Editor's Picks
Premier Foods off the boil after profits warning
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Food manufacturer Premier Foods warned of a significant drop in profit for the first half of the year, reflecting higher input costs and sluggish consumer spending heightened by unseasonably warm weather.
Berendsen profits to rise as Europe shines
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Berendsen, the workwear rental group formerly known as Davis Service Group, says it expects first half pre-tax profits to be “significantly” ahead of the same period last year after seeing revenue growth of 2% and an improvement in operating margin.
Balfour Beatty buys US construction firm for £58m
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Infrastructure group Balfour Beatty has acquired US construction services firm Howard S. Wright (HSW) for a net cash consideration of $93m (£58m).
US midday: S&P 500 hits a first area of resistance
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
The major US benchmarks are still trading significantly up on the day (Dow Jones Industrial: 126, Nasdaq Comp.: 29, S&P 500: 11), following the release of some much better than expected macroeconomic data out this afternoon and the approval, by the Greek parliament, of the second vote on the proposed new austerity measures.
Charter gives Melrose the brush-off
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Charter International has rejected a 780p-a-share indicative offer from rival engineering group Melrose. Melrose revealed on Wednesday that it had been in discussions with the company in regards to a potential offer which valued Charter at around £1.3bn, sending the target’s shares over a quarter higher.
Premium tips: Charter, HMV, Cairn
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Peel Hunt upgraded engineering firm Charter International from hold to buy, following yesterday’s 780p-a-share bid from sector peer Melrose. “The proposed cash/shares mix provides Charter shareholders with a carry in the potential value uplift and there is also the prospect of a competing bid.” The target price was raised to 850p, from 750p.
Greene King cautious despite sales rise
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Greene King posted a sharp rise in profits as revenues moved higher in the year to 1 May, but the pub group and brewer foresees another “testing” year. Pre-tax profits climbed to £140m from £123m on revenues that were up to £1.04bn from £984m. The dividend climbed by 7.4% to 23.1p. After an unusually strong April “consumers then reined in their expenditure in May.”
US open: Macro data and Greece push stocks up to resistance
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
The major US benchmarks are again registering significant gains (Dow Jones Industrial: 125, Nasdaq Comp.: 27, S&P 500: 11), following the release of some much better than expected macroeconomic data out this afternoon and the approval, by the Greek parliament, of the second vote on the proposed new austerity measures.
Europe midday: Rally running out of steam
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Progress was patchy in the morning session as the recent rally by European stocks showed signs of running out of steam. Economic data did not help matters. German retail sales unexpectedly went into reverse in May. Seasonally adjusted and inflation adjusted sales fell 2.8%, after showing no change in April. Economists had been expecting a rise of 0.5%.
CPP experiences slowdown as FSA investigation continues
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Identity theft and credit card insurer CPP has said that while revenues for the first half will be higher than last year, the rate of growth has slowed due to the ongoing investigation by the Financial Services Association (FSA).
Asia: Steady gains but concerns over Greece linger
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
The Greek parliament's vote to pass a round of brutal public sector cuts pushed Asian markets up on Thursday.
House prices unchanged in June
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
House prices were flat in June and down by 1.1% from the levels they sat at a year ago, new data from the Nationwide shows.
Barclays offloads £460m of private equity assets
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Banking giant Barclays has agreed to sell a £460m portfolio of US and European private equity interests to AXA Private Equity, as a result of stricter regulations in the banking industry. The portfolio, managed by Barclays Capital, includes investments in private equity funds as well as several direct private equity interests held by the investment banking division.
National Express hails growth across the board
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Revenue growth across the board helped public transport operator National Express achieve the first three phases of its strategy set out in February: margin recovery, organic growth, and targeted expansion.
Sky is not the limit for Murdoch
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
The Department of Media has given the green light to the proposed takeover of pay-TV broadcaster and internet service provider British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) by News Corp, the global media group controlled by Rupert Mudoch.
London open: Lloyds leads the rise after review
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Lloyds Banking Group was the high riser of the morning after revealing the details of its strategic review. The Footsie opened up near the 5,900 mark, a level not seen since the start of the month. Lloyds, the part-nationalised high street behemoth, is aiming to shed a further 15,000 jobs and cut its presence in foreign markets by half.
Wood Group expects 2011 to be in line
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Oilfield services firm Wood Group said on Thursday that it has seen good growth in the year to date and expects full-year numbers to be in line with expectations.
London pre-open: Lloyds to slim down
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
Everything looks copacetic in London with concerns over the Greek debt situation on the back-burner following yesterday's vote in the Greek parliament in favour of introducing austerity measures. City traders expect the Footsie will open around 20 points up from last night's close of 5,856.
BG doubles estimate of Brazil oil reserves
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
BG Group, the FTSE-100 gas and oil exploration and production company, has doubled the estimate of how much oil there might be in its Santos Basin site, 300 kilometres off the coast of Brazil. The estimate has been raised from 4 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) to 8 billion. The group expects production to exceed 2.3m boe by 2017.
BG doubles estimate of Brazil oil reserves
Thursday 30 Jun 2011
BG Group, the FTSE-100 gas and oil company, has doubled the estimate of how much oil there might be in its Santos Basin site, 300 km off the coast of Brazil. The estimate has been raised from 4bn barrels of oil equivalent (boe) to 8bn. Sir Frank Chapman, Chairman of BG group said of the reappraisal: “Robust economics and solid progress with the fast-track development programme...
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