From UK-Analyst.com: Wednesday 12th December 2012
The Markets According to the Office for National Statistics the number of unemployed fell by 82,000 to 2.51 million in the August-October quarter. This is the biggest quarterly fall since 2001. The unemployment rate was 7.8% at the period end, down by 0.2% on the previous 3 months as the number of people employed in the UK rose to 29.6 million, the highest figure since records began in 1971. Mark Hoban, minister for work and pensions said "We see more people looking for work and actually finding work, so i think there is a really strong labour market there". In India, industrial output grew by more than expected as factory output surged by 8.2% in October year-on-year, well ahead of market expectations of 4.5%. It is thought that the rise was down to higher consumer demand in the run up to Diwali, celebrated during November. Rajeev Malik, a senior economist with financial services group CLSA said "It's a positive surprise, but bear in mind the jump is distorted by last year's low base, and this is going to reverse in November." On the continent, Greece has agreed to buy back a portion of its borrowings, but the total reduction in debt is not as much as some of its creditors would have hoped. According to Greece's debt management agency, holders of Greek debt have agreed to sell 31.9 billion euros (25.77 billion pounds) back to the country at 33.8% of their face value, wiping off approximately 20 billion pounds of debt. The buyback agreement was conditional on the country getting more of its bailout cash, an agreement which was finalised in recent weeks. At the London close the Dow Jones was up by 20.44 points at 13,268.88 and the Nasdaq fell by 0.81 points to 2,681.26. In London the FTSE 100 increased by 20.88 points to 5,945.85; the FTSE 250 finished 33.73 points up at 12,224.31; the FTSE All-Share gained 10.62 points to 3108.25; and the FTSE AIM Index crept up by 0.71 points to 688.51.  Broker Notes Daniel Stewart reiterated its "buy" stance on 888 Holdings (888), increasing its target price from 120p to 130p. This comes on the back of the online gambling firm's agreement with Facebook to offer real money gaming connected to the social media site. The broker notes that many Facebook users currently play the (play-for-fun) version of 888's games via the Facebook website and believes that the conversion of some of these customers into real money gamers could prove to be lucrative for the firm. The shares rose by 9p to 118.25p. Canaccord Genuity maintained its "buy" recommendation on insolvency firm Begbies Traynor (BEG) but lowered the target price by 8% to 40p. This decision comes on the back of the firm's interim results, which showed revenues down by 12.6% to 26.1 million pounds and also illustrated a 0.9 million pounds fall in profits to 3.2 million pounds. The broker notes that past recessions have illustrated a lag between the bottom of the cycle and peak insolvency rates and to this end feels that it is unlikely that there will be any marked improvement in performance in the near-term future but believes things should pick up from 2014 onwards. The shares fell by 1.125p to 32.75p. Seymour Pierce stuck with its "buy" recommendation on construction firm Carillion (CLLN) with a target price of 395p. The broker believes that the shares are undervalued as they are trading on a P/E multiple of 6.9 and yield of 5.7%. The broker also notes that the company expects to deliver a robust financial performance in 2012 with an expected pre-tax profit figure of 218 million pounds, above the broker's forecast of 214 million pounds. The broker goes on to say that this healthy profit figure coupled with the healthy pipeline of contract opportunities illustrate room for even more growth. The shares increased by 4.1p to 300p. 
Blue-Chips Mining giant BHP Billiton (BLT) has agreed to sell its 8.33% stake interest in its East West Browse Joint Venture and its 20% interest in its West Browse Joint Venture, both located offshore Western Australia, to PetroChina for a cash consideration of $1.63 billion (1.01 billion pounds). PetroChina is China's largest oil and gas producer and distributor and it is expected to complete the purchase sometime in the first half of calendar year 2013. The shares climbed 13.5p to 2,068p. Financial services group Standard Life (SL.) has disposed of two of its offices properties located in Eastern and Central Canada. The news of these disposals comes after the company sold two properties in Western Canada in November. Overall, these transactions will contribute to operating profit before tax for this calendar year with the one off contribution from the sales expected to be 140 million pounds. The sales were completed to "maximise shareholder value" and come at a time when there was significant demand for such properties across Canada. The shares gained 3.2p to 334.6p. 
