LONDON (Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers within the main London indices on Monday.----------
FTSE 100 - WINNERS----------
DS Smith, up 3.2%. The recycled packaging firm said it is set to acquire Spanish-listed packaging business Papeles y Cartones de Europa, funding the acquisition through a rights issue. The acquisition prices the Spanish company, also known as Europac, at EUR16.80 per share, valuing it at a total of EUR1.67 billion. For 2017, Europac reported revenue of EUR868 million and earnings before interest, tax, deprecation and amortisation of EUR158 million. To fund the acquisition, DS Smith plans to raise GBP1.0 billion through a rights issue to be launched this month, and a new debt facility of EUR740 million. The rights issue is fully underwritten by Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan and has not yet been priced. DS Smith also said it delivered a "strong" performance for the year to April 30, with continuing box volume growth. The company is set to release its financial year results this month.
Johnson Matthey, up 1.2%. Liberum raised the speciality chemicals company to Buy from Hold. ----------
FTSE 100 - LOSERS----------
Mediclinic International, down 0.9% at 602.40 pence. Jefferies cut its price target on the private hospitals group to 716 pence from 720 pence. Mediclinic will be demoted from the FTSE 100 index following the FTSE UK index series quarterly review last week. The changes come into effect on June 18.----------
FTSE 250 - WINNERS----------
SIG, up 7.1%. Liberum double upgraded the building products distributor to Buy from Sell. ----------
FTSE 250 - LOSERS----------
Alfa Financial Software, down 16%. Shares in the asset finance software firm continued to decline after it said a major customer has delayed its implementation project on Friday afternoon. Alfa Financial said the delay will have a "significant" impact on its first and second half trading. As a result, the company revised its 2018 revenue guidance to between GBP71 and GBP75 million, with revenue for 2017 coming in at GBP87.8 million. The stock closed down 41% on Friday. ----------
OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM - WINNERS----------
Pantheon Resources, up 13%. The oil and gas explorer said that the analysis conducted on the east Texas onshore wells proved that the water production causing lower-than-expected production is "more likely" a result of frac operations. Pantheon had put its VOBM#5 well under test on March 30 after weather delays affected production. The results of the analysis concluded that the large volume of produced water in the VOBM#5 well is "more likely" a result of frac operations interfering with a deeper water source, the company said. Chief Executive Officer Jay Cheatham said the findings were "extremely good news" as they showed that the well is not water saturated.----------
OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM - LOSERS----------
Monreal, down 44%. Shares in the cash shell collapsed after it said it is seeking shareholder approval for admission to trading on the NEX Exchange Growth Market and the cancellation of it shares from AIM. Monreal became a cash shell under AIM rules after selling Cogenpower in December. As such, the company is required to make an acquisition within six months. If it does not, it will be re-admitted to AIM as an investing company - which requires the raising of GBP6 million - or the company's shares will be suspended from trading on AIM. Its shares would then be cancelled six months later "should the reason for the suspension not have been rectified". Currently, the timetable for Monreal's shares to be cancelled is December 5. ----------
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