Don’t write off the big guns of corporate broking yet September 27, 2012 WHEN Bob Diamond quit Barclays in July, there were many, myself included, who predicted that the bank’s investment business would struggle here on in. Longer-term that may indeed be the case, but the message so far from the world of UK corporate broking is showing a different story. Two big broking mandates, that of Severn [...]
Don’t write off the big guns of corporate broking yet September 27, 2012 WHEN Bob Diamond quit Barclays in July, there were many, myself included, who predicted that the bank’s investment business would struggle here on in. Longer-term that may indeed be the case, but the message so far from the world of UK corporate broking is showing a different story. Two big broking mandates, that of Severn [...]
Capital Shopping Centres to tap bond market for £300m in cash September 20, 2012 CAPITAL Shopping Centres (CSC), the UK’s largest shopping centre owner, has become the latest listed property firm to turn to the market for cash after it launched a £300m bond issue yesterday. The owner of malls including the Trafford Centre in Manchester and Lakeside in Essex, is offering £300m of senior, unsecured convertible bonds due [...]
Reckitt reassures on earnings after rival’s problems July 30, 2012 Reckitt Benckiser is growing faster than its markets despite tough trading in southern Europe and some slowing in emerging markets, as the British consumer goods group focuses on its top brands and fastest-growing regions. Chief executive Rakesh Kapoor, who took over last September after Bart Becht’s shock decision to retire, today reported half-year earnings rose [...]
Reckitt growth offset by fall in US and Europe July 30, 2012 RECKITT Benckiser warned yesterday that trading in Europe and the US remained tough due to weak consumer demand and fierce competition, after posting weaker than expected half-year sales in the region. The household and toiletries giant, which owns brands such as Nurofen and Vanish fabric cleaners, said like-for-like sales in its Europe and North American [...]
BEST of the BROKERS June 28, 2012 EVRAZ Goldman Sachs rates the steel maker “buy” but has slashed its target price from 700p to 410p. The broker has cut its forecasts for commodity prices, resulting in a four per cent fall in assumptions across the industry this year. However, Goldman remains positive about steel, and thinks Evraz is well-positioned to improve as [...]
LONDON WEEK AHEAD July 29, 2012 RESULTS season continues with a slew of banks, energy and leisure firms due to update this week, while the Bank of England’s monthly decision on interest rates is due on Thursday. Today’s biggest news comes in the form of interims from under-fire banking giant HSBC and household goods behemoth Reckitt Benckiser. The Bank is set [...]
Meissner hires co-heads for BofAML Europe June 25, 2012 CHRISTIAN Meissner, the global corporate and investment banking head at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, has appointed two of his former charges to become co-heads of the bank’s investment banking arm for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Meissner is hiring Diego de Giorgi from Goldman Sachs and is promoting Bob Elfring, with whom he [...]
BEST of the BROKERS May 23, 2012 BP Canaccord Genuity has raised its rating on the oil giant from “hold” to “buy’ and has a target price of 485p. While the broker is not yet confident BP can recover from its 2010 spill in the long run, it sees a strong bounce coming in 2013-14 once various US court cases are resolved. [...]
Man jailed for drug scam that cost Reckitt £2m May 28, 2012 A CODEINE addict whose drug-swapping scam ended up costing Reckitt Benckiser £2.4m in a huge recall of Nurofen Plus packets was yesterday jailed for 18 months for causing a public nuisance. Christopher McGuire sparked panic last August when strips of anti-psychotic drug Seroquel were found in packets of the pharmacy-only painkiller Nurofen Plus. Reckitt spent [...]