Marks & Spencer Share News (MKS)

Stocks came off the top over the lunch time session, though risers still comfortably outnumber fallers among Footsie constituents by at least two to one.Miners are setting the pace, particularly Vedanta, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Antofagasta.At the other end of the scale Invensys is sharply lower after RBC Capital Markets initiated coverage of the engineer with an "underperform" rating. That was the cue for profit takers to get out of the stock after its recent good run following the abrupt departure of its chief executive Ulf Henriksson, which prompted a revival of bid speculation.Meanwhile, MF Global has put the hex on retail giant Marks & Spencer, sending it lower after starting coverage with a "sell" recommendation ahead of M&S's results next week.Elsewhere in the FTSE 100, oil company Tullow Oil has sold off two-thirds of the interests it holds in numerous assets in Uganda for a cash sum of $2.9bn, with CNOOC and Total snapping up a third each.Dixons Retail has slumped more than 10% after a profit warning. The PC World and Currys owner says consumer confidence has deteriorated, particularly in Britain and Ireland. Sales growth has slowed at tile and wood flooring retailer Topps Tiles during the latter stages of the first half. Like for like sales rose about 1.8% in the 26 weeks to 2 April, down from 2% last year. They were up 3.2% for the first seven weeks, 2.2% for the 13-week period, and up an estimated 1.4% in the second quarter.The earthquake in New Zealand and the floods in Australia earlier this year should result in total claims of about $75m (£46.9m), while the Japan earthquake could result in losses of as much as $150m, the specialist insurer Hiscox has said.Domino's Pizza is also lower. Growth continued to slow at the pizza delivery company, blamed on tough comparatives and weakness in the Republic of Ireland. Like-for-like sales in 608 mature stores rose 4.2% in the 13 weeks to 30 March, down from 10.5% a year ago. They'd risen 4.7% in the first seven weeks and 11.9% in 2010.Housebuilder Bellway posted higher profits in the six months to 31 January after selling more homes at higher prices, but warned that consumer confidence remains fragile. Pre-tax profits rose to £24m from £19m, on turnover that was up to £407.9m from £360.8m. The interim dividend climbs to 3.7p from 3.3p.Menswear group Moss Bros has scrubbed up well on the back of revived like for like sales in the 52 weeks ended 29 January 2011. Trading remains in line with company expectations.---jh