Sharewatch

Investment Column: Not the time to take a shine to Emerald

Clarkson; Aero Inventory

Inside Sharewatch

Market Report: Rexam advances as analysts turn positive

Tuesday, 17 March 2009

Rexam raced ahead last night, swinging to the top end of the benchmark index as City analysts argued that it had been oversold. The can manufacturer banked gains of 10.66 per cent or 25.5p to 264.75p after Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse advised investors to buy into the stock, which is down over 26 per cent since the start of this year.

The Week Ahead: Panmure excited by Aegis break-up talk

Monday, 16 March 2009

Aegis is due to post full-year results this week and, despite the market's preoccupation with the slowdown in advertising, the focus is likely to be on possible plans to break up the business. Panmure Gordon, whose estimates assume a 10 per cent year-on-year decline in earnings per share for 2009, said the sale of Synovate, the advertising and marketing group's market research business, is "a clear possibility" as interim chief executive John Napier settles into his role.

Small Talk: Asterand is the shining light for small caps

Monday, 16 March 2009

Here's how it works. You are the chief executive of a small-cap company, doing something that the average man on the street cannot really get his head around. Your investors will not listen to pleas for extra investment and the numbers, well, the less said about them the better. On results day, what do you say to disgruntled, credit-crunched backers who have seen their investment dwindle over the last few months?