Member Info for mulledwine

A little resume of the news - it reads well The Mail on Sunday's Midas column has taken a look at engineering services firm Amec, saying that while the opinion is sharply divided over what will be the cheapest and most sustainable source of energy in the future - oil and gas, nuclear or renewables - the company has interests in all these sectors and is "well-placed whichever way the wind blows". While the paper acknowledges that the stock has risen strongly already in the year-to-date, it believes that there still could be more upside given a "sizeable dividend on top". Furthermore, Amec also announced that it would spend £400m of its £521m cash pile in buying back shares, which will underpin their valuation, claims the column. Midas marks the stock as a buy, saying that while it trades on 16 times earnings - in line with its peers - the group has "shown its ability to grow and has a strong order book".

Shore Capital reiterated its "buy" recommendation for Staffline (STAF), ahead of its full year results on 27th February. The broker expects the recruitment agency to report a number of client wins and development in its specialist recruitment operations. Shore also noted the company's expansion into Poland but warned of potential strains on the margin as competition in the UK remains stiff.

N+1 Brewin raised its recommendation for Genus (GNS) from "hold" to "add" with an increased target price of 1,365p, from 1,034p. The animal genetics specialist reported 21% pre-tax profit growth for the six months ended 31st December 2011 to 21.5 million pounds, beating the broker's forecast of 20 million pounds. Brewin noted considerable expansion prospects in China where large scale pig production is expected to grow from 35% of the market to over 50% by 2015.

Northland Capital kept its "buy" rating for Persimmon (PSN), forecasting the housebuilder to report an operating margin for the 2011 financial year of 10%, on revenues of 1.6 billion pounds. Additionally, with the group enjoying strong cash generation, Northland expects to see a net cash position of 40 million pounds, compared to net of 122 million pounds at the end of 2010. The broker also noted the firm's strategic land holdings, which should help drive net asset value over the next five years.

WH Ireland maintained its "buy" stance on Judges Scientific (JDG) with a 500p target price. The broker believes that the scientific instrument developer's acquisition of electron microscope manufacturer KE Developments will enhance the offering of its Deben subsidiary. While the acquisition is not expected to be earnings enhancing in the 2012 financial year, WH Ireland noted significant opportunities for cost synergies and expansion of its distribution channels. The broker added that the shares trade on a prospective multiple of 8.4 times for the 2012 financial year, well below the peer group average of 11 times.

UBS hikes target from 265p to 350p, buy rating kept.

Credit Suisse raises target from 990p to 1,140p, outperform rating maintained.

UBS raises target from 530p to 550p, neutral rating unchanged; Credit Suisse upgrades from underperform to neutral, target upped from 535p to 655p.

UBS raises target from 225p to 250p, buy rating kept.

Shore Capital kept its "buy" rating for Shire (SHP) after the European Medicines Agency approved the use of its Lexinton facility, in the US, for the manufacture of its Human Genetic Therapy treatment for Gaucher disease, VPRIV. The broker noted that this will free up capacity at its Alewife facility for the production of its Fabry disease treatment, Replagal. Additionally, Shore said that FDA approval for the sale of Replagal would significantly increase its market share in the US for the treatment of Farby disease

Construction and outsourcing firm Kier is given a hard time by Tempus. It reported pre-tax profits up 9% yesterday and boosted the dividend by 7.5%, but Tempus thinks public sector contracts will always take a long time to come to fruition. On that basis the 9 times earnings value appears OK, but with “no obvious upside”.

The Times’s Tempus column is keen to inform readers about exhibitions and publishing firm Informa. It announced a 20% boost to its dividend yesterday, with the suspicion this was done as a defensive move to protect the share price. The exhibitions sector in general has shown resilience through 2011 says Tempus and Informa is no exception, with like-for-like revenues up 3.9% and pre-tax profits gaining 7%. Trading at 11 times earnings the guidance is to hold. The stock, thinks Tempus, is where it ought to be.

In the Telegraph Questor's column is all about sausage skin maker Devro, which uses collagen to encase the meat instead of the more traditional gut. After stripping out exceptional items profits rose 22.4% in 2011 with the shares trading at 14.6 2012 earnings. Questor loves Devro but thinks after a surge of 21% so far this year, it’s time to sell.

UBS has raised its target price for automotive and aerospace engineer GKN to reflect an improvement in the outlook and the upside risk to its growth forecasts. The broker says that 2011 was a "turbulent year" due to the events in Japan, Gallatin and Thailand. "2012 passing without major incident would be a £50m profit boost, which in combination with pro-forma acquisition effects of £30m does not make the remaining £20m bridge in our numbers too heroic providing GKN sees some volume growth." UBS says that an improving economic outlook is bringing upside risk too.

InterContinental Hotels Group Buy 22-Feb-12 £63,836.35 Dale F. Morrison 4,536 @ 1,407.33p

Mondi Sell 23-Feb-12 £264,848.11 Andrew King 45,582 @ 581.04p Mondi Sell 23-Feb-12 £104,046.23 Carol Hunt 17,907 @ 581.04p

Mondi Sell 23-Feb-12 £673,555.08 Peter Oswald 115,923 @ 581.04p Mondi Sell 23-Feb-12 £641,423.75 David A Hathorn 110,393 @ 581.04p

Galliford Try's Finance Director has made the most of recent gains on the stock's share price, selling more than half his stake in the firm. Frank Nelson disposed of 85,000 shares in the housbuilding and construction firm for 547.70p each, earning himself a total of £465,545 and leaving him with 77,440 shares. By Friday afternoon, the stock had gained almost 15%, or 74p, this week, and over 21%, or 100.50p this month.

Fidessa Group Sell 22-Feb-12 £54,465.48 Andy Malpass 3,132 @ 1,739.00p

Jarvis Securities Buy 23-Feb-12 £23,520.00 Andrew J Grant 14,000 @ 168.00p