Welcome to our summary of the weekend's quality press tips, provided on Mondays by Weekend City Press Review.
PRESS TIPS:
The Times
■ Tempus: Martin Waller is worried about the Aim market following new figures showing more companies quit the junior market in September than joined. But there are signs that this may be the correction the market needs to enable a greater focus on companies that genuinely want to raise funds rather than using a listing for other purposes.
The Independent
■ No Pain, No Gain: Derek Pain is considering life without Booker in his portfolio (bought at 24.5p and now 99.5p) and so has raised his stop-loss from 55p to 90p (Last IC rating: Buy, 18 Oct).
The Sunday Times
■ Inside the City: Danny Fortson says the City remains wary over new AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot's plans to seek out acquisitions, especially given the company's poor track record for doing deals (Last IC rating: Sell, 26 Oct).
■ Amec's investor day on Tuesday will give CEO Samir Brikho the chance to clear up investor confusion over why highly-regarded chief operating officer Neil Bruce resigned suddenly three weeks ago (Last IC rating: Buy, 9 Aug).
The Sunday Telegraph
■ Questor: Garry White says avoid Home Retail Group, 112p, as the valuation remains too high given the challenging consumer outlook, even if the City generally likes the management's new strategy unveiled last week (Last IC rating: Sell, 20 Jun).
■ Sell African Barrick Gold, 465p, as the risks remain firmly on the downside (Last IC rating: Hold, 23 Jul).
The Mail on Sunday
■ Midas: Joanne Hart says buy exhibitions organiser Tarsus Group, 179.5p, as a solid income play (Last IC rating: Buy, 30 Jul).
■ Updates: Hold life insurer Chesnara, tipped in October 2009 and up 11 per cent since then to 190p, for its 'appealing' dividends rather than capital growth (Last IC rating: Buy, 31 Aug).
Business press headlines courtesy of Weekend City Press Review:
10,000 jobs face axe in UBS overhaul
UBS is set for a major restructuring to split off its struggling investment bank which could see the loss up to 10,000 jobs. The move will see large parts of its fixed-income trading business brought within a non-core unit, leaving a reduced investment bank operation. The non-core arm will be headed by Carsten Kengeter and is expected to be wound down over time. [Financial Times p.1]
Carroll steps down from Anglo but lack of successor heightens tensions
Anglo American CEO Cynthia Carroll has resigned as CEO after pressure from investors over the mining giant's underperforming share price. But although she has agreed to stay on until a replacement is appointed, the lack of a named successor has increased pressure on the company, especially given the industrial unrest in South Africa at its platinum mines. [Financial Times pp.1, 15]
Murdoch's £1bn bid to scupper Penguin deal
News Corporation has made an approach to Pearson to buy its Penguin book division for an estimated £1bn in an attempt to trump the proposed merger of Penguin and Random House, owned by Bertelsmann. News Corp believes there is a split in the Pearson board over the future of Penguin, with some directors favouring a 'clean break' from a sale rather than maintaining a stake in a new publishing group. [Sunday Times pp.3.1, 3.7]
Daily Mail in talks to ditch regional titles
The Daily Mail & General Trust is in talks to sell its struggling regional newspapers to David Montgomery, former Mecom CEO, in a £110m deal backed by private equity. Six years ago the DMGT reportedly turned down an offer to sell the division for £1.2bn. If successful, Montgomery may follow up the deal by acquiring other newspapers from Johnston Press and Trinity Mirror. [Sunday Times p.3.1]
Gent heads for exit at Glaxo
GlaxoSmithKline chairman Sir Christopher Gent is to step down at the pharmaceuticals group, with headhunters already appointed to find a successor. But Gent is not expected to leave in the near future and could stay on until the 2014 AGM. [Sunday Times p.3.1]
BAE boss digs in heels as showdown elks loom
BAE Systems chairman Dick Olver has rejected suggestions he plans to step down as early as next May in the wake of the failed £28bn merger with EADS, although the group's biggest shareholder Invesco Perpetual is pushing for a new deputy chairman to be appointed to take over from Olver next year. Meanwhile, the Sunday Times 'Insight' team claims that BAE has been using a bank account implicated in a global bribery probe to make payments to advisers, including former Tory MP David Mellor and Lord Charles Powell, former private secretary to Lady Thatcher. [Sunday Times p.3.3, 1.1]
Barclays to slash pay as profits fall
Barclays is planning to cut the salaries of some of its leading investment bankers by as much as 50 per cent in a bid to cut costs and send a signal of how the bank's culture is changing. The move comes as the bank is due on Wednesday to post Q3 profits of £1.7bn, although this could be reduced to a £100m loss once certain charges are taken into account. Meanwhile, Barclays could be forced by the High Court to release emails relating to the Libor rate manipulation in a case brought by Guardian Care Homes over allegedly being mis-sold interest rate derivatives by the bank. [Sunday Telegraph pp.B1, b5]
BT in new attack on BSkyB over fight for football sports rights
BT is planning to put fresh pressure on BSkyB's dominance in showing top-level football matches with a series of deals to screen leading matches from the major international leagues. BT surprised the media world earlier this year with a £738m gamble on screening some Premier League matches over the next three years on a new sports channel, forcing BSkyB to pay 40 per cent more to secure the bulk of the games on offer. [Sunday Telegraph p.B1]
Anglo moves on platinum mines as South African violence spreads
Anglo American may sell or mothball up to 15 per cent of its platinum mining operations in South Africa in the wake of the recent industrial unrest. Anglo owns 77 per cent of Anglo American Platinum, which posted a £33m loss in the first half. Meanwhile, Anglo had started the search for a successor to CEO Cynthia Carroll who quit last week. [Sunday Telegraph pp.B1, B5]
Virgin lining up bid for East Coast rail line
Virgin Trains is planning to mount a bid to run the East Coast main line rail franchise when it is put up for up for tender next year, according to Sir Richard Branson. In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph Branson says he believes the revamped franchise process will be 'fair and open' after the fiasco over the West Coast franchise which Virgin still hopes to retain. [Sunday Telegraph pp.B2, B7]
