3rd May 2016 09:38
LONDON (Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers within the main London indices on Tuesday.
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FTSE 100 - WINNERS
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RSA Insurance Group, up 3.2%. The insurer was upgraded to Overweight from Equal-Weight by Barclays. The bank said RSA has set out its intentions to become the benchmark performer in each of its core markets in the UK, Scandinavia and Canada by 2018. "While we acknowledge that it is rare for a mid-of-the-pack insurer to become a 'best in class' insurer, we do believe RSA has set out a realistic plan to get there," Barclays said. Fellow insurers Admiral Group were up 2.9% and Aviva, up 0.7%.
United Utilities Group, up 0.3% and Severn Trent, up 0.3%. The UK Competition & Markets Authority approved the joint venture agreement between the two blue-chip utility companies for their non-household water and waste-water retail businesses. Severn Trent and United Utilities struck the joint venture agreement in March, with the combined business, called Water Plus, to primarily comprise of billing and customer service activities and located in Stoke-on-Trent.
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FTSE 100 - LOSERS
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Royal Bank of Scotland Group, down 2.8%. The bank was downgraded to Neutral from Buy by UBS on uncertainty over the timing of payouts. RBS on Friday said its first-quarter net loss widened after paying a fee to the UK government that will eventually allow the state-backed lender to return capital to shareholders, though dividends or share buybacks look further away than previously anticipated. "The risks on the timing of capital returns are now too significant for us to maintain a Buy," UBS said.
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FTSE 250 - WINNERS
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Just Eat, up 8.1%. The online takeaway delivery company raised its guidance for full-year revenue and earnings following a successful first quarter. The company said it achieved 57% growth in orders in the first quarter of 2016 year-on-year to 31.5 million, up 41% on a like-for-like basis. It said each of its segments delivered strong growth, particularly in the UK which saw a 40% increase in orders.
Regus, up 5.7%. The office provider said it traded in line with management expectations in its first quarter, reporting improved margins, increased revenue and strong profit growth thanks to cost efficiencies and following the development of 554 locations in 2015. Regus said its revenue grew to GBP532.5 million for the three months to March 31, compared with GBP452.3 million for the same period a year earlier, representing an increase of 15% at constant currency rates or 18% at actual rates, as prevailing exchange rates provided a "modest tailwind".
Centamin, up 3.1%. The miner said gold production in the first quarter grew sequentially and year-on-year, resulting in the company leaving its guidance for the year unchanged. The company said gold production in the quarter to the end of March was 125,268 ounces, up 6.0% on the fourth quarter of 2015 and 16% higher year-on-year. Cash cost of production in the quarter was USD603.00 per ounce, with all-in sustaining costs at USD758.00 per ounce, Centamin said. Costs came in lower than full-year guidance of USD680.00 per ounce and USD900.00 all-in. Centamin maintained its production guidance for the full year of 470,000 ounces of gold and kept its cost guidance on hold at USD680 per ounce, with a USD900 all-in cost.
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FTSE 250 - LOSERS
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Aberdeen Asset Management, down 8.6%. The asset manager said first-half pretax profit almost halved amid fragile investor sentiment towards emerging markets, although the "strength" of the group's balance sheet allowed for investments such as bolt-on acquisitions. Pretax profit fell to GBP98.8 million in the six months ended March 31, Aberdeen said in a statement, from GBP185.4 million in the corresponding half a year earlier. Aberdeen's interim dividend of 7.5 pence per share was unchanged. Assets under management amounted to GBP292.8 billion as of March 31, up from GBP283.7 billion six months earlier.
Tullow Oil, down 6.3%. The oil and gas stock was cut to Neutral from Buy by Goldman Sachs.
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MAIN MARKET AND AIM - WINNERS
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SimiGon , up 31%. The simulation technology company said it signed a five-and-a-half year, USD7.9 million deal to deliver its SIMbox training services to an Asian civilian aviation training services provider, which it did not name. SimiGon said it will book around USD1.4 million in revenue from the contract in 2016 and said the deal will improve its revenue visibility beyond this year. SimiGon said this marks another major contract outside the defence industry and sees it continue to diversify its product offering and addressable market.
Sabien Technology Group, up 20%. The energy efficiency company said it expects to complete at least 34 pilots to potential clients in the 2015-16 heating season, with initial signs that a "positive impact" on the sales pipeline is being achieved. The target for the 2015-16 heating season was to run up 35 pilots compared with eight pilots in 2014-15. On Tuesday, Sabien said it will complete 32 pilots in the UK and two overseas, with a further three to be completed in the UK after the year-end and a further three scheduled to start before the financial year-end overseas.
Rose Petroleum, up 18% at 0.189 pence. The US focused oil, gas and mining company said it raised GBP800,000 to develop opportunities that have arisen in Cuba, specifically around the processing and manufacturing of gypsum and associated building materials. The opportunity was introduced to Rose by Earth Source Investment, which made "initial contacts" with the Cuban government, the company said. The founders of Earth Source and other associated parties agreed to fund due diligence and transaction fees related to the opportunity, and also general working capital by subscribing for, in aggregate, 500.0 million new shares in Rose at 0.16 pence per share
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MAIN MARKET AND AIM - LOSERS
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Highway Capital, down 16% at 16p. The shell company said it received loans totalling GBP102,000, including GBP14,000 from directors of the company. The company said GBP88,000 has been received from an institutional investor in the form of a two-year loan attracting 5% interest per annum. In addition, GBP7,000 has been received from each of Maciej Szytko and Dariusz Zych, directors of the company, in the form of convertible loan notes which attract 5% interest per annum and are convertible into new shares at 10p per share. The company said it invested GBP89,000 through a two-year loan attracting 8% interest to Mylux, a Cypriot special purpose vehicle which is acquiring a 48% interest in Multipay, a newly formed company looking to offer comprehensive payment services in Poland.
Caza Oil & Gas, down 14%. The oil and gas company said its shareholders have approved its share consolidation and decision to abandon its AIM listing. Caza said shareholders, at a meeting held on Friday, approved the consolidation of its shares on a 560 million-to-one basis. Prior to the consolidation, Caza had 9.74 billion shares. The shareholders also approved the cancellation of Caza's AIM listing, which will become effective from the start of trading on May 10.
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By Arvind Bhunjun; [email protected]; @ArvindBhunjun
Copyright 2016 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
AdmiralTullow OilRosebankAvivaCentamin PLCJust EatRBS.LRSA.LSevern TrentUnited UtilitiesSIM.LRGU.LADN.LCAZA.LSabien Tech.Highway Capital