FTSE 100 close: Autonomy disappoints
A sharp drop for technology firm Au
Looking up: The FTSE 100 has seen three days of gains
The FTSE 100 index was 15.38 points ahead at 4,361.84, after positive earnings news continued to flow from across the Atlantic.
JP Morgan posted an unexpectedly high 36% jump in second-quarter profit as strength in its core consumer and investment banking businesses offset a jump in credit losses.
The New York-based banking giant was the second big financial institution in a week to release upbeat earnings news, after record results from Goldman Sachs on Tuesday helped boost world markets.
The Wall Street party was spoiled slightly by the collapse of talks to rescue CIT Group, which puts the future of the small and midsize business lender in doubt.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading 9.5 points up at 8625.7.
'Trying to be optimistic, a successful test of the 4,400 level would be the next technical point to watch for but just how long the rally can be drawn out is a cause for debate,' said Jimmy Yates, head of equities at CMC Markets.
'The bar has been set quite high by Goldmans and with the weekend break fast approaching, it's going to be difficult for traders to pass up the opportunity to take profits.'
In London, profit-taking meant commodity stocks gave back some recent gains, with Eurasian Natural Resources down 23½p at 720½p and Anglo American down 41p at 1759p.
However, silver miner Fresnillo was enjoying a better session as shares rose 2.14%, or 12p to 573p, after second quarter production came in ahead of expected.
JP Morgan's figures helped HSBC and Barclays make further gains: HSBC rose 5.6p to 536.6p, while Barclays gained 1.5p to 314.8p. But part-nationalised rival Royal Bank of Scotland eased back by 0.2p to 38.14p.
Autonomy topped the Footsie fallers' board after it reported second-half results. Shares in the corporate software and systems provider sank 113p to 1,205p, despite the figures meeting expectations.
Analyst George O'Connor at Panmure Gordon, who has a 'buy' rating on the stock, says people were expecting better revenues from the Interwoven acquisition.
'In addition, there is constant concern about underlying organic growth in Autonomy,' he says. The market also expected a more optimistic outlook, added O'Connor.
Petrofac was the index's biggest gainer with a 35½p to a one-year high of 730½p after the oil and gas services provider said it had won a £1.28bn contract to build a liquid natural gas train link at Ruwais in Abu Dhabi. Petrofac – whose shares have doubled since January - said the value of the contract to the company is around £610m.
Schroders climbed 27½p to 861½p after Citigroup raised the stock to 'buy' from 'sell'.
In the FTSE 250, pubco Enterprise Inns lost more than 7% after it said business failures were still occurring at a rate 50% ahead of last year - costing it £2m a month in lost income. The fall of 10p to 126p came despite signs from the company that trading had stabilised in recent weeks.
It was a similar story from Mitchells & Butlers, which reported a pick-up in like-for-like sales amid encouraging trading at its community pubs. Margins have also been helped by an unwinding in cost inflation, but this was not enough to lift shares, which were down 10.5p at 250p.
Other pub chains were on the back foot, with JD Wetherspoon losing gains seen yesterday after a fall of 3¼p to 425¼p.
Sports Direct shares took a 3.25p hit to 78.75p after the struggling sportswear retailer scrapped its dividend, on top of a 91% drop in full-year profits. First-half sales had been 'significantly affected' by the lack of any home nation team in a major football competition last year, said the company, which is controlled by under-pressure Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley and owns the Sports World chain as well as the Slazenger and Dunlop brands.
Rival JJB Sports climbed 3.5p to 28.5p after it emerged that Microsoft founder Bill Gates had bought shares in the troubled retailer to take his stake to 3%.
Shares in Henderson Group slumped 13.25p to 90.5p after the Anglo-Australian fund manager said pre-tax profits for the first part of the year could be up to 50% lower than last year.
Broker Altium Securities downgrades Henderson to 'hold' down from 'buy'.
Henderson, which earlier this year took over rival New Star, says pretax profits will range between £25m and £28m, including one quarter's contribution from New Star. This compares with £50.8m in the first half of 2008.
Finally, Dairy Crest lifted 4.25p to 315.25p after it posted a trading update in line with expectations and said profits were improving in dairies.
Most watched Money videos
- Land Rover unveil newest all-electric Range Rover SUV
- Alfa Romeo reveals first electric sporty SUV Junior for Alfisti fans
- 'Now even better': Nissan Qashqai gets a facelift for 2024 version
- Tesla unveils new Model 3 Performance - it's the fastest ever!
- Mini celebrates the release of brand new all-electric car Mini Aceman
- Mini Cooper SE: The British icon gets an all-electric makeover
- Paul McCartney's psychedelic Wings 1972 double-decker tour bus
- Top Gear takes Jamiroquai's lead singer's Lamborghini for a spin
- Incredibly rare MG Metro 6R4 rally car sells for a record £425,500
- A look inside the new Ineos Quartermaster off-road pickup truck
- Kia's 372-mile compact electric SUV - and it could costs under £30k
- Introducing Britain's new sports car: The electric buggy Callum Skye
- Bloomsbury snaps up US academic publisher for £65m
- BHP abandons £39bn pursuit of Anglo American as City...
- Have you noticed driving standards getting worse? A...
- ECB set to press ahead with rate cut next week thanks to...
- Wood Group suitor Sidara makes final offer for oilfield...
- BUSINESS LIVE: Royal Mail takeover agreed; Anglo American...
- Pets at Home insists growth plans are 'not threatened' by...
- Homeownership among under 35s hits highest level since...
- City fails to back £3.6bn Royal Mail takeover - despite...
- Fuller's agrees £18m deal to sell 37 pubs to Admiral Taverns
- BHP calls for more time as it weighs £39bn Anglo American...
- Royal Mail owner IDS agrees Kretinsky's £3.6bn takeover bid
- Volkswagen to take on China in the cheap EV race with a...
- Anglo American rules out mining rival BHP's request for...
- Major Japanese car makers join forces to develop small...
- Vaccines tsar sells biotech start-up to US pharma group...
- Royal Mail's shameful sale: Debt-fuelled deal is bad for...
- Boost for sunseekers as pound hits highest level against...