Mid Caps Multimedia technology company Imagination Technologies (IMG) reported a 27% hike in revenues to 71.4 million pounds and growth of 10% in pre-tax profits to 10.5 million pounds - after stripping out non-recurring items - for the six months ended 31st October. The increase in revenues was driven by a 66% growth in royalties and a substantial but more modest growth in licensing fees. On the flip side, the group incurred an 39% increase in the level of operating expenses to 43.8 million pounds as it invested in strategic research and development programmes in response to customer and market opportunities. The shares tumbled by 23.4p to 425p. Fashion firm Supergroup (SGP) announced a 16.2% hike in revenues to 158.2 million pounds but a 31.5% decrease in pre-tax profits to 13.9 million pounds for the 26 weeks ended October 28th, blaming poor accounting and management controls. Supergroup attributed a large chunk of the growth in revenues to sales of its trademark T-shirts, hooded tops and jogging bottoms. Despite the drop in profits the firm benefited from a 90 basis point increase in gross margins, driven by falling cotton prices and improved supplier terms. The shares fell by 39.5p to 557p. 
Building materials supplier Travis Perkins (TPK) announced a 1.6% increase in total group sales for the 11 months to the end of November, a period which admittedly included 2 more trading days in the company's merchant and plumbing and heating divisions against the comparable period last year. However, looking at like-for-like sales, the picture is more bleak, with 2 out of the company's 3 divisions posting falls. The outlook for the whole year remains unchanged and the company said that it is on track to achieve its net debt target of 450 million pounds by the end of the year. The shares lost 27p to 1,066p. Small Caps & AIM Pharmaceutical company Retroscreen Virology (RVG) declared that it expects to achieve a revenue increase of 204% to 13 million pounds for the calendar year 2012 with gross margin and net loss ahead of market expectations. The bulk of this new revenue growth is due to the increased number of quarantines conducted during 2012 alongside the study set up and volunteer recruitment for a number of human trials with quarantines due to commence in 2013. The shares grew by 11.5p to 134p. Scientific Digital Imaging (SDI) announced that its new division, Synoptics Health, which develops a patented system for detecting dirty surgical instruments in hospitals, has generated significant interest from around the world. Orders for ProReveal have been placed for 10 systems in the UK since launch and "strong interest" has been received from Germany, Ireland, Malaysia, Italy and Korea. The technology, which has been developed by the imaging company in conjunction with Queen Mary University over the last four years, is expected to significantly boost revenues for the current year. The shares rocketed by 5p to 15p. Internet media and advertising company Media Corporation* (MDC) announced highlights of a business review carried out by the board, which includes changing the name of the business to Inta plc. A commercialisation team will be set up and a full review of all non-core businesses will take place, including media agency Eyeconomy, with a view to a possible disposal. In addition, bet comparison site (www.betcomparer.com) is scheduled to launch on or by 1st March 2013. The shares were down by 0.03p at 0.1p. 
Gold exploration company Stratex International (STI) reported the sale of its 30% stake in the Oksut gold project in Turkey to joint-venture partner Centerra Exploration B.V for up to 40 million dollars (24.8 million pounds) with 20 million dollars (12.4 million pounds) to be paid in cash and a potential further 20 million dollars to be paid via a 1% Net Smelter Return (NSR) royalty. The initial payment of 20 million dollars represents a return equal to 20 times the initial investment the company made in the site. The shares were up by 0.25p at 5.625p. Marine and waterfront regeneration firm Sutton Harbour Holdings (SUH) announced a 35% fall in revenues to 3.93 million pounds and a 46% drop in operating profits to 1.49 million pounds for the 6 month period ended 30th September. The closure of Plymouth City Airport is thought to have cost the company in the region of 0.5 million pounds. The firm also cited general tough market conditions for the fall in performance but said it is trading in line with its own expectations. The shares decreased by 5.5p to 29.5p. Recruitment firm Staffline (STAF) revealed the acquisition of the trade and assets of GB Resourcing, a temporary recruitment provider based in Birmingham. The acquired business was established in 1999 and offers recruitment services throughout the Midlands and adds two new food onsites and a branch in Birmingham. The announcement is in line with Staffline's strategy of targeting selective bolt-on acquisitions to expand its customer base and broaden its revenue mix. The shares jumped by 7p to 287.5p. * Media Corporation is a corporate client of Rivington Street Holdings, the ultimate owner of UK-Analyst. 
| 
No comments:
Post a Comment