FTSE 250 Movers: Micro Focus leads the way higher
7th Dec 2011 15:46
Micro Focus International saw its shares leap almost 6% after it announced today that revenues fell 2.6% in the first half, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 8.5%. It also revealed that it intends to return around $134.4m in cash by way of a B and C sha
Read moreWednesday broker round-up - UPDATE
7th Dec 2011 08:50
Resolution: Deutsche Bank upgrades to buy from hold. ICAP: Morgan Stanley downgrades to equalweight from overweight. Xstrata: Credit Suisse reiterates outperform and 1,700p target. Xstrata: Nomura reiterates buy and 1,500p target. Wolseley: Credit Suisse stays at outperform. Wolseley: UBS ups
Read moreCarillion expects strong profit growth in 2011
7th Dec 2011 07:53
Carillion, the support services firm, expects its underlying pre-tax profit and earnings per share for the year ended 31 December to increase strongly. Revenues are set to be in line with those of the previous year, but operating margin is expected to see strong increases, leading to greater profi
Read moreMonday broker round-up - UPDATE
5th Dec 2011 08:45
Kingfisher: Credit Suisse raises price target to 310p from 295p, outperform rating kept. Berkeley Group: Credit Suisse raises target to 1,225p from 1,079p, maintains neutral. Berkeley Group: UBS raises target to 1,530p from 1,480p. BG Group: UBS ups price target to 1,635p from 1,600p, stays at
Read moreCarillion wins contract worth £316m
5th Dec 2011 07:35
Carillion and its joint venture partner Qatar Building Company, have been awarded a £395m contract for an important phase of the Msheireb Downtown Doha project. The project is developed by Msheireb Properties, a subsidiary of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development. The
Read moreLondon pre-open: Stocks seen higher, all eyes on the euro
5th Dec 2011 07:19
The Footsie is expected to make moderate gains from the open, as a pivotal week in the Eurozone crisis kicks off. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel are due to meet in Paris today to discuss the centralised control of Eurozone budgets ahead of a key EU summit on Fri
Read moreWednesday tips round-up: Construction, ITE, IG Group ...
30th Nov 2011 07:34
Much has changed since the Independent's Investment Column looked at spread betting firm IG Group. For one thing, the economic outlook has turned darker, making IG's chunky prospective dividend yield of 5% (and higher on some estimates) look that much more attractive, the Indy reckons. The income, a
Read moreBroker tips: IG Group, Mothercare, Business service stocks
29th Nov 2011 12:58
Prime Markets recommends buying shares in IG Group, saying that the European sovereign debt crisis creates "ideal conditions" for the spread-betting firm. The group said this morning that it has continued to see high levels of client activity during its second quarter and first half revenues will b
Read moreBroker snap: Credit Suisse assesses impact of euro recession on business services
29th Nov 2011 10:22
Credit Suisse has reassessed its ratings and forecasts across the business services sector to reflect a more challenging environment in which it envisages Europe falling back into a recession in the fourth quarter. The broker said: "Our base case FY12-13 EPS estimates fall by an average of 4-5% to
Read moreFTSE 250 Movers: Barratt rises on reservations jump
16th Nov 2011 14:38
Leading the risers north, house builder Barratt Developments has seen reservations jump 25.9% in the period between July and the middle of November, compared to the same period of 2010. The average price it is achieving on sales has increased by 7% on 2010 and now stands at £207,000. Meanwhile, H
Read moreDigital Look broker talk
16th Nov 2011 10:53
Morrison: "Morrison was explicit in its allocation of capital, first and foremost, to grow the business, with any surplus considered for buybacks. Morrison is clearly in a position to do both, being less than half-way through a two-year GBP1bn buyback and working through to 8% gross space growth" [N
Read moreWednesday broker round-up - UPDATE
16th Nov 2011 09:44
Michael Page: HSBC upgrades to overweight from neutral. Reckitt Banckiser: Citi reiterates buy. Cairn Energy: Societe Generale initiates at buy. Royal Bank of Scotland: AlphaValue downgraded to add from buy yesterday and lowered the price target to £24.60from £29.80. ARM Holdings: UBS raises t
Read moreCarillion announces £450m in contract wins
9th Nov 2011 07:58
Support services firm Carillion has announced the win of two contracts worth up to £450m. The firm has signed a five-year framework contract to provide gas and multi-utility services for Fulcrum, potentially worth £70 million. It has also been selected as the preferred bidder by National Grid to
Read moreUPDATE: Tuesday broker round-up
11th Oct 2011 08:03
Wolseley: RBS cuts target to 2,378p from 2,420p, stays at buy. Premier Oil: UBS upgrades from neutral to buy, cuts target from 445p to 430p. British Land: Alpha value downgrades to 'reduce' from 'add'. Whitbread: Morgan Stanley upgrades to 'overweight' from 'neutral'. Vodafone: Investec reiter
Read moreUPDATE: Friday broker round-up
7th Oct 2011 09:28
Premier Foods: Credit Suisse cuts target to 8p from 25p. Compass: Credit Suisse keeps at outperform. EnCore: Royal Bank of Scotland raises target to 70p from 46p. Mouchel: Royal Bank of Scotland lowers target price to 18p form 75p. Hays: UBS keeps at buy, lowers target to 100p from 105p. Smi
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