Vodafone Share News (VOD)

Barratt Developments and Persimmon tracked sector peer Taylor Wimpey higher, which rose after giving a bullish outlook alongside a 'new and enhanced set of financial targets'. AstraZeneca was also higher after reiterating its defence to an attempted takeover by US rival Pfizer. AstraZeneca said Pfizer is making an "opportunistic attempt [...] without reflecting the value of its exciting pipeline. This value should accrue fully to AstraZeneca shareholders."Rolls-Royce climbed into positive territory, buoyed by the news it could launch its first ever SUV in 2017, according to Autocar. Meanwhile, airline easyJet which was flying lower despite narrowing first-half losses by nearly 14% to £53m. "Whilst we remain hugely optimistic about the long-term prospects of this business, in the near term we expect the shares to pause for breath," said Analyst Gert Zonneveld from Panmure Gordon.Vodafone shares were firmly in the red after AT&T put an end to hopes of a takeover bid by instead revealing it was in talks with fellow US company DirecTV. Travel and leisure peer TUI Travel was also lower as it said that the pre-tax loss widened 5% to £369m in the first half due to the timing of Easter.London Stock Exchange dropped after confirming media speculation that it is considering a potential purchase of US asset-management and stock-index group Russell Investments. According to media reports, the group could fetch a value of $3bn, equating to 10 times earnings. FTSE 100 - RisersBarratt Developments (BDEV) 386.00p +3.13%Persimmon (PSN) 1,395.00p +2.57%Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,025.00p +2.09%Centrica (CNA) 324.20p +1.95%AstraZeneca (AZN) 4,694.00p +1.82%ITV (ITV) 189.90p +1.66%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,233.00p +1.40%Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,309.50p +1.35%GKN (GKN) 381.60p +1.19%Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 463.90p +1.18%FTSE 100 - FallerseasyJet (EZJ) 1,655.00p -4.34%Vodafone Group (VOD) 218.85p -2.50%London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 1,810.00p -2.43%TUI Travel (TT.) 432.50p -2.06%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 437.00p -1.89%Antofagasta (ANTO) 783.50p -1.57%British Sky Broadcasting Group (BSY) 858.00p -1.21%William Hill (WMH) 348.20p -1.19%Fresnillo (FRES) 823.00p -1.14%Tullow Oil (TLW) 887.50p -1.11%NR