19 May 2004 10:06
Bullish trade and rumours enable Corus to show its mettle
ByLine: Yvette Essen
STEEL group Corus continued to steal the limelight yesterday as the shares bounced 9pc on heavy volumes. The stock,
which fell 1 3/4 on Monday after the company pulled its 500m bond issue, gained 2 3/4 to 32 1/4 p as 77.9m shares
changed hands, compared with the daily average of nearer 60.4m.
Traders said the shares were picking up as Cazenove had written a bullish internal research note, upgrading Corus
from long-term buy to buy and revising its 2004 forecasts. They also speculated that Russian shareholder Alisher Usmanov
was keen to increase his stake. He now owns 13.4pc of the company and is thought to want to raise his holding to
20pc.
The benchmark FTSE 100 improved 19 points in early dealings, although volumes were low in London, reaching 2.6billion
shares. The index closed 11.4 higher at 4414.4 while the FTSE 250 gained 60.7 to 5943.7.
British Airways rose 6 1/2 to 249 3/4 p despite brokers taking their red pens to the stock after final results on
Monday.
Diageo lost 17 to 737p after Merrill Lynch cut its price target from 750p to 725p and retained a neutral
recommendation, following a meeting with the drinks group's management. The broker also cut its 2004 and 2005
earnings per share estimates on the stock by 2pc and 3pc respectively.
Chilean copper miner Antofagasta retreated a further 17 to 737p. The company was trading at pounds 12.55 at the end
of February.
Slough Estates eased 1/2 to 420p despite speculation that the property group could be a bid target. Volumes were
heavy, reaching 3m shares compared with the daily average of nearer 1.3m. Traders suggested an offer of around 500p a
share could be in store.
In the FTSE 250, ceramic tile and floor specialist Topps Tiles put on 9 1/2 to 144 3/4 p. Traders said investors were
buying the shares before the group's interim results next week.
UBS was more positive about housebuilding, calculating it had underperformed the broader market by 7pc last month. It
moved from neutral to buy on Bellway, up 40 1/2 to 738 1/2 p, and Westbury, 13 3/4 higher at 420 1/2 p.
LogicaCMG, the Anglo-Dutch IT services provider, retreated 7 to 183p after stating first-half revenues would be down.
It said Germany remained a difficult market. Pennon Group, the water company that on Monday rejected a takeover approach
from financier Guy Hands, fell 18 to 718p. Cazenove downgraded it from buy to hold while UBS raised its target price
from 730p to 740p.
Rank retreated 14 to 299 1/2 p after the leisure group lost a European DVD manufacturing and distribution contract.
Last year the order accounted for 48pc of DVD units supplied and 18pc of packaged media units distributed by Rank.
Traders kept an eye on MFI as hopes of a bid for the furniture retailer resurfaced. It will hold its annual meeting
on Thursday. The shares eased 3/4 to 155p.
Electricity generator British Energy rose 0.15p to 11.7p on continued speculation that Brussels and the government
were about to approve a
pounds 1.5billion bail-out plan.
Elsewhere, iTouch, the mobile phone ringtones and games provider, crept up 1/4 to 30 3/4 p as it posted its first
pre-tax quarterly profit.
Serviced office provider Regus said trading for the year to date had been slightly ahead of expectations. The shares
put on 1 to 67p.
Furniture retailer ScS Upholstery was 12 better at 244p after interim pre-tax profit rose 22pc to pounds 7.2m and
like-for-like sales for the first 33 weeks jumped 5pc.
Computer games developer Eidos rose 6 to a 12-month high of 183p on persistent takeover chatter. US companies THQ,
Electronic Arts and Activision were named as possible bidders at the 280p level, although one analyst said such rumours
tended to circulate around the time of the E3 trade show - which took place last week.
Biopharmaceutical company Bioprogress edged up 13 to 87 1/2 p. Market chatter suggested an analyst was about to put
out a note, adjusting future sales forecasts.
Investors were nervous ahead of next Friday's full-year results from Plasmon. The data storage specialist, which
was trading at 265p in March, dropped 6 1/2 to 186p.
Sunderland tumbled 14 1/2 to 51p as the first division club's defeat by Crystal Palace on Monday night scuppered
promotion to the premier league.
[The Daily Telegraph] |
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