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Big News
Gear4music is hitting the high notes
Thursday 09 Mar 2017Online musical instruments retailer Gear4music ( G4M:AIM ) continues to hit the right notes for investors. CEO Andrew Wass is now confident of delivering full year profits marginally ahead of estimates upgraded as recently as January. In a year-end trading update (3 Mar), Wass reported a 58%...
Mitie’s destruction of value
Thursday 09 Mar 2017A toxic mix of looming banking covenants, broker downgrades and accounting failures continues to dog outsourcer and energy services business Mitie ( MTO ) . The company has just agreed to sell its loss-making home healthcare business – encompassing the Enara and Complete Care franchises – to...
Gold miner shock as government bans exports
Thursday 09 Mar 2017A ban on exporting unprocessed ore from Tanzania wiped one fifth off the market value of gold producer [BOLD] Acacia Mining ( ACA ) between 3 and 6 March. Don’t be fooled by the subsequent small recovery in the share price; we believe there remains a significant risk to near-term earnings. The...
Just Eat wins back market favour
Thursday 09 Mar 2017After seeing its share price drift on growth concerns online takeaway site Just Eat ( JE. ) is back in the market’s good books as it guides for better-than-expected earnings in 2017 (7 Mar). Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) is expected in a range of £157m to £...
Standard Life and Aberdeen still in play
Thursday 09 Mar 2017A asset managers Standard Life ( SL. ) and Aberdeen Asset Management ( ADN ) may have shaken hands on their £11bn merger (6 Mar) but don’t rule out a counter bid for either party. What are the terms of the deal? Aberdeen shareholders are getting no premium for a fairly straightforward merger...
Large risks hang over Aggreko’s earnings
Thursday 09 Mar 2017Panmure Gordon analyst Michael Donnelly believes more than 40% of Aggreko’s ( AGK ) profits this year are ‘above-average risk’. Investors should approach the stock with caution. Donnelly reckons the shares have further to fall, even after dropping more than 10% on 7 March when the back-up power...
BT breaks the billion barrier with football deal
Thursday 09 Mar 2017A belief in the analyst community that inflation in the cost of sporting rights might be abating looks forlorn. Telecoms giant BT ( BT.A ) is paying 32% more than its previous three-year contract for exclusive rights to broadcast Champions League football from 2018 to 2021. The £1.2bn total amount...
Who’s next as Shawbrook battles takeover approach?
Thursday 09 Mar 2017Challenger bank Shawbrook ( SHAW ) has received a takeover bid from the company that originally floated it on the stock market. Is this the start of a new wave of takeovers among challenger banks? Small business and retail bank Aldermore ( ALD ) could be the next target, according to some market...
Chancellor wields the axe on dividend tax benefits
Wednesday 08 Mar 2017Investors have been dealt a massive blow in the Budget on news that dividend allowances will be more than halved to £2,000. That is the amount of money you can earn tax-free on investments held outside of an ISA or self-invested personal pension ( SIPP ) and over and above the £11,000 personal...
Trump pledges military boost
Thursday 02 Mar 2017In news which could have a knock-on effect for the likes of BAE Systems ( BA. ) , US president Donald Trump has announced he wants to increase military spending by anywhere upwards of $54bn. However any benefit may be limited given Trump’s ‘America First’ rhetoric. This is likely to see US...