Positive earnings news buoys markets July 19, 2011 Markets tipped into the black today after days of sell-offs prompted by ongoing sovereign debt fears. UK stocks climbed on a raft of company news as quarterly earnings data proved largely positive. The FTSE 100 ended 0.7 per cent higher at 5,789.99 as banks and miners were bought widely after selling yesterday left them looking [...]
Markets hit by US debt wrangling July 25, 2011 Stocks suffered another difficult day as sovereign debt worries, this time from the US, weighed on markets. The FTSE 100 saw volatile trading with low volumes as investors anxiously watched for signs of a breakthrough between Democrats and Republicans over the US’ national debt ceiling. The parties are at loggerheads and have just days left [...]
Reckitt shares soar on takeover October 26, 2010 Shares in Reckitt Benckiser rose 31p to 3,449p at one stage yesterday before closing 114p lower at 3,436p after EU competition watchdogs gave the green light to its takeover of Durex condoms maker SSL. The Cillit Bang to Nurofen painkiller group is disposing of SSL’s brands for mouth pain relief products in the UK and [...]
Reckitt Benckiser profit beats forecasts November 2, 2010 Reckitt Benckiser beat City forecasts with an 18 per cent rise in third-quarter profits. The increase follows its takeover of Durex condom maker SSL. The consumer goods company, whose brands include Cillit Bang-to-Nurofen, is expecting the acquisition to fuel s sdale surge. Chief executive Bart Becht said: “For the business ex-RBP (pharmaceuticals), there is no [...]
Reckitt looks to Asia as SSL joins the fold November 2, 2010 RECKITT Benckiser predicts it will increase profits by 16 per cent in the next year as rising sales in Brazil, India and East Asia drive the company forward despite tough UK and North American markets. The Slough-based company posted a 19 per cent rise in profit to £426m for the three months to September. Revenue [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS THERE LIFE AFTER BART BECHT? April 20, 2011 ANDREW WOOD | BERNSTEIN Fears by some investors that the departure of Bart Becht heralded a disappointing quarter are unfounded. Growth was led by continued strong growth in the developing markets …with flat growth in Europe not being the disaster that some had feared. We are not surprised to see the stock react positively MARTIN [...]
Reckitt fined £10m for restricting competition October 15, 2010 HOUSEHOLD products giant Reckitt Benckiser has agreed to pay a fine of £10.2m after admitting to abusing its market position for the supply of heartburn drug Gaviscon. The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) had launched a probe into allegations that the company had restricted competition in the supply of heartburn medicines to the NHS. The [...]
Switch off the panic button until the figures are in April 14, 2011 WITH Becht’s departure following that of finance chief Colin Day last year, it’s not surprising that the market is spooked. The company is now without the core team that led it so successfully through the last decade. The £2bn man – that’s how much the markets marked down the firm when they learnt of Becht’s [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS April 25, 2011 RUSHYDRO Goldman Sachs has upgraded the hydroelectricity company to “buy”, seeing its underperformance in the year to date as an opportunity to invest. The broker thinks the market has overreacted to the news flow on regulatory pressure on electricity tariffs and the risks associated with M&A activity, and expects an 18 per cent increase in [...]
A string of strong earnings reports sends FTSE jumping April 20, 2011 COMMODITY stocks helped power the FTSE 100 index sharply higher yesterday, while earnings from Reckitt Benckiser and Home Retail, following US tech bellwether Intel, boosted risk appetite. The FTSE 100 closed up 125.39 points, or 2.1 per cent, at 6,022.26 following a 0.5 per cent gain on Tuesday. This wiped out Monday’s 2.1 per cent [...]