Esure Group Share News (ESUR)

LONDON (Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers within the main London indices on Tuesday.
----------
FTSE 100 - WINNERS
----------
Royal Dutch Shell 'A', up 2.7%, Shell 'B', up 2.5%. The oil major said its plans concerning asset sales and debt reduction remain unchanged and it still plans to maintain its dividend this year followed by a share buyback in 2017, as the company set out its plan following the acquisition of BG Group. The major change was the increase in the amount of synergies that Shell expects to deliver from its GBP35.00 billion takeover of BG Group earlier this year, as Shell now expects to deliver USD4.50 billion worth of "deal-related synergies" in 2018 compared to the original target of USD3.50 billion. Shell also plans to exit up to 10 countries where it currently operates as part of its asset sale programme that will run until 2018, whilst capital investment this year has been reduced by a further USD1.00 billion.

Rio Tinto, up 1.0%. The miner was upgraded to Neutral from Sell by Citigroup, according to traders.
----------
FTSE 250 - WINNERS
----------
Weir Group, up 3.6%. The industrial valve and pumps maker was upgraded to Hold from Sell by Cannacord, according to traders.

Sports Direct International, up 3.6%. Chief Executive Dave Forsey will forgo his four-year share bonus, the sportswear retailer's founder Mike Ashley said in a letter published ahead of his appearance before a UK parliamentary committee. Ashley is set to appear before the Commons Business, Innovation & Skills committee on Tuesday to defend working practices at the sports clothing and equipment retailer's Shirebrook warehouse. Ahead of that appearance, Ashley sent a letter to the company's staff, saying he intends on "defending the good name" of Sports Direct before the committee, adding he will do this as he believes "we have nothing to hide".

Esure Group, up 2.3%. The insurer said it has kicked off a strategic review of its GoCompare.com price comparison service, including a possible spin off, and has appointed a new CEO for the unit. esure said it has re-invigorated the marketing strategy at GoCompare.com in the first year after it acquired the remaining 50% of the business it had not previously owned. It also has restructured the cost base and widened the product focus of the service. This has underpinned esure's guidance for GoCompare.com to deliver a 20% to 30% improvement in profit in 2016, the company said.
----------
FTSE 250 - LOSERS
----------
Tullett Prebon, down 2.6%, ICAP, down 0.9%. The UK Competition & Markets Authority said interdealer broker ICAP's sale of its voice-hybrid broking and information businesses to rival Tullett Prebon will face an in-depth investigation, but focused only on oil products broking. The CMA said after considering the 20 overlapping product categories involved in the deal, the regulator believes all but one of these will result no realistic prospect of a substantial lessening of competition as a result of the deal. However, the CMA said the merger does give rise to the prospect of a lessening of competition for the voice-hybrid broking of oil products, where competition from other brokers is more limited.
----------
MAIN MARKET AND AIM - WINNERS
----------
Herencia Resources, up 33%. The miner said there is potential that the company could be broke by the end of this month despite two of its major shareholders agreeing to provide the company with USD150,000 of funding. Existing shareholders Lind Partners and Oriental Darius Co have agreed to provide Herencia with USD150,000 of funding to be issued in two tranches. The first tranche, which will be drawn immediately, is for the first USD50,000 which will carry no interest rate over a 24 month term . However, Herencia will pay a total of USD60,000 back to the shareholders in return for that first tranche. The second, larger tranche of USD100,000 is discretionary, and the two shareholders have the choice as to whether or not the company should receive it. Herencia will repay a total of USD120,000 for the tranche under the same terms as the first.

Mountfield Group, up 21%. The construction company said it made "significant progress" in 2015, swinging to profit after having transformed one of its businesses which had been to blame for a GBP3.9 million impairment in 2014. Mountfield posted pretax profit of GBP177,177 for the year ended December 31, compared with the GBP3.9 million loss it reported the year earlier, after no impairment was incurred for 2015, compared to the GBP3.9 million impairment of goodwill in 2014. In 2014, Mountfield incurred the large goodwill impairment due to the "overall poor performance" of its Mountfield Building Group unit, following which Mountfield said it would review the business. Mountfield said it has transformed MBG into a construction company with a "substantially reduced cost structure". Mountfield said, following this restructuring, MBG is now trading profitably.

Ironveld, up 9.5%. The miner said it has finalised an offtake agreement for vanadium slag product from the Bushveld vanadium and titanium project in South Africa. Ironveld said it has entered into a five-year deal from first production for all vanadium slag produced at attractive price terms. No financial details were disclosed and neither was the name of the customer.
----------
MAIN MARKET AND AIM - LOSERS
----------
Aukett Swanke Group, off 24%. The architecture and interior design group said the UK referendum on European Union membership had "clearly impacted" its first half, with its pretax profit coming in much lower for the six months to March 31, and said it approaches the second half with "a degree of caution". The company posted a pretax profit of GBP417,000 from GBP815,000 a year earlier, as "equivalent cost reductions were difficult to achieve in the short term". Operating expenses rose to GBP1.1 million from GBP907,000 a year earlier, whilst personnel costs increased to GBP6.7 million from GBP5.6 million. This offset a rise in revenue to GBP10.0 million from GBP9.2 million.

Independent Resources, down 11% at 0.105p. The oil and gas company said it has opted to repay an outstanding GBP200,000, plus accrued interest of GBP17,143, due on its convertible loan notes through the issue of shares. Independent Resources said it considers it in its best interests to repay the convertible loan notes with immediate effect to avoid further material interest payments accruing. Additionally, Independent Resources will issue 75 million shares at the same price to repay GBP36,000 to a trade creditor. It has issued 452.4 million shares at a price of 0.048p for the repayment.

SyQic, down 8.2%. The on-demand video content provider said the deadline by which Chief Executive Jamal Hassim and MMV Investments (HK) must either make an offer for the company or walk away has been extended to June 21. The deadline under UK takeover code was previously set to expire Tuesday. The company had previously said in April that Hassam and MMV Investments, a company owned by Johan Robb, were in talks with an independent committee on a potential offer for the company.
----------
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com; @ArvindBhunjun

Copyright 2016 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.