UK/Euro Financial Market Daily Morning Briefing 12-03-2007

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London shares open higher, Alliance Boots, ICI jump on M&A excitement

Leading shares opened higher this morning, helped by a further recovery across Asian stocks overnight and Wall Street on Friday, while M&A action in Alliance Boots and ICI also lifted sentiment, dealers said.
   
By 9.30 am, The FTSE 100 index was up 27.3 points at 6,272.5, while the broader indices were also higher. Early volume was moderate, with 271.4 mln shares changing hands in 51,457 deals.
   
In Asia overnight, the Nikkei 225 index closed 128.35 points higher at 17,292.39, while the Hang Seng ended 26.80 points higher at 18,324.35.
   
Wall Street closed out the week with a mixed performance Friday, showing more stability after its recent plunge but still displaying signs of nervousness despite an upbeat report on employment, according to traders.
   
The DJIA rose 15.62 to 12,276.32 after trading in both positive and negative territory over the course of the day. The Nasdaq however, fell 0.18 to 2,387.55.
   
In the UK this morning, Alliance Boots topped the early FTSE 100 risers this morning, up over 6 pct, as the market had its first chance to react to deputy chairman Stefano Pessina and private equity group Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co's offer of 1,000 pence per share for the international health and beauty group.
   
Shares in Alliance Boots were up 55 pence at 985, after closing 115 pence higher at 930 on Friday.
   
In a note to clients, Dresdner Kleinwort upgraded its recommendation on the group to 'hold' from 'sell' this morning and raised its target to 970 pence from 740, arguing that 1,000 pence "looks generous".
   
The broker said it is difficult to see the board refusing Pessina's due diligence request.
   
In a note also landing on fund managers desks this morning, Deutsche Bank reiterated its 'hold' recommendation on Alliance Boots, but raised its target to 1,000 pence from 850.
   
ICI was another good gainer, adding 29 pence to 493 amid talk that Akzo Nobel is looking at the chemicals group after selling its Organon bioscience unit for 11 bln eur.
   
"ICI is higher with speculation Akzo would go for them after their Organon sale," said one London-based dealer.
   
Collins Stewart repeated its 'buy' stance and raised its target to 550 pence, arguing that it now assumes a 50 pct chance of bid for ICI.

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Shares in Anglo American were also higher in early deals as Merrill Lynch added the miner to its Europe 1 List and lifted its target to 3,050 pence from 2,438.
   
In a note to clients, Merrill repeated its 'buy' stance and said it expects the company to benefit from further restructuring, an improvement in performance and capital returns.
   
Anglo American added 64 pence higher at 2,531 pence, while firmer commodity prices also lifted the rest of the sector.
   
Vedanta gained 29 pence to 1,281, BHP Billiton added 23-1/2 pence to 1,053 and Rio Tinto put on 42 pence to 2,750.
   
Elsewhere, Smith & Nephew added 22-1/2 pence to 638, after saying it has agreed to buy Plus Orthopedics Holding AG, a private Swiss orthopaedic company, for 889 mln usd in cash, including assumed debt.
   
Shares in Rexam were also in demand, up 14 pence at 534 after the world's biggest can maker agreed to sell its glass business for 449 mln stg in cash to Ireland's Ardagh Glass Group.
   
This morning, the group revealed it will use the proceeds to reduce borrowings in the short-term and will now focus on its core beverage can and plastic packaging businesses.
   
In response, UBS said the 449 mln stg price tag appears "reasonable" at 5.7 times 2006 EV/EBITDA and 11.2 times 2006 EV/EBIT and compares to net operating assets of 372 mln -- resulting in a gain of around 77 mln.
  
On the downside, Sainsbury shares fell 12-1/2 pence to 531-1/2 amid fears that the supermarket group may be left out in the cold following KKR's offer for Alliance Boots, while Marks & Spencer shares were also under pressure, down 6-1/2 pence at 685.
   
On the economic front, UK input prices, due this morning, are expected to have risen in February largely because oil prices rebounded during the month, but prices at the factory gate are likely to remain relatively subdued.

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Analysts expect input prices, on a seasonally-adjusted basis, to have increased 0.7 pct in February from the month before. That follows the 2.0 pct drop in January.
   
Meanwhile, output prices are expected to have risen 0.3 pct for the second month running.
   
In the US today, the monthly US Treasury budget is expected to have recorded a 121 bln usd deficit in February.

