The Morning Call - Allergan drops Shire interest - Collins Sarri Statham Investments

Highlights of the Day

Asian Markets

Asia-Pacific stock markets pulled back after two days of broad gains, with a downbeat outlook from Taiwan Semiconductor prompting declines in technology names.

U.S. Markets

The U.S. market had its first loss of the week as technology companies and consumer products makers led U.S. indexes lower.

Today's News

UK regulators will slap Barclays boss Jes Staley with a fine for attempting to uncover a whistleblower back in 2016. The bank said on Friday that the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority have concluded their investigations and found that his actions were a breach of his requirement to act with “due skill, care and diligence” and proposed that he pay a financial penalty.

Reckitt Benckiser reported lower-than-expected quarterly sales growth, hurt by further weakness in its Scholl footcare business and negative pricing. Consumer packaged goods makers, under pressure to boost revenue, are having trouble raising prices, due in part to intense competition among big retailers fighting off encroachment from the likes of drug store chains and Amazon.com

Royal Mail said its Chief Executive Moya Greene will retire after more than eight years at the helm of the postal operator. Greene will step down from the board at the company’s annual general meeting in July. Greene – who hails from Newfoundland, Canada – replaced Adam Crozier as CEO of Royal Mail in 2010.

Indivior has filed a new drug submission (NDS) with Health Canada’s Therapeutic Drugs Directorate, it announced on Friday, for its ‘SUBLOCADE’ (buprenorphine extended-release) injection, for subcutaneous use for the treatment of moderate-to-severe opioid use disorder (OUD), as part of a complete treatment plan to include counseling and psychosocial support.

Marshalls announced its intention to appoint Vanda Murray OBE to its board as a non-executive director and chair. The stone and concrete paving and landscaping supplier said the appointment followed the announcement in October that Andrew Allner would be stepping down as chairman, and would also retire as a non-executive director during 2018.

Allergan Chief Executive Brent Saunders decided to drop his pursuit of Shire after receiving pushback from some of his shareholders, who were concerned about the company overstretching its resources, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not be identified discussing confidential talks. Allergan then issued a second announcement stating it did not intend to make an offer for Shire.

Gold Prices rose to their highest in a week, as wobbly stocks preserved the precious metal’s safe have appeal.

Oil Prices hit highs not seen since 2014, built on the ongoing drawdowns in global supply and as Saudi Arabia looks to push prices higher, though U.S. crude gave back gains in the afternoon to finish lower.

Companies Reporting this week

Day	Companies
Monday:	None of Note
Tuesday:	AA * JD Sports
Wednesday:	Tesco
Thursday:	Saga
Friday:	None of Note

Early Market Movements

Market	Index	Change	% Change
UK 100	7,352.0	+23.1	+0.3%
UK 250	20,175.8	+28.7	+0.1%
GER 30	12,557.2	-10.3	-0.1%
FRA 40	5,397.8	+6.2	+0.1%
U.S. 30	24,664.89	-83.18	-0.3%
U.S. 500	2,693.1	-15.5	-0.6%
OIL (BRENT)	73.74	-0.04	-0.1%
GOLD	1,343.94	-1.59	-0.1%

UK Risers & Fallers (8:15am)

Company	Price	Change	% Change
Mediclinic	693.4	+18.8	+2.8%
Smiths Group	1605.5	+33.5	+2.1%
Esure Group	228.7	+7.5	+3.4%
Reckitt Benckiser	5513	-273	-4.7%
Shire	3841.5	-133.5	-3.4%
Allied Mind	115.7	-3.7	-3.1%

Latest Broker Views

Company	Broker	Recommendation	Price	Target
Rolls Royce	JP Morgan	Neutral	876.8	800
Micro Focus	Deutsche Bank	Hold	1286.5	1350
Unilever	Berenberg	Buy	3861	4700
Admiral Group	Credit Suisse	Underperform	1974.5	1850