Cambridge Index eases 1.3%

The Cambridge Index dropped 1.3% or 326 points to settle at 24,335.6, as the top four index heavyweights posted weekly losses to their share prices.

Jefferies Group raised its target price on DS Smith, down 1.7%, to 530p from 475p but  maintained a “Hold” rating. Peel Hunt reaffirmed its “Hold” rating on Abcam, down 1.5%, with a target price of 1020p.

Greene King, down 0.7%, announced in its interim results for the 24 weeks ended 15 October 2017 that its revenue was broadly flat  compared to the same period last year. However, its profit before tax rose to £123.7m from £92.5m. The company’s board declared an interim dividend of 8.8p per share, payable on 19 January 2018 to shareholders on the register as at 8 December 2017. Barclays reaffirmed its “Overweight” rating on the stock with a target price of 635p. Shore Capital also reissued its “Buy” rating on the stock. Peel Hunt trimmed its target price on the stock to 600p from 625p and maintained its “Add” rating. Canaccord Genuity and Numis Securities restated their “Hold” ratings on the stock with a target price of 520p and 595p respectively.

Cambridge Cognition Holdings, up 7.3%, announced that it showcased the positive results of its pilot study on wearable technology in patients with the major depressive disorder (MDD) for evaluating cognition and mood, at the 2017 International CNS Summit in Boca Raton, Florida.

Liberum Capital reaffirmed its “Buy” rating on Frontier Developments, up 2.8%, with a target price of 1250p. RhythmOne, up 2.2%, announced in its interim results for the six months ended 30 September 2017 that revenues jumped 71.5% to $114.5m, while its loss before tax widened to $11.3m.

Amino Technologies, up 0.8%, announced that it intends to hold a general meeting on 15 December 2017 for the approval of a resolution to buy back its own ordinary shares. Canaccord Genuity reissued its “Buy” rating on the stock with a target price of 220p.

Peel Hunt trimmed its target price on Xaar, down 1.8%, to 420p from 535p and maintained an “Add” rating.

UK markets finished in the negative territory in the previous week, after the British government agreed to double the amount they would be willing to pay for a smooth departure of the UK from the European Union. The UK’s consumer credit fell to its lowest level in 18 months in October, while its consumer confidence index slumped to a 4-months low in November. The nation’s manufacturing activity surprisingly rose in November. The FTSE 100 index and the FTSE techMARK 100 index declined 1.5%, each, to settle at 7,300.5 and 4,529.3, respectively. The FTSE AIM 100 index lost 1% to close at 5,252.5.

US markets ended mixed in the last week, as gains in banking sector stocks were outpaced by losses in technology sector stocks. The US Markit manufacturing PMI eased less-than-expected in November, whereas the nation’s annualised GDP accelerated at its fastest pace in three years in the third quarter. Also, the initial jobless claims surprisingly fell for the second straight week in the previous week. The DJIA index advanced 2.9% to end at 24,231.6, while the NASDAQ index dropped 0.6% to close at 6,847.6.

 

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