London equities have hit the skids on the back of disappointing GDP data. Click here for The Trader Nicole Elliott's latest views on the markets.
IC TIP UPDATES:
There was somewhat of a reversal in the major banks’ fortunes in the first quarter. Barclays’ (BARC) shares are down 5 per cent today, despite pre-tax profit more than doubling to £1.6bn. There was disappointment that its investment bank had not shared the joy of US rivals during the period when it came to fixed income trading: macro income was down 14 per cent, and overall markets income was 4 per cent lower. Still, Barclays shares are up 23 per cent over the past year. We retain our buy call.
KEY STORIES:
By contrast, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) shares were up 2 per cent in early trading. The bank managed an adjusted profit of £259m in the three months to March, against a £968m loss in the first quarter last year. That meant an adjusted return on tangible equity of 9.7 per cent, up from 8.6 per cent. The largely state-owned lender is making progress in putting behind it legal issues such as claims regarding its 2008 rights issue. But it still awaits the bill from the US Department of Justice regarding mortgage-backed derivative sales during the financial crisis.
Old Mutual Wealth, the wealth management arm of the global financial services group Old Mutual (OML), has appointed Tim Tookey as chief financial officer - he is currently a non-executive director of the wealth business. Its funds under management were up 6 per cent year-on-year at the end of March, at £122bn. An IPO for the business is expected.
Just Eat (JE) is on the hunt for a new chief executive after it announced that Dr John Hughes will take a leave an absence to undergo medical treatment, but will remain a non-executive director at the company. CFO Paul Harrison will take up the role of interim chief executive and Andrew Griffith, currently senior independent director, will act as non-executive chairman for the interim period. Shares fell 2 per cent in early trading.
Shares in UP Global Sourcing Holdings (UPGS) hit an all-time high of 185p in early trading after the group announced a 62.2 per cent revenue boost to £68.1m in its maiden first-half results. The producer of branded consumer goods floated in March this year and looks to build its online presence and expand into international markets, especially the US and China.
OTHER COMPANY NEWS:
Greggs (GRG) chairman Ian Durant will join DFS Furniture as chairman on 2 May, on top of his existing responsibilities as chairman at Capital and Counties Properties and non-executive directorships at Greene King and Home Retail Group. Shares in Greggs fell close to 1 per cent in early trading.
