FTSE in-depth: Randgold fund manager fury
Market makers in Randgold Resources were spitting blood when the West African focused gold miner published its annual report on the London Stock Exchange's regulatory news service (RNS) at 11am, three hours after the market's official opening.
Why? Because a stampede of buyers had earlier piled into Randgold's shares sending them 250p higher by 10am leaving some short.
One fund manager said: 'An annual report is usually ready for publication overnight and can normally be disclosed to the City and shareholders first thing. Why Randgold had to delay its release is beyond me.'
Buying continued after dealers read the Report's contents and decided that political tensions in the Ivory Coast could be lifting. The stock closed a spectacular 401p or 8.8% higher at 4967.5p, but still well below 2009's peak of 6755p.
The Ivory Coast has been in turmoil since a disputed election in November. Randgold's shares have been heavily sold on growing concerns about gold production at its Tongon mine in the Ivory Coast, which began producing in November 2010.
In the Annual Report, chief executive Alan Bristow said he is confident that Ivory Coast output can continue. He also reiterated a production forecast for 2011 given last month.
He expects to produce between 750,000 and 790,000 ounces of gold this year, an increase of 70-80% on last year's output with the Tongon mine scheduled to produce 260,000 to 270,000 ounces.
Vedanta Resources jumped 65p to 2379p despite speculation that the miner could roll out a sizeable rights issue to help finance its £5bn-plus purchase of a 51% stake in Cairn India from Cairn Energy, 1.7p cheaper at 462.1p.
Profit-taking at the end of the first-quarter left the Footsie 39.54 points easier at 5,908.76, or just over 8 points up over the three-month period. A resilience performance considering it had to contend with a re-emergence of the eurozone debt crisis, unrest in the Middle East and North Africa and the shocking Japanese earthquake and tsunami.
Wall Street lost an initial gain of 13 points to trade 11 lower on news that US factory orders fell 0.1% in February. Many New York traders were keeping their powder dry ahead of today's employment data.
Chip maker ARM Holdings added 12.5p to 575p after BoA/Merrill Lynch upgraded to buy from neutral.
Petrofac jumped 30p to 1489p after the international oil and gas facilities services provider confirmed it has been awarded a contract, in excess of £149m by Shell Iraq Developments for developments in the Majnoon Field, Southern Iraq.
After mining giant BHP Billiton said it would transfer its 51% interest in the northern licences to Falkland Oil & Gas, the latter's shares gushed 11p to 90p. FO&G also announced it is close to finalising a rig contract for its deep water exploration programme.
The black clouds currently hovering above the High Street helped drag B&Q owner Kingfisher 8.5p lower to 245.9p. Broker Matrix says the company believes the fact that Easter is later this year is good news.
As is the fact that it is followed by a second four-day weekend so Joe Public should get stuck into DIY projects. It is hopeful too that punters will take a liking to the recently launched 'royal wedding garden gnomes'.
Talk of an imminent announcement prompted hefty speculative buying of Environmental Recycling Technology, 1.43p better at 5.6p. AFC Energy advanced 4.25p to 59.25p on talk of a joint venture deal with giant utility Centrica, 5.4p cheaper at 325.3p.
Journey Group, the inflight products and caterer to the airline and travel industry, edged up 0.25p to 2.75p following results. 2010 was a transformational year. Chairman Stephen Yapp has turned the company around, masterminding a new growth strategy.
After getting out of the UK and substantially reducing debt to a measly £0.2m, the company is now profitable and concentrating on the US airline market. A re-rating must be on the cards and a City roadshow is planned.
Daisy Group, in which Martin Hughes' Tosca Asset Management holds 8.4%, buzzed 2.13p higher to 93p. It has acquired the Vodafone mobile service business of Outsourcery Ltd, a managed service provider, for £12m.
Liberum Capital says the deal looks pretty transformational for Daisy: it strengthens its relationship with Vodafone and brings greater opportunities for cross-selling in to the base.
Spreadbetting firm WorldSpreads firmed a penny to 52p after reporting revenues for the year to end-March are expected to be 25% up on last year.
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