Welcome to our summary of the weekend's quality press tips, provided on Mondays by Weekend City Press Review.
PRESS TIPS:
The Times
■ Tempus: Miles Costello thinks specialist asset managers such as Jupiter Fund Management (Last IC rating: Buy, 1 Aug) are good bets in a sector where there are too many operators chasing 'a diminishing share of a finite pie of savings and investments.'
The Independent
■ No Pain, No Gain: Derek Pain says portfolio member Whitbread (bought at £11.05, now £24) stands to benefit from the tax row involving arch rival Starbucks, with Numis upgrading the shares from hold to buy and a £26.50 target (Last IC rating: Hold, 23 Oct).
The Daily Mail
■ Investment Extra: Ian Lyall wonders if activist investor Edward Bramson, who revamped Foreign & Colonial after a boardroom coup 18 months ago, could turn his attention next to ailing hedge fund manager Man Group (Last IC rating: Sell, 24 Oct).
The Sunday Times
■ In the City: Danny Fortson thinks struggling UK regional airline Flybe, 47.5p, could be a target for an opportunistic bid from a rival (Last IC rating: Hold, 13 Nov).
■ African Minerals, 250.5p, is worth watching as new CEO Keith Calder appears to be turning round the iron ore developer chaired by the controversial Frank Timis (Last IC rating: Buy, 11 Sept).
The Sunday Telegraph
■ Questor: Garry White says avoid Falkland Oil & Gas, 30.5p, as the risks are mounting for the oil & gas explorer even though there is still a chance it will make a commercially viable discovery in the South Atlantic (Last IC rating: Buy, 28 Aug).
The Mail on Sunday
■ Midas: Joanna Hart says buy Bioquell, 136p, for long-term potential (Last IC rating: Hold, 30 Aug).
■ Update: Sell half of holdings in Anite, tipped in May 2011 at 68p and now 142p, but hold the rest for further growth (Last IC rating: Buy, 4 Dec).
Business press headlines courtesy of Weekend City Press Review:
JPMorgan nears £500m tax deal
JPMorgan and its employees are reportedly close to agreeing a deal with the UK government to pay about £500m in back taxes that were allegedly avoided by paying bonuses into an offshore trust in Jersey. The bank has asked more than 2,000 current and former employees to contribute to the settlement, although if they refuse they could face higher tax bills once the trust's asset are liquidated. [Financial Times p.1]
Rolls-Royce accused of paying $20m bribe to dictator's son
The Serious Fraud Office is investigating allegations that Rolls-Royce paid a US$20m bribe to Tommy Suharto, son of the former Indonesian president, to persuade Indonesian state airline Garuda to buy Rolls-Royce engines. The SFO was said to have been 'tipped off to the allegations by a former Rolls-Royce employee, Dick Taylor, who posted his claims online. The US Department of Justice is also likely to launch an investigation. [Sunday Times p.3.1]
Bank row threatens America-EU trade war
Barclays and Deutsche Bank are among international banks who may be forced to inject more capital into their Wall Street operations. Daniel Tarullo, a governor of the Federal Reserve who is implementing new banking regulation reforms, wants the new rules on capital to help prevent another financial crisis, although foreign banks claim this would put them at a disadvantage to their US rivals. If the rules are introduced analysts fear a US trade war with the EU could develop if similar measures are brought in by Brussels in retaliation. [Sunday Times p.3.1]
Branson ready to offload airline to Delta and Air France in days
Sir Richard Branson could give up control of Virgin Atlantic as early as this week following negotiations under way for Delta Air Lines to buy the 49 per cent stake in Virgin held by Singapore Airlines. The deal would be part of a plan for Air France/KLM - Delta's partner in the Sky Team alliance - to acquire some of Branson's 51 per cent shareholding in the airline. Meanwhile, Aer Lingus is expected on Monday to agree a deal with Virgin to operate its new UK domestic services from Heathrow. [Sunday Times p.3.1]
Diageo plots move on US rival Beam
Diageo has held talks with Japanese drinks group Suntory about a US$10bn joint bid for US bourbon whisky producer Beam. Diageo is interested in only some of Beam's brands, such as the flagship Jim Beam bourbon, with Suntory taking on the rest. Although Diageo has reportedly been considering a Beam deal for some time, no formal bid is thought imminent. [Sunday Telegraph p.B1]
FSA crackdown on new jobs for failed bankers
The Financial Services Authority is considering 'radical changes' to the way it approves senior appointments in the City following the disclosure that ex-HBOS chairman Lord Stevenson was until recently involved in an investment firm (Loudwater Investment Partners) which had connections to his former bank. The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards could also make recommendations for an independent body to be set up to oversee senior City appointments. [Sunday Telegraph p.B1]
Bank of England launches £1bn banknote battle
The Bank of England has put out to tender its £1bn contract for production of all its banknotes, with incumbent De La Rue facing potential competition from overseas banknote makers in Canada and Australia. The new contract is due to start in 2015 but for security reasons all production of Sterling notes must take place at the Bank's former printing facility at Debden in Essex. [Sunday Telegraph p.B1]
Dell rejected chance to bid for Autonomy before HP deal
Michael Dell, founder and CEO of the Dell computer company, says he rejected the chance to buy Autonomy because it was 'overwhelmingly obvious' that the UK software company was overpriced. Dell, in an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, claims that 'any reasonable person' would have reached the same conclusion about the price. His comments add to the controversy over Hewlett-Packard's decision to buy Autonomy for US$10bn in 2011, before last month writing off US$8.8bn of the cost. [Sunday Telegraph pp.B3, B9]
Banks pitch for broker role with North Sea oil explorer
Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan are pitching to become a broker to Cairn Energy, threatening the position of existing adviser Merrill Lynch. But Cairn's other broker, Morgan Stanley, is believed to be secure in its role. Merrill has been hit over the past year by the departure of leading oil & gas broker Andrew Osborne, including the loss of FTSE 100 client Tullow Oil. [Independent on Sunday p.85]
Revenue says film tax schemes illegal
HM Revenue & Customs has told Ingenious Media that it believes its £8bn film investment schemes are designed to avoid tax rather than promote the UK film industry. The verdict on the aims of the Ingenious schemes, which have reportedly won high-profile clients tax relief of up to £1.35bn in total, will be argued by HMRC at a tax tribunal to be held next year. [The Mail on Sunday p.65]
