Hargreaves Serv Share News (HSP)

LONDON (Alliance News) - Shares are mixed in London at the open Tuesday, with the FTSE 100 lower but mid-cap and small-cap shares faring better, after the Eurogroup meeting to discuss Greek debt ended with no progress.

InterContinental Hotels Group was the largest UK company announcing results early Tuesday. The Holiday Inn owner posted flat pretax profit for 2014, but said revenue per available room growth was being driven by strong demand in the US. Shares are down 1.9% at the open, the third worst blue-chip fallers.

Shares in insurer Brit lead the FTSE 250, up 10%, after Canadian property and casualty insurer Fairfax Financial Holdings said it has reached a deal to buy the company for around USD1.88 billion.

Here is what you need to know at the UK market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: down 0.1% at 6,847.57
FTSE 250: up 0.1% at 16,872.85
AIM ALL-SHARE: up 0.2% at 704.43
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Hang Seng: closed up 0.2% at 24,784.88
Nikkei 225: closed down 0.1% at 17,987.09
DJIA: closed for holiday Monday
S&P 500: closed for holiday Monday
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GBP-USD: down at USD1.5356
EUR-USD: down at USD1.1345

GOLD: down at USD1,222.55 per ounce
OIL (Brent): flat at USD61.55 a barrel

(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Tuesday's Key Economic Events still to come
(all times in GMT)

