| From UK-Analyst.com: Thursday 24th October 2013 The Markets In a trend which was seen across the majority of the Europe, the pace of business activity in the Eurozone slowed in October according to figures released today. Markit's Purchasing Managers' Index fell from 52.5 in September to 51.5 in October, edging closer to the 50 threshold which separates expansion and contraction. The trend was particularly apparent in the supposed European powerhouses of France and Germany, with both countries exhibiting lower levels of growth over the period. Chris Williamson, Chief Economist at Markit, commented, "The survey data have been running in positive territory for four consecutive months now and indicate that the Eurozone economy expanded at a quarterly rate of 0.2% at the start of the fourth quarter, suggesting an ongoing, albeit sluggish, recovery." Here in the UK, its has emerged that factory orders have weakened this month, a development which has caught analysts somewhat off guard. The Confederation of British Industry's (CBI) total order book balance fell from to -4 in October from +9 September, well wayward of the average analyst estimate of an increase to +10. The reading would have been even worse if it had not been for the continued strong level of car production over the period, with current production levels at the highest in five years. Stephen Gifford, the CBI's Director of Economics, said, "There are only limited signs of rebalancing towards exports or investment, with marginal growth in export orders and firms scaling back plans for capital expenditure on plant and machinery." ADVERTISEMENT Interested in trading forex? Join us at our free educational seminar on Friday 1st November For more information CLICK HERE At the London close the Dow Jones was up by 85.34 points at 15,498.67 and the Nasdaq was up by 17.22 points to 3,363.27. In London the FTSE 100 closed up by 38.70 points at 6,713.18 and the FTSE 250 was up by 31.96 points to 15,526.93 The FTSE All-Share was up by 18.06 points to 3,578.36 while the FTSE AIM Index was up by 0.43 points at 800.19..  Broker Notes Beaufort Securities stuck with its "buy" stance on Sports Direct International (SPD) after the company released a trading update yesterday. The broker notes that the company has continued to outperform a UK retail sector which has been plagued by the pressures of a largely stagnant economy. Furthermore, Beaufort praised the company's "well-planned" acquisition strategy and feels that online sales will continue to drive the performance of the company even higher. The shares were down by 27p at 685p. Panmure Gordon cut its "hold" stance to a "sell" recommendation on animal genetics company Genus (GNS), slashing its target price from 1,500p to 1,210p. The broker has cut its forecasts on the back of the company's near term outlook, emerging market currency headwinds, the recent acquisition of Genetiporc and pension related interest costs. Moreover, Panmure feels the valuation looks "stretched" given the 27.2 PE multiple on which the shares currently trade. The shares fell by 39p to 1,335p. Canaccord Genuity maintained its "buy" stance on electronics specialist AZ Electronic Materials (AZEM) with a target price of 389p. The broker feels that the company is "uniquely well positioned" to benefit from the eventual recovery in semiconductor manufacturing. Additionally, Canaccord believes that AZ's product innovation represents a good potential growth driver for the company. The shares were down by 4.9p to 282p. Blue Chips Engineer Rolls Royce (RR.) has signed a contract to supply thrusters and deck machinery for two semi-submersible drilling rigs to be built at Samsung Heavy Industries in Korea for Stena Drilling. The deal is worth around 22 million pounds to Rolls Royce and should see the rigs completed by 2016 before they are deployed to sites all over the world. The news comes two days after Deutsche Bank retained its "sell" recommendation and 1,020p target price on the company. The shares edged up by 30p to 1,174p. Consumer goods giant Unilever (ULVR) reported a 3.2% increase in third quarter sales, down on the 5% growth which was delivered over the second quarter of the year. The Dove skincare manufacturer blamed a fall in demand across emerging markets for the slump in performance, although management believes that this trend will now begin to stabilise. The company went on to bemoan the fact that it has yet to observe a marked improvement in market conditions in North America or Europe either. The shares swelled by 13p to 2,509p. Advertising empire WPP (WPP) announced a 5% increase in like-for-like revenues over the three months ended 30th September, well up on the 2.4% like-for-like growth which was recorded for the previous quarter. WPP benefitted from major contract wins over the period with the likes of General Electric and GSK coming on board as the