BEST OF THE BROKERS February 15, 2011 CENTRICA JP Morgan Cazenove rates the utility “overweight” with a target price of 390p. The broker thinks an ongoing Ofgem supply review is unlikely to lead to a Competition Commission referral, and that the market has not priced in a formal investigation. JPM expects to see a carbon tax of £1 per tonne in the [...]
Greencore to fight rival bid January 23, 2011 GREENCORE is expected to sweeten its merger deal with Northern Foods this week in an attempt to best Boparan’s £342m cash takeover offer. Dublin-based Greencore is considering adding a cash sweetener on top of its all-share merger with Northern, according to people familiar with the companies. Northern’s board has dropped its support for the Greencore [...]
Greencore to fight rival bid January 23, 2011 GREENCORE is expected to sweeten its merger deal with Northern Foods this week in an attempt to best Boparan’s £342m cash takeover offer. Dublin-based Greencore is considering adding a cash sweetener on top of its all-share merger with Northern, according to people familiar with the companies. Northern’s board has dropped its support for the Greencore [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WHY DID DIAGEO’S RESULTS LEAD TO A DROP IN SHARE PRICE? February 10, 2011 MARTIN DEBOO | INVESTEC Given the momentum around the stock in recent months, where we sense that enthusiasm for a gradual American recovery, buoyant M&A speculation and anticipation around a compelling first-half profit story have galvanised the share price. This is a a poor result with further hangovers to come. The market had assumed there [...]
WHISKY, JAZZ, AND BETTING ON THE EURO February 16, 2011 WITH whisky tasting, a jazz band and the chance to win a sports car for the weekend on offer, WorldSpreads winter party (definitely not just a late Christmas do) was the place to be in the City on Tuesday night. Held in a candlelit crypt underneath St Etheldreda’s church near Chancery Lane, the night saw [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS BP SHOWING SIGNS OF RECOVERY? February 1, 2011 STUART JOYNER | INVESTEC The figures are below forecasts, with disappointment in refining and marketing in particular. The dividend is in line, though it has been set this low for political rather than business reasons. The deal with Rosnef has a long-term future, though the dispute has potential to rumble on. IVOR PETHER | ROYAL [...]
Halifax: Modest decline in house prices signals price stagnation for coming year January 10, 2011 HOUSE prices dropped slightly in the final three months of the year, according to a Halifax study released yesterday. “Prices were 0.9 per cent lower than in the previous quarter,” said Halifax economist Martin Ellis. “This rate of decline is significantly less than the quarterly falls of five to six per cent during the second [...]
Two years of record low rates February 10, 2011 INTEREST rates will stay at half a per cent for the 24th month in a row, the Bank of England announced yesterday. Analysts were unsurprised by the decision to keep rates at a record low, but expect the meeting’s minutes, published on 23 February, to reveal a fractious and increasingly hawkish feel to the committee. [...]
Market tense over rate rise February 6, 2011 MARKETS are nervously awaiting the results of the Bank of England’s latest meeting on interest rates. “We expect a considerable degree of market tension ahead of Thursday’s monetary policy committee (MPC) announcement,” said Investec’s Philip Shaw. Sterling rose last week after MPC members Andrew Sentance and Charles Bean gave interviews which suggested a leaning towards [...]
Market tense over rate rise February 6, 2011 MARKETS are nervously awaiting the results of the Bank of England’s latest meeting on interest rates. “We expect a considerable degree of market tension ahead of Thursday’s monetary policy committee (MPC) announcement,” said Investec’s Philip Shaw. Sterling rose last week after MPC members Andrew Sentance and Charles Bean gave interviews which suggested a leaning towards [...]