Legal & General Share News (LGEN)

LONDON (Alliance News) - The following stocks are amongst the biggest risers and fallers within the main London indices late-morning Tuesday.
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FTSE 100 WINNERS
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Imperial Tobacco, up 3.2%. The tobacco group reported a fall in both volume and revenue in its last financial year, but its pretax profit rose to GBP1.52 billion from GBP1.22 billion as it continued to strip out costs across the business as part of its cost optimisation programme. Last year's results were also knocked back by a GBP580 million impairment charge. "We are a stronger business going into 2015. We've strengthened our brands and market footprint, increased cash conversion and considerably reduced our debt level," the company said in a statement.

Associated British Foods, up 2.5%. The food ingredients and retail group reported a higher pretax profit of GBP1.02 billion for its last financial year, up from GBP868 million last year, despite a drop in revenue to GBP12.94 billion, from GBP13.32 billion. The group's low-cost fashion chain Primark drove profit growth in the period, offsetting heavy profit falls in its struggling sugar business on the back of record low sugar prices. Analysts have said that the group results were marginally ahead of expectations.

Legal & General Group, up 1.8%. The savings and investments business reported a jump in net cash generation to GBP827 million in the first nine months of the year, compared with GBP740 million in the same period last year. Operational cash generation rose by 8% to GBP844 million. Legal & General said annuity sales increased by 5% to GBP3.9 billion in the nine-month period. Individual annuity sales, which were rocked by changes made by the UK government earlier this year that effectively put an end to the requirement on individuals to buy annuities on retirement, fell to GBP508 million from GBP1.08 billion in the corresponding nine-month period last year, but Legal & General said bulk annuity sales rose to GBP3.37 billion from GBP2.61 billion.

Schroders, up 1.7%. The asset manager was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral by analysts at Credit Suisse Tuesday.
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FTSE 100 LOSERS
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Aggreko, down 3.0%. The temporary power supplier received a negative note from Credit Suisse, which cut its price target on the stock by 16% to 1,240p from 1,471p while also reiterating an Underperform rating. Aggreko closed Monday at 1,520p.

Tullow Oil, down 3.1%; Petrofac Limited, down 3.1%; BG Group, down 2.5%; Royal Dutch Shell, down 2.3%; BP, down 2.0%. The oil stocks are weighing on the London market after the price of the oil fell back towards recent lows in the early trading session. Brent Crude, the international benchmark, has fallen to USD83.05, not far from the low of USD82.90 recorded in the middle of last month. The falling price is widely credited to Saudi Arabia, the worlds largest oil producer, cutting prices in order to retail market share in the face of increased competition from other regions.

Hargreaves Lansdown, down 1.0%. The investments company was downgraded by Credit Suisse to Neutral from Outperform.
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FTSE 250 WINNERS
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Man Group, up 3.8%. Credit Suisse has resumed analyst coverage on the investment management group with an Outperform rating and a price target of 138 pence. Man Group closed Monday at 123.4p.

Unite Group, up 2.1%. The student accommodation company said said it is performing well across all parts of its business, with a strong lettings performance for the new academic year, and said it expects to meet its earnings per share target on its net asset value early. Unite said it has 99% of rooms occupied for the 2014-15 academic year, a slight improvement on the 98% occupation for the previous year, while it is on track to hit its like-for-like rental growth target of at least 3% for the full year.

Homeserve, up 1.7%. The support services group said its US arm has signed an affinity agreement with non-profit social welfare group AARP Inc, which will see it offer home emergency cover to AARP members. Initial test marketing for the new provision will start in December this year, with the roll out of the programme due to start in 2016 and into 2017. HomeServe didn't say how much the deal is worth, but said it expects a net investment cost of GBP6 million in marketing in its full year 2016. The group also said it is seeing good momentum in its US business, with five new partnerships and an extension signed in the first half of the financial year.
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FTSE 250 LOSERS
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Jardine Lloyd Thompson, down 5.1%. The insurance broker said it has been trading broadly in line with expectations, but that it remained cautious on its full year outlook given the difficult trading conditions. It said its performance came amid a backdrop of a marked decline in the insurance and reinsurance rating environment in the second quarter. It added that while the impact of the strength of sterling on its results was less pronounced in the third quarter, currency movements will nevertheless hit its full year results.

