Markets: Aggreko powers back into the black

Temporary power provider Aggreko finally broke its losing streak yesterday as analysts said the shares looked oversold.

The Glasgow-based firm has lost about a tenth of its market value since warning on Friday that bad debt provision and adverse exchange rates would take 2.5 per cent off profits this year.

Andrew Brooke, analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said: “Whilst the market is understandably concerned about the potential impact of a slowing world economy against a relatively high headline rating, we believe the fall now represents a good long-term buying opportunity.” Among those who saw it that way was the wife of chairman Ken Hanna, who bought £77,000 worth of shares in the company on Tuesday. She was rewarded with a rebound yesterday of nearly 1 per cent, to 2,046p.

In contrast, shares in Edinburgh-based Cupid have shown little life in recent months, and refused to move again yesterday as finance director Mark Doughty exercised options on 600,000 shares, bringing in about £1.2 million. The shares closed flat at 200p on Aim.

The wider market also took a bit of a breather after Tuesday’s plunge, with the FTSE 100 Index adding just 6.9 points to close at 5,804.8. Chip designer ARM Holdings topped risers’ board for a second successive session following its strong third-quarter results.

NEW YORK: Wall Street ended lower for a second session last night, as investors soured on another round of underwhelming corporate results and the Federal Reserve said it would stick to its stimulus plan.

The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 25.11 points, or 0.19 per cent, to end the day at 13,077.42 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index shed 4.33 points, or 0.31 per cent, to finish at 1,408.76.