UK Diary of Events

For a diary of key UK financial and corporate events today, click here

US Summary

For a summary of US stocks at Friday's close of trade, click here

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PARIS - Market data at 10.06 am:

Major indices:
   
CAC-40 up 18.93 points or 0.34 pct at 5,556.77
SBF-80 up 42.80 or 0.62 pct at 6,894.84
SBF-120 up 16.87 or 0.42 pct at 4,073.48

Volume for CAC-40 shares: 568 mln eur
31 CAC-40 stocks up
9 CAC-40 stocks down

Major gainers:
   
Cap Gemini up 1.07 eur or 1.99 pct at 54.93
   
Bouygues up 0.74 or 1.39 pct at 53.84
   
Biomerieux up 1.86 or 2.93 pct at 65.36

Major losers:
   
EADS down 0.46 or 2.04 pct at 22.14, extending Friday's post-results losses. The stock was downgraded this morning to 'equal-weight' from 'overweight' by Lehman, with a reduced target of 24 eur; Societe Generale cut its target to 18 eur from 20.
   
Electricite de France (EDF) down 0.18 or 0.32 pct at 56.28. Renewable energy unit EDF Energies Nouvelles said net profit jumped 31.9 pct to 21.9 mln eur last year as the recently-floated company's wind farm generating capacity continued to grow.
  
Total down 0.19 or 0.38 pct at 50.34. Crude prices fell earlier in Asia as winter in the US comes to an end and ahead of an OPEC meeting this week, dealers said.
 

Most active stocks:
   
Carrefour, up 0.70 or 1.31 pct at 54.29, on volume of 53 mln eur
   
Total, 39 mln eur
   
BNP Paribas, up 0.20 or 0.25 pct at 80.62, 37 mln eur

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AMSTERDAM - Market data at 10.24 am

Major indices
   
AEX                 493.31, up 2.93 points
AMX Midcap          700.12, up 4.68 points
Government bonds    mainly lower

Major gainers:
   
Akzo Nobel jumped 14.78 pct to 53.26 after the company said it sold Organon Biosciences to Schering-Plough Corp, thus cancelling the IPO. Analysts said the 11 bln eur price received was much higher than expected. Rabo Securities upgraded Akzo Nobel to 'buy' from 'hold' and lifted its price target on the issue to "at least" 60.0 eur from 48.0.
   
Univar put on 2.74 pct to 40.43 after the Dutch chemicals distribution group said its US subsidiary Univar USA has agreed to acquire Chemcentral Corp of the US for about 600 mln usd in cash, including assumed debt. Rabo Securities said it hoped to gain insight into the potential for cost synergies during a conference call scheduled this morning.
   
Philips was up 1.38 pct to 28.64 after the electronics giant said it has sold about 887 mln shares in TSMC for 1.3 bln eur in proceeds, resulting in a non-taxable gain of some 725 mln eur, to be taken in the first quarter of 2007.
   
Wessanen added 1.17 pct to 10.35 after Kempen & Co upgraded the issue to 'Hold' from 'Sell', and lifted the target to 11.0 eur from 8.90 in the light of an "attractive" dividend yield.
   
Unilever was up 1.22 pct to 19.94 after the company said it is starting its share buy-back programme today.
   
Fugro advanced 0.50 pct to 36.16 after Kempen & Co upgraded the issue to 'buy' from 'hold', lifted its price target to 44.0 eur form 37.0 and raised EPS estimates following last week's well received full year results.

Major decliners:
   
ING slid 0.34 pct to 31.82.
   
Royal Dutch Shell shed pct to.
   
Heineken edged 0.19 pct lower to 37.40 following reports in FEM Business.
   
ASMI was off 0.12 pct to 40.48, getting no suppport from Kempen & Co lifting its price target for the company to 21.0 eur from 19.0.

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FRANKFURT - Market data at 10.33 am

Major indices:
   
DAX - up 22.37 points or 0.33 pct at 6,738.89
MDAX - up 67.71 points or 0.70 pct at 9,791.79
TecDAX - up 13.35 points or 1.62 pct to 839.44
DAX futures - up 28.00 points or 0.40 pct to 6,741.50

Major Advancers:
   
Bayer, up 0.83 eur or 1.90 pct at 44.61 after a report appeared over the weekend stating its CropScience unit achieved sales of around 1 bln eur with new products in 2006, dealers said.
   
Linde, up 1.29 eur or 1.63 pct at 80.31 after it said it expects sales and earnings to rise this year thanks to the BOC acquisition.
   
Siemens, up 1.19 eur or 1.49 pct at 81.20 after the Financial Times Deutschland reported the company has hired Goldman Sachs to advise it on a possible sale of its VDO unit.
   
Fresenius Medical Care, up 1.11 eur or 1.03 pct at 108.70
   
BASF, up 0.79 eur or 1.00 pct at 79.50

Major Decliners:
   
Deutsche Post, down 0.17 eur or 0.71 pct to 23.94.
   
Deutsche Postbank, down 0.43 eur or 0.70 pct at 61.34
   
EON, down 0.67 eur or 0.67 pct at 98.85, after a US regulatory filing showed Enel may increase its stake in EON's takeover target Endesa to almost 30 pct.
   
VW, down 0.22 eur or 0.27 pct at 82.67, after JP Morgan reiterated its 'underweight' rating and said the shares were fairly valued at their current price, dealers said.

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