two firms decided to shift away some of its advertising projects from other agencies. The shares increased by 12p to 1,325p. Mid Caps Communications services provider Spirent Communications (SPT) conceded that revenues over the fourth quarter of the year are likely to come in over $10 million (6.2 million pounds) lower than originally expected at $110-$115 million ( 68-71 million pounds). The company - which tests communications infrastructure for BT amongst others - blamed the shortfall on a delay in customers taking delivery of its products, with many projects not now due to be recognised until the beginning of next year. The shares were down by 5.3p at 118.2p. Oil and gas explorer Ophir Energy (OPHR) responded to recent media speculation by confirming that it intends to sell down its interests in Blocks 1, 3 and 4 in Tanzania. Although it appears that the company is currently in talks to dispose of these assets, Ophir stressed that there was no certainty that any sale would be made in the foreseeable future. The update comes a week after Liberum Capital retained its "sell" recommendation and 255p target price on the company. The shares were up by 27.3p at 326.7p. Retailer Debenhams (DEB) announced a 2.7% fall in pre-tax profits to 154 million pounds over the year ended 31st August and argued that a fully blown consumer recovery may be further away than expected. The company - which operates 236 stores across 28 countries - blamed the downfall in figures to the continued squeeze on consumer's buying power as inflation continues to race ahead of wage growth. The shares plunged by 9.7p to 101p. Small Caps Imaganatik (IMTK) announced that it has signed a three year contract with a Canadian banking and financial services corporation. The "idea manager" said that it would support the customer in its "innovation activities" across several divisions which would, in turn, help the Canadian firm to get more out its employees. Although the financial details of the agreement were not disclosed to the market, the company did say that the contract was "significant" in size. The shares grew by 0.014p to 0.093p. Business support services group Digital Globe Services (DGS) claimed that it performed "strongly" over the three months ended 30th September, with revenues up by 67% on the prior year period. The company attributed this growth to the expansion of its US telecoms business, entry into new territories and acquiring clients in new sectors. The company - which helps companies attract customers online - went on to say that it views the future with confidence. The shares were up by 18.5p at 246.5p. Surveillance company Petards Group (PEG) announced that it has won a contract for its cameras to be installed on the new Alstom Coradia Nordic X60 suburban EMU trains which are to be built in Germany. Under the terms of the deal, Petards camera systems will be deployed on 46 six-car trains that will be operated by Greater Stockholm Local Transport SL in Sweden. The financial details of the arrangement were not released. The shares inched up by 1p to 11.5p. ADVERTISEMENT Get free trading guides from Evil Knievil (How to successfully short stocks), Zak Mir (Top AIM market picks for 2013) and other top financial commentators by CLICKING HERE 
International construction group Sweett Group (CSG) claimed that each part of the group has contributed to a "very positive" overall performance in the first half of the year and stressed that it now expects full-year results to be "slightly ahead of its previous expectations". The company attributed this improvement to a recovery in the UK and Europe as well as beneficial fluctuations in the value of the Australian dollar. The update prompted Westhouse Securities retain its "add" recommendation on the company, increasing its target price from 58p to 70p. Sweet Group shares jumped by 2.5p to 51p. Software group Tracsis (TRCS) saw its pre-tax profits slip from 3 million pounds to 2.6 million pounds over the year ended July 31st, despite a 24% increase in pre-tax profits to 10.8 million pounds. The reason for this was a 40% surge in administrative costs to 5.3 million pounds as the company takes on more businesses. Despite the fall in profits, the company has decided to issue a final dividend of 0.4p per share, meaning that total dividends this year represent a 27% increase on dividends paid last year. The shares slipped by 14p to 190p. One day after software provider Brady (BRY) announced it secured a significant deal with a global metal trading company, it has emerged that the company has signed a deal with a Swiss-based international marketer of agricultural products. Brady argues that its software will allow its new client to view individual physical trades from any location. Again, the financial details were not released to the market. The shares were up by 7.25p to 71.25p. | 
No comments:
Post a Comment