| From UK-Analyst.com: Wednesday 23rd October 2013 IMPORTANT: Are your UK-Analyst emails being delayed? Add UK-Analyst@news.t1ps.com to your safe senders/contact list to help resolve the problem The Markets In the latest minutes release from the Monetary Policy Committee meeting, it has emerged that the Bank of England policy makers now expect a larger growth in UK output and a quicker fall in unemployment. Although the policymakers could not agree on how fast productivity would pick up or how quickly unemployment would fall, the overwhelming consensus was that both metrics are on a clear improving trajectory. An extract from the minutes read, "It now therefore seemed probable that unemployment would be lower, and output growth faster, in the second half of 2013 than expected at the time of the August Inflation Report." In an equally positive piece of economic news, this time over in Spain, the nation's economy expanded for the first time in over 2 years over the July-September quarter. According to the Bank of Spain, the country's GDP grew by 0.1% over the third quarter of the year. The data will be especially welcome to the country, which has been plagued with recession since the financial crisis back in 2008. Robert Wood, an economist at Berenberg Bank commented. "We are optimistic on the euro periphery as a whole and Spain in particular. The country has made big structural changes, it's been engaged in a lot of deficit reduction, business sentiment is improving and unemployment is probably close to a peak." At the London close the Dow Jones was down by 74.58 points at 15,393.08 and the Nasdaq fell by 25.59 points to 3,341.34. ADVERTISEMENT Interested in trading forex? Join us at our free educational seminar on Friday 1st November For more information CLICK HERE In London the FTSE 100 closed down by 21.18 points at 6,674.48 and the FTSE 250 fell by 17.52 points to 15,494.97. The FTSE All-Share slipped by 10.20 points to 3,560.30 while the FTSE AIM Index was down by 3.23 points at 802.99.  Broker Notes Deutsche Bank has downgraded its "buy" recommendation on Costa Coffee owner Whitbread (WTB) to a "hold" stance, increasing its target price slightly from 3,350p to 3,485p. The investment bank feels that now is the perfect time for investors to take profits given the recent strong share price performance. However, Deutsche Bank did stress that it appreciated the merits of the business and is said that it was encouraged by roll out plans for both Premier Inn and Costa Coffee. The shares were down by 14p at 3,345p. N+1 Singer downgraded its "buy" stance to a "hold" recommendation on newspaper distributor Smiths News (NWS), pushing its target price up from 185p to 200p. The broker was impressed with last week's preliminary results, which confirmed that the company is on course to deliver on its financial targets this year. However, given the recent surge in the share price, N+1 Singer feels that the shares are now fairly valued. The shares inched up by 0.5p to 209.25p. Canaccord Genuity cut its "buy" stance to a "hold" recommendation on lender International Personal Finance (IPF), leaving its target price unchanged at 700p. In a similar story to the previous two broker downgrades, Canaccord notes that the share price has increased by 21% over the last three months and believes that this is a fair valuation of the company. Canaccord would also like to see an annualised customer growth of 5%, rather than the 4% which was delivered over the third quarter of the year. The shares fell by 45.5p to 623p. Blue Chips Sports retailer Sports Direct (SPD) revealed that total sales for the 9 weeks ended 29th September were up by 15% on last year, with gross profit coming in 19.4% higher than the 199.8 million pounds which was generated in the same period in 2012. The group – which operates around 400 stores in the UK – said that the bulk of the growth was driven by its core sports retail division which performed well against a tough Olympic comparative period last year. The shares grew by 5.5p to 712p. Lung destroyer British American Tobacco (BATS) reported a 3.5% growth in revenues over the 9 months ended 30th September despite a 3% drop in overall tobacco volumes. The Pall Mall producer said that it benefited from a strong global pricing environment over the period. However, the tobacco giant conceded that results could have been more impressive if it had not been for adverse currency movements and its brand losing market share in countries ranging from Brazil to Romania. The shares crept upwards by 1p to 3,386p. Aerospace group Meggit (MGGT) announced that it has been chosen to supply the braking system for Dassault's new business jet model in a "multi- million dollar agreement". The deal builds on a relationship which already sees Meggit supply