Premier Oil, down 4.6%; Cairn Energy, down 4.4%; Ophir Energy, down 4.1%. The falling oil price is equally taking a toll on the mid-cap oil stocks.

Green King, down 3.9%. Shares in the pub company have reacted negatively to the news that it has reached an agreement to acquire Spirit Pub Company. Greene King said that under the terms of the deal, Spirit shareholders will get 0.1322 new Greene King shares per Spirit share, plus 8 pence per share in cash payable by Spirit in dividends. Spirit will pay 1.5 pence per share in its proposed final dividend for 2014 and will pay a special interim dividend to shareholders of 6.5 pence per share to cover the remainder of the consideration. The deal values Spirit shares at 115 pence per share and values the entire company at around GBP773.6 million. The valuation is an approximate premium of 52.2% against the 75.5 pence per share closing price of Spirit shares on September 22, the last day prior to the opening of the offer period. FTSE Small Cap-listed Spirit Pub Company shares are up 1.0%.

Regus, down 3.5%. The services offices provider received a downgrade from Jefferies to Hold from Buy, as well as a price target cut to 210p from 265p. The brokerage says that the new rating reflects the companies modest guidance, as well as an uncertain macro outlook.

AVEVA Group, down 2.4%. The technology company was was cut to Sell from Neutral by Goldman Sachs. The bank also significantly cut its price target to 1,420p from 1,950p. AVEVA shares closed Monday at 1,494p.
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AIM ALL-SHARE - WINNERS
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Physiomics, up 22%. The medical equipment company saw its shares rally after the company disclosed that US pharmaceutical company Merck & Co Inc is a partner. Merck published a paper in CPT: Pharmacometrics and Systems Biology in which the company specified Physiomics' Virtual Tumour platform as a technology which helped the company's decision-making progress.

Trap Oil Group, up 20%. The oil and gas producer has seen its shares rise after reporting that it has sold its remaining shares in IGas Energy for GBP1.9 million, or 82 pence per IGas share. IGas shares are up 1.0% after the company said the Barton Moss well encountered 15 gas-bearing coal seams, in accordance with its pre-drill forecast. In addition, the well found a Namurian Shale section, it said.

Proxama, up 10%. Shares in the software company have responded positively to the news that it will raise gross proceeds of between GBP3.7 million and GBP4.0 million in a share placing to raise funds to support its growth, as it said it may buy Aconite Technology Ltd. The company will issue between 147.6 million and 160.0 million new shares at 2.5 pence a share. Proxama also said it could acquire Aconite Technology, which is a provider of EMV transaction processing, chip lifecycle, NFC mobile and PIN management software products. The deal would be paid for using an initial GBP2.06 million of Proxama shares and potentially GBP1.75 million in earn out payments in either cash or shares.

Mobile Streams, up 10%. The mobile content company saw its shares rise despite the company saying that trading performance is still being hit by a weak Argentinian Peso, and cautioning that short term profitability will be hit by its "diversification plans" as it looks to launch its services into new emerging markets. Mobile Streams said it is continuing with its plans to diversifying its revenues into new markets beyond Argentina, including in other Latin American markets such as Mexico, Brazil and Columbia.

AdEPT Telecom, up 7.4%. The telecommunications company said it has won a contract extension for three years from its largest customer worth around GBP2.2 million. WH Ireland has reiterated its Buy rating on the stock, saying it is "highly encouraged" by the contract extension announcement.
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By Jon Darby; jondarby@alliancenews.com; @jondarby100

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