Shop fitter Havelock Europa up 4.3% ahead of full-year results

HAVELOCK Europa, the shop and school refitter, rose 4.3 per cent on speculative buying ahead of its final results out today.

Investec, the company's house broker, is predicting the firm will report normalised pretax profits of 7.1 million for 2007, up from 5.7m in 2006. Shares in Havelock Europa closed up 3p at 73.5p.

Thus Group, the Glasgow-based telecommunications business, gained 1.8 per cent after announcing a deal to supply next-generation networks for the Queen Mary University, London. Thus hares rose 2.25p to 125.25p.

Dresdner Kleinwort upgraded SMG from "sell" to "hold" but the shares were unchanged at 11p.

Wolfson Microelectronics added 1.75p to 108.75, as Wall Street powerhouse Goldman Sachs cut its target price from 172p to 110p.

Firstgroup picked up almost 2 per cent on a buy note from Investec. The Aberdeen-based transport company closed at 601p, up 11.5p.

Analysts at Seymour Pierce advised clients to buy Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping, after one of the Aberdeen-based company's rivals reported a strong pick-up in business.

But OHM, hammered by a recent profit warning, dropped 1p to 79p.