Savills buoyed by vote of confidence in property
ESTATE agent Savills was prime property yesterday after some positive words from Citigroup.
The broker upped the stock to a ‘buy’ and said its performance in the first half of the year had been reassuring.
Citigroup said real estate was likely to remain attractive and Savills was well placed to benefit. Analysts are keen that only around a third of Savills’ revenues are from the UK, making it less vulnerable if there is a slowdown in the market.
The group has performed well in Australia, China and the US in recent months. Shares surged 4.2pc, or 29.5p to 728.5p.
The vote of confidence wasn’t enough to boost its rivals though. London-focused agents Foxtons fell 3.7pc, or 4.5p to 115.8p, while property services firm
Countrywide stumbled 1.5pc, or 3.7p to 240.8p. Entertainment One shares eased after takeover rumours had pushed it higher in recent weeks.
The firm rejected a £1bn bid from ITV last week and investors are waiting to see who will make an offer next.
Rumours circulating suggest private equity takeover specialist firm KKR, which owns the Trainline and Toys R Us, could make a bid for the broadcasting firm behind children’s favourite Peppa Pig.
Names including Disney, Vivendi, Lionsgate and Studio Canal have also been suggested.
Some experts are now forecasting that any takeover will involve a break up of EONE’s assets, which include the rights to some 40,000 film and television titles, 4,500 hours of television programming and 45,000 music tracks. EONE slipped 4.7pc, or 11.9p to 242.5p.
Gem Diamonds was hardly sparkling after core earnings slipped and Finncap cut its target price for stock. Performance at the mining firm was underpinned by its Letseng mine in Lesotho where 57,380 carats of diamond were found in the six months to June 30.
But the average value was £1,453 per carat, down from £1,741 a year ago. Some 20 diamonds from the site were sold for more than $1m each in the period including an ‘exceptional’ 160.2-carat stone.
There were fewer rocks of more than 100 carats recovered at the site than a year ago. Overall revenue was down slightly at £84m, from £91m a year ago, while profit slipped to £10.3m from £11.9m in that time. Shares dipped 4.3pc, or 5.5p to 122p. And it wasn’t the only commodities company to slip.
The FTSE 100 finished 0.50pc, or 34.77 points lower at 6859.15 with many blue-chip miners among the biggest fallers of the day.
Antofagasta was down 2.9pc, or 16p to 542.5p while Anglo American lost 2.7pc, or 24.3p to 865.7p. Data business Tracsis rocketed after announcing a contract win. The AIM-listed firm, which provides software for the transport industry, has signed a deal, worth around £310,000, with a US rail operator to provide technology which monitors the conditions on the line – the firm’s first major contract in North America.
The firm said the US rail industry was the largest, most accessible growth area for this technology.
Chief executive John McArthur said: ‘We are hopeful this contract will lead to a further roll-out across the client’s network and also act as a valuable reference case with other US rail customers.’ Shares soared 11.6pc, or 50p to 480p.
Packaging business Robinson reported revenues had slipped due to a fall in resin prices.
The firm, which makes packaging, said that at £12.6m in the six months to June 30, revenues were 6pc below the same period a year ago. It has been hit by customers calling off orders, with one client taking some production in-house.
Demand in retail markets has also been subdued and gross margins have fallen.
Robinson said a weaker pound had pushed up resin costs, but had had the benefit of boosting its Polish profits. Shares were off 6.5pc, or 10p to 145p.