braking systems for 1,200 of Dassault's aircraft. The update comes a day after Deutsche Bank retained its "hold" recommendation on the shares with a target price of 525p. The shares were up by 4p to 554p. Mid Caps Banknote printer De La Rue (DLAR) conceded that it would miss original profit forecasts for this year as increased competition has forced it to charge lower prices for the services it offers. The company now expect to generate 90 million pounds in operating profits over the 2014 financial year, down on the originally forecast 100 million pounds. The firm – which makes bank notes for around 150 different currencies – also said that its division which makes cash sorting equipment generated a loss over the 6 months ended 30th September. The shares plunged by 95.5p to 885.5p. Electronics specialist Laird (LRD) claimed that it has traded in line with expectations since July, with revenues up by 6% at 144 million pounds. The company, which makes heat control components to prevent electronic devices from overheating, said that its results were boosted by a raft of new products released in the gaming console and smartphone sectors. The Samsung and Apple supplier went on to say that it should hit full year expectations for the year. The shares jumped by 18.2p to 243.9p. Television specialist Pace (PIC) announced that it has agreed to acquire Aurora Networks in a deal worth around $310 million (191.6 million pounds). Aurora Networks produces optical systems used by cable companies to build fibre-optic networks and Pace management argues that the deal will support its consumers' demand for the delivery of ever increasing bandwith at a reasonable cost. The update comes after Barclays Capital stuck with its "Equal Weight" stance on the company with a target price of 320p. The shares swelled by 33.8p to 323.8p. Small Caps Media group UBC Media (UBC) claimed that trading over the 6 months ended 30th September was in line with expectations, with operational losses expected to be consistent with management expectations. Interestingly, UBC also revealed that it has decided to increase its investment in Audioboo to 34% as it looks to capitalise on the explosive growth in users it is currently delivering. Audioboo is an audio social network platform which currently has 1.7 million users and features sound clips from the likes of ESPN radio and the Premier League. The shares soared by 2.5p to 6.38p. Clean water specialist HaloSource (HALO) reported that Michael Ducey, a non-executive director at the company, has bought 41,665 shares at a price of 15p per share. As a result of this transaction Ducey now owns around 0.22% of the company's shares. The news comes just two days after the group announced it intends to distribute one of its products to oil and gas companies in Texas and New Mexico. The shares grew by 4.25p to 17p. Technology group OMG (OMG) revealed that although revenues generated over the year ended 30th September should come in above the previous year's figure, the result will be "slightly behind market expectations". The firm partly attributed this shortfall to the recent government shutdown in the US which caused the signatures on some contracts to be delayed significantly. On a positive note OMG said that Mayrise Limited, the company it acquired in July, is performing strongly and "delivering tangible benefits" to the group. The shares slid by 0.625p to 28.75p. 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 
Online retailer ASOS (ASC) announced a 39% increase in group revenues to 769.4 million pounds over the year ended 31st August, dragging up pre-tax profits by 37% to 54.7 million pounds. In a meeting with management today, CEO Nick Robertson praised the investment in its product offering, delivery systems and marketing and attributed these factors to the bulk of the growth which was delivered. The shares dropped by 208p to 5,205p. Business support group NetDimensions (NETD) revealed that it has acquired 18 clients over the three months ended 30th September, while its new Danish business has apparently gained good traction in Scandinavia. The company is particularly encouraged by this business as it has direct access to the lucrative Scandinavian oil and gas market as well as Healthcare, Life Sciences and Financial Services. The shares edged up by 2.5p to 61.5p. Risk management specialist Brady (BRY) has been selected by a "global metal trading company" to handle its cross commodity trading and risk requirements. Management argued that the deal was testament to the company's increasing global presence in the metal trading space as well as the credibility of the staff. The financial details of the deal were not disclosed to the market. The shares increased by 3p to 64p. | 
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