Royal Dutch Shell Group .com Rotating Header Image

Bloomberg: Aer Lingus, BT, 888 Holdings, Shell: U.K., Irish Equity Preview

EXTRACT: Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA LN): Europe’s second largest oil company may bid on the “Master Development Plan” for Iran’s offshore Kish gas field, the Iranian Oil Ministry said on one of its Web sites. The shares added 21 pence, or 1.2 percent, to 1,814 pence.

THE ARTICLE

By Scott Hamilton

Nov. 6 (Bloomberg) — The following stocks may rise or fall in U.K. and Irish markets today. Stock symbols are in parentheses and prices are from the market close on Friday.

The benchmark FTSE 100 Index was little changed at 6148.10 in London as 61 stocks dropped, 33 gained and 7 were unchanged. The FTSE All-Share Index was little changed at 3149.37.

Ireland’s ISEQ Index lost 23.93, or 0.3 percent, to 8544.15.

U.K. Companies:

Blacks Leisure Group Plc (BSLA LN): Mike Ashley, a billionaire whose assets include Lillywhites Ltd. (80259Z LN) may bid up to 200 million pounds ($380.2 million) for the U.K.’s largest retailer of outdoor gear, the Guardian said, citing unidentified analysts. Blacks Leisure’s shares added 4 pence, or 0.9 percent, to 429.5 pence.

BT Group Plc (BT/A LN): The U.K.’s largest phone company was downgraded to “sell” from “hold” with a price estimate of 278 pence per share by Standard & Poor’s. The shares slipped 1.5 pence, or 0.5 percent, to 278.75 pence.

Cardpoint Plc (CASH LN): The U.K. operator of automated- teller machines rejected a 1 pound ($1.90) a share takeover offer from an unidentified bidder that may have been a private equity group, the Sunday Telegraph reported, without saying where it got the information. The shares slipped 0.5 pence, or 0.6 percent, to 86 pence.

Carphone Warehouse Group Plc (CPW LN): Europe’s largest mobile-phone retailer may be hit with fines after the U.K. telecommunications regulator said the company annoyed customers by making silent calls, the Independent newspaper said. The shares gained 5.75 pence, or 2 percent, to 289.25 pence.

888 Holdings Plc (888 LN): Ladbrokes Plc (LAD LN), the world’s largest publicly traded gaming group, said it’s in “early” discussions with 888, the U.K.’s No. 2 Web gambling provider, about a possible takeover. Ladbrokes “is in the early stages of reviewing a possible transaction involving 888 Holdings,” the Harrow, England-based company said in an e-mailed statement. 888’s shares added 2.5 pence, or 2.3 percent, to 110.5 pence. Ladbrokes’ shares rose 2.25 pence, or 0.6 percent, to 410 pence. PartyGaming shares fell 1 penny, or 3.5 percent, to 27.5 pence.

Electrocomponents Plc (ECM LN): The U.K. supplier of products ranging from cables to calculators may say fiscal first- half profit rose 8.9 percent to 24.5 million pounds ($46.7 million), according to the median estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The shares dipped 1.5 pence, or 0.5 percent, to 283.5 pence.

London Stock Exchange Group Plc (LSE LN): The London Stock Exchange has proposed the cross-listing of exchange-traded funds with the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Nikkei English News reported, without citing anyone. The plan also called for a jointly developed stock-trading system and an effort to spur start-up markets, Nikkei said. The shares rose 3 pence, or 0.2 percent, to 1,253 pence.

Marks & Spencer Group Plc (MKS LN): The U.K.’s largest clothing retailer plans to relocate underperforming central city stores and to open dozens of other out-of-town shops to boost sales, the Sunday Telegraph reported, citing unidentified company executives. The shares lost 1 penny, or 0.2 percent, to 656.5 pence.

PartyGaming Plc (PRTY LN): The U.K. online poker company may bid for part of the business of Austrian rival Bwin.com, the Times reported, without saying where it obtained the information. Bwin is one of a number of companies PartyGaming is considering, the newspaper said. The shares fell 1 penny, or 3.5 percent, to 27.5 pence.

Rolls-Royce Group Plc (RR/ LN): The world’s second-largest aircraft-engine maker may open two manufacturing plants in Singapore, the Straits Times newspaper reported. The company may make its decision in the next few months, Chief Executive John Rose said in Singapore, according to the article. The shares dropped 6 pence, or 1.3 percent, to 457 pence.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA LN): Europe’s second largest oil company may bid on the “Master Development Plan” for Iran’s offshore Kish gas field, the Iranian Oil Ministry said on one of its Web sites. The shares added 21 pence, or 1.2 percent, to 1,814 pence.

Smith & Nephew Plc (SN/ LN): The medical products manufacturer may get offers for its wound-care business from rivals and private equity companies, the Financial Mail on Sunday reported, without citing anyone. The shares rose 17.75 pence, or 3.6 percent, to 505.5 pence.

3i Group Plc (III LN): Deutsche Bahn AG, the partial owner f Scandlines AG has refused to sell the shipping company to the highest bidder 3i Group Plc in the 1 billion pound auction ($1.9 billion), the Telegraph reported. The shares dropped 13.5 pence, or 1.4 percent, to 950.5 pence.

U.K. Coal Plc (UKC LN): Britain’s largest coal miner may have a property portfolio worth as much as 500 million pounds ($951 million), or nearly double last year’s valuation, if it wins planning permission for a series of developments, the Sunday Telegraph reported, citing unidentified analysts. The shares rose 0.25 pence, or 0.1 percent, to 244.5 pence.

Whitbread Plc (WTB LN): Starwood Capital Group LLC acquired almost 3 percent of the company that runs Pizza Hut restaurants in the U.K., the Sunday Times reported, without saying where it got the information. The shares fell 20 pence, or 1.4 percent, to 1,419 pence.

Irish Companies:

Aer Lingus Group Plc (AERL ID): Workers of the former state- owned Irish airline who are also shareholders began voting on Ryanair Holdings Plc’s (RYA ID) hostile 1.48 billion-euro ($1.9 billion) bid to combine Ireland’s dominant carriers. The shares rose 1 cent, or 0.4 percent, to 2.87 euros.

Kingspan Group Plc (KGP LN): Europe’s largest maker of flooring and insulation panels won’t appeal a decision by Ireland’s antitrust agency to block a proposed 87 million-euro ($110 million) purchase of a rival, the Sunday Times reported, without saying where it got the information. The shares of the Kingscourt, Ireland-based company fell 15 cents, or 0.9 percent, to 16.48 euros.

Ryanair Holdings Plc (RYA ID): Europe’s biggest discount airline may say second-quarter net income rose 23 percent to 212 million euros ($269 million), according to the median estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. The shares fell 4 cents, or 0.5 percent, to 8.96 euros.

To contact the reporter for this story: Scott Hamilton in London at at [email protected] 

This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Comments are closed.