News

Your daily news update straight from the City PM newsroom in London

BEST OF THE BROKERS

October 19, 2009

LAIRDKBC Peel Hunt upgraded Laird to “buy” from “hold” ahead of next week’s first half management statement. The broker has concluded there are potential upgrades to its forecasts based on restocking trends, high incremental profit drop-through and entry into a period of easier year-on-year comparatives.WH SMITHInvestec said that WH Smith’s expansion of its Travel division [...]
LVMH sales remain slow

October 19, 2009

LVMH, the French luxury goods firm, said its third-quarter sales fell by 0.6 per cent after demand remained poor. But the firm, which produces brands like Moet champagne and Louis Vuitton fashion, said destocking of its top-end labels should come to an end soon. It reported sales of €4.14bn (£3.8bn), versus €4.16bn a year earlier. [...]
Opel trust:no need to reopen sale

October 19, 2009

The German trust set up to oversee Opel said it saw no reason to re-open the carmaker’s sale despite EU concerns that Germany’s promises of state aid had skewed the bidding process. Seeking to deflate a row over €4.5bn (£4.1bn) in state aid that Berlin promised Opel should Canadian auto parts firm Magna buy the [...]
Gannett profits beat expectations

October 19, 2009

Gannett, the largest US newspaper publisher, reported a lower quarterly profit that beat market forecasts yesterday thanks to cost cuts, while revenue fell because of a 28 per cent drop in publishing advertising sales. Gannett, publisher of USA Today, posted third-quarter net income of $73.8m (£45m) compared with $158.1m last year. Revenues fell by 18 [...]
Worthy equality laws can be counter productive

October 19, 2009

Harriet Rubin, the author of “The Princessa: Machievelli for Women” has struck again. Her latest book, “The Mona Lisa Strategm: the Art of Women, Age and Power” popped into my mind earlier in the week, after the passing away of Bruce Wasserstein and Nichola Pease’s comments about maternity leave. “Become a great man who is [...]
Delta Lloyd IPO to net Aviva 1.1bn

October 19, 2009

Life-insurer Aviva looks set to pocket €1.2bn (£1.1bn) when it floats Dutch unit Delta Lloyd in western Europe’s largest initial public offering (IPO) this year. “This step will free up capital for us to use elsewhere and give us the option of exploring further growth opportunities,” said Aviva chief executive Andrew Moss. Delta Lloyd shares [...]
NEON LIGHTS

October 19, 2009

THE latest work from British artist Ron Haselden was yesterday unveiled at Land Securities’ New Street Square development. The installation, entitled Day and Night, Night and Day, took four years to complete and will fill the central walkway of the property. Visitors to the attraction will be able to enter a competition to design the [...]
Banchetti’s boutique nets 1bn

October 19, 2009

RICCARDO Banchetti, the former Lehman Brothers European boss, has landed restructuring contracts worth over €1bn (£911m) for his new boutique advisory firm. Banchetti, who is suing Lehman for $26m of bonuses and share options that the investment bank failed to pay him after it collapsed spectacularly last year, has secured a slew of work within [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS

October 19, 2009

Charles Stanley SecuritiesThe stockbroker has appointed Nick Redfern as head of institutional sales, responsible for small and mid-cap distribution. Redfern started his career at Smith New Court before moving to Dresdner Kleinwort, where he spent six years as a managing director responsible for pan-European emerging company sales. He also worked at Arbuthnot and Oriel Securities, [...]
William Hill revenue dips on sport wins

October 19, 2009

Bookmaker William Hill yesterday reported a three per cent drop in third-quarter revenues after a punter-friendly season knocked results. Football results went against the bookies this August and September – by the end of last month there had been just four draws in the Premier League. Draws normally represent 25 per cent of outcomes. Most [...]