09:00 Italy Trade Balance
09:30 UK Consumer, Retail and Producer Price indices
10:00 Germany ZEW Survey - Economic Sentiment
10:00 EU ZEW Survey - Economic Sentiment
13:30 US NY Empire State Manufacturing Index
13:55 US Redbook index
15:00 US NAHB Housing Market Index
17:00 Switzerland SNB Chairman Jordan Speech
17:45 US Philadelphia Fed's Plosser speech
21:00 US Net TIC Flows
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The Eurogroup meeting concluded without much progress, as Greece resisted an extension of the current bailout program, while Eurozone ministers refused to loosen their terms. The best way forward for the Greek authorities would be to seek an extension of the program, Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem said at a press conference after the meeting in Brussels. Athens has time to seek an extension of the program until Friday. Otherwise, the EUR240 billion Greek bailout program will expire on February 28. "The next step has to come from the Greek authorities," Dijsselbloem, who chaired the meeting said. In an e-mailed statement, a Greek official has called the existing bailout terms as "absurd" and "unacceptable".
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A ceasefire in eastern Ukraine was strained by reports of fighting between government forces and Russia-backed separatists, and both sides questioned a demand to withdraw heavy weapons under a peace plan agreed last week. No heavy weapons were withdrawn by 6 pm local time because the separatists kept firing on Ukrainian positions, the Security Council in Kiev said.
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Home prices in the majority of the Chinese cities dropped in January, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed. Prices of new houses dropped month-on-month in 64 of the 70 cities surveyed by the statistical office. Prices rose in two cities but remained flat in four cities. The biggest decline in prices was noted in Quanzhou, by 1.7% and the steepest rise was seen in Shenzhen, by 0.3%.
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Egypt called for international support as its air force hit Libyan militants loyal to the Islamic State militant group in response to the beheadings of 21 of its citizens. As warplanes struck the militant stronghold of Derna in eastern Libya, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri headed to New York, where he was expected to ask UN Security Council members for backing against the jihadists. Egypt was to demand that the extremist group be met just as forcefully in Libya as in Syria and Iraq, where a US-led coalition is engaged in an air campaign against it, Foreign Ministry spokesman Badr Abdel-Aty said.
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Denmark's strong "sense of community" will prevail over the threat posed by "those who want to harm us," Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt said at a memorial service for victims of weekend attacks in Copenhagen that claimed two lives. The memorial was attended by an estimated 30,000 people, many carrying torches. Danish politicians, the Danish crown prince, the Swedish prime minister and the foreign minister of Norway were also present. The memorial service was held near the scene of the first attack where film director Finn Norgaard, 55, was killed and three police officers were wounded.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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COMMERZBANK CUTS IAG TO 'HOLD' ('BUY') - PRICE TARGET 8 (6) EUR
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CREDIT SUISSE CUTS FIDESSA TO 'NEUTRAL' ('OUTPERFORM') - TARGET 2508 (2630) PENCE
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CREDIT SUISSE CUTS LANCASHIRE HLDGS TO 'NEUTRAL' ('OUTPERFORM') - TARGET 640 PENCE
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BARCLAYS INITIATES JUST EAT WITH 'OVERWEIGHT' - TARGET 450 PENCE
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TRADERS: JEFFERIES RAISES DS SMITH TO 'BUY' ('HOLD') - TARGET 360 (330) PENCE
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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InterContinental Hotels Group posted flat pretax profit for 2014, but said revenue per available room growth was being driven by strong demand in the US. The hotels group, which owns brands including Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza and InterContinental Hotels, reported an operating profit before exceptional items of USD651 million for 2014, down 3% on 2013's USD668 million profit, as revenue dipped 2% to USD1.86 billion, from USD1.90 billion. IHG said including exceptional items, its operating profit was up on last year, at USD680 million from USD673 million, resulting in a flat pretax profit for the year of USD600 million. The group declared a 10% increase in its total dividend per share for the year to 77.0 cents.
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Two of Tesco's largest shareholders are backing the appointment of Archie Norman as chairman, with a decision expected to be made by the company as early as this week, the Financial Times reported. Two top-ten investors are pushing the company to end its search for a replacement for outgoing Chairman Richard Broadbent by going for Norman, the former chief executive of Asda and current chairman of ITV, the FT said. According to people familiar with the situation, Norman has been approached about the role.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Canadian property and casualty insurer Fairfax Financial Holdings said it has reached a deal with Brit to buy the FTSE 250-listed insurance company for around USD1.88 billion. Fairfax said Brit shareholders will get 305 pence per share, inclusive of any final dividend for the year to the end of December. Fairfax said the offer represents an 11% premium to Brit's closing price on Monday of 274.2 pence per share. The Canadian group said it has received irrevocable undertakings to accept the offer from entities managed by private equity companies Apollo Global Management and CVC Capital Partners in respect of approximately 294 million shares in Brit, around 73% of its issued share capital.
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Oil-services company John Wood Group increased its dividend for the full year after the company reported a rise in earnings, profit and revenue in 2014, and said it intends to increase the dividend further from 2015 onwards. For the year ended December 31, John Wood reported a 3.1% rise in earnings before interest, tax and amortization of USD549.6 million, from USD533.0 million in 2013. The rise was caused by increased revenue and by the company's production services unit providing 30% year-on-year growth in EBITA in 2014. As a result, John Wood increased its total dividend by 25% to 27.5 cents per share. The company said it intends to "increase US dollar dividend per share from 2015 onwards by double digit percentage."
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COMPANIES - LONDON MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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Monitise said its first-half pretax loss widened amid its continued transition away from upfront licence revenue to a subscription model, as speculation about potential suitors mounts after the payments company put itself up for sale last month. Monitise, which provides mobile banking software, has been the subject of reports suggesting that US technology companies such as FIS, Oracle and IBM are potential bidders for the company. Within its interim results statement for the six months to the end of December 2014, Monitise said it has had "positive discussions with market-leading players" under a strategic review initated last month.
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Pendragon reported a jump in 2014 pretax profit and a doubling of its dividend as it reported a a rise in car sales over the year. The car dealership said its pretax profit for the year to the end of December rose to GBP64.6 million, nearly double the GBP38.9 million reported a year earlier. The strong performance pushed the group to double its proposed final dividend to 0.6 pence per share, bringing its total dividend for the year up to 0.9 pence per share.
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Dragon Oil lifted its 2014 dividend, after saying profit after tax benefited from reversing USD160 million in over-provision for tax in Turkmenistan. The company reported a drop in pretax profit for the year ended December 31 to USD589.4 million from USD687.7 million in 2013. However, profit after tax rose 27% to USD650.5 million compared to USD512.6 million in 2013. As a result of the rise in profit, Dragon Oil increased its full-year dividend to 36.0 cents per share compared to the 33.0 cents paid per share in 2013.
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Hargreaves Services reported a significant fall in profit for the first half of the year as revenue declined, but the company increased its interim dividend in line with its previous guidance. For the six months ended November 30, the supplier of solid fuel and bulk material logistics reported a 49% fall in continuing profit before tax of GBP15.2 million from GBP29.7 million a year earlier, whilst underlying profit before tax fell by 29% to GBP20.3 million from GBP28.5 million. But the company increased its interim dividend to 10.0 pence per share from 8.8 pence, a 14% rise.
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Brammer reported a fall in pretax profit for 2014 despite a rise in revenue, pulled back by a rise in costs, but it hiked its dividend as its underlying performance held up well. Brammer, an industrial maintenance, repair and overhaul products company, said its pretax profit for the year to December 31 was down to GBP17.7 million from GBP32.9 million the year before. Pretax profit was dragged lower by a rise in distribution costs, up to GBP200.8 million from GBP165.5 million a year earlier, and by a GBP12.6 million restructuring charge. The group declared a final dividend of 7.1 pence per share, up 4.4%, resulting in a total dividend for the year of GBP10.7 pence per share, up 4.9% year-on-year.
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Rangers International Football Club said it has secured a venue to hold its upcoming extraordinary general meeting, having had its previous booking cancelled amid concerns of disturbance for other guests. The club said it will hold the meeting at The Grange Tower Bridge Hotel in London on March 4.
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Tuesday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

MedicX Fund
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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