aston Martin DBX707: More luxury but comes with a higher price
- BUSINESS LIVE: UK GDP grows 0.6%; IAG profits take off;...
- Ikea pushes back opening of its Oxford Street store to...
- My favourite 20 new cars for under £20,000 - by the...
- As firms abandon the stock market, how these four private...
- BHP boss to meet his counterpart at takeover target Anglo...
- Jaguar Land Rover posts its biggest profit since 2015...
- British Airways owner IAG set for bumper summer
- Should the Bank of England have cut interest rates...
- How criminals could use AI to scam Britons - and what can...
- Rightmove expects weaker ad revenue growth as more...
- MARKET REPORT: S4 Capital shares soar as Sir Martin...
- BA owner IAG profits climb more than sevenfold
- ALEX BRUMMER: UK second to United States among G7 richest...
- Footsie hits new high as economy roars back
- SMALL CAP MOVERS: Light Science Technologies sales flourish
- Households with emergency savings pots rises...
- The government asks motoring enthusiasts for help shaping...
- Vodafone told to boost security as £15bn Three merger is...