ARM Holdings, down 3.5%, introduced its new Mbed Device Server, enabling companies to securely connect and manage devices. Berenberg Bank and Numis Securities reaffirmed their “Buy” ratings on Johnson Matthey, down 2.2%, with respective price objectives of 3,650p and 3,642p.
DS Smith, down 3.5%, has acquired the Recycling Division of Middleton Paper for an undisclosed amount. Greene King, up 1.5%, has appointed Kirk Davis as its Chief Financial Officer, replacing Matthew Fearn. Canaccord Genuity initiated coverage on the company’s shares with a “Hold” rating and a price target of 800p.
Dialight, up 8.9%, announced that it has unveiled its new CE compliant and UL-certified Vigilant LED High Bay fixture with integrated controls and cloud based monitoring for industrial applications. Canaccord Genuity reiterated its “Buy” rating with a price objective of 1,100p. Gaming Realms, up 6%, has conditionally raised about £250,000 through the proposed subscription of 757,576 new ordinary shares at 33p per share.
Sepura remained unchanged at 141p. Liberum Capital reaffirmed its “Buy” rating with a target price of 175p. Sareum Holdings’ share price also remained unchanged this week. The company, along with SRI International, have successfully developed a molecule called SAR-20347, which "significantly decreases psoriasis pathology in a disease model".
Horizon Discovery Group, down 1.5%, has acquired Sage Labs in order to form a "fully integrated and world leading translation genomics platform" for around $48m. Numis Securities Ltd reissued its “Buy” rating on the shares of Aveva Group, down 1.7%, with a target price of 2,480p. Elsewhere, Tupras is investing extensively in AVEVA software technology following an intensive evaluation process.
Brady, down 1.9%, announced that Norilsk Nickel has selected Brady CTRM software to manage its trading and risk management activities for base, minor and precious metals, as well as concentrates. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued its “Overweight” rating on Kier Group, down 4%.
Bango, down 4%, announced an open offer to raise up to £6m before expenses through an issue of 4.2m new shares through a firm placing and 2.1m new shares through the placing & open offer, both at 96p per share. Cyan Holdings’ share price fell 15.2%, after reporting a pre-tax loss of £1.27m for the six months ended 30 June, compared to a loss of £1.30m in corresponding period of last year, while the revenues increased to £65,510 from £51,512.
Blinkx reduced 15.6%, after it said that it expects its revenues for the first half ended 30 September to be lower than last year. Xaar fell 40.2%, after it cautioned that the total revenue for FY14 would be 5%-10% below the bottom of the previously announced range of £115m-£125m.
UK markets finished lower in the past week, amid political protests in Hong Kong and as upbeat GDP data increased speculations that the BoE would increase its interest rates sooner than expected. The FTSE 100 index dropped 1.8% to 6,527.9 and the FTSE techMARK 100 Index lost 0.7% to 3,296.8. The FTSE AIM 100 Index also fell 1% to 3,181.
US markets closed lower in the previous week as unrest in Hong Kong weighed on the investor sentiment. However, an encouraging non-farm payrolls data from the US managed to curb losses. The DJIA index dipped 0.6% to 17,009.7, while the NASDAQ index fell 0.8% to 4,475.6.
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