Why Costain, ICAP, and Topps Tiles Should Lag the FTSE 100 Today
LONDON -- The FTSE 100 is having a down day today, having tumbled 0.72% points to 6,353 by 9:25 a.m. EDT. The fall has been driven largely by renewed eurozone fears after Italy's latest bond auction didn't go so well as hoped, and that comes in the wake of the Cyprus crisis that has yet to allow the island's banks to reopen.
Individual companies also have their own problems, of course. Here are three that are falling today.
Costain
Costain Group shares have been riding high this year, up 35% over the past 12 months. But the price has fallen back 6.6% today after the construction services group announced a recommended merger with May Gurney Integrated Services . May Gurney shares, on the other hand, climbed 22%, so it seems clear which company's shareholders think they're getting the better deal.
The all-share merger to create Costain May Gurney will result in Costain shareholders getting 53% of the combined firm and May Gurney shareholders holding 47%.
ICAP
A trading statement from ICAP sent the shares down 7.4% after the interdealer broker told us of "extremely challenging" trading conditions for the nine months to December. The firm is expecting pre-tax profits for the year to March 31 of about 280 million pounds, which is at the lower end of previous guidance, with revenue expected to drop by 13%.
Full-year results are expected on May 14.
Topps Tiles
Topps Tiles shares have slipped 2% after the flooring specialist released a pre-close trading update ahead of interim results due on May 29. Total revenue for the six months should be up 1% to 87.4 million pounds, but the like-for-like figure is expected to fall by about 0.3%, with underlying pre-tax profit down 23% to 4.3 million pounds.
Although demand has been weaker than expected, cost-reduction measures should help keep full-year profit within current expectations.
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The article Why Costain, ICAP, and Topps Tiles Should Lag the FTSE 100 Today originally appeared on Fool.com.
Alan Oscroft has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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