ADVFN III Evening Euro Market Bulletin

	ADVFN III	Evening Euro Markets Bulletin
	Daily world financial news

Monday, 23 July 2012

London Market Report

FTSE 100 Euronext Dax perf CAC 40 Please click on the images to view our interactive charts

London close: Footsie drops two per cent on Eurozone fears Market Movers techMARK 2,041.19 -1.57% FTSE 100 5,533.87 -2.09% FTSE 250 10,896.91 -2.43% - Footsie near one-month low - Spanish regions ask for aid; bond yields surge - Evraz leads the Footsie lower Indices across Europe and the US tanked on Monday, with the FTSE 100 finishing near a one-month low, as Eurozone debt concerns spread fear across equity markets. The Footsie dropped 2.09% today with every constituent finishing flat or in the red; the last time the Footsie closed lower was June 28th when it finished at 5,493. The German Bundestag voted on Thursday to support Spain's application for EFSF aid for its banks, while the Eurogroup approved the terms of the 'up to €100bn' loan for Spain on Friday. However, the focus has now shifted to Spain's regions, after Valencia (and Murcia, according to rumours) asked the government for financial help from the newly established support fund. Catalonia may also be close to asking for aid, according to reports. Bond yields have soared as of late prompting concerns that the Spanish government may have to ask for a full-scale bailout. The yield on a 10-year Spanish Treasury was up 21.1 basis points at 7.478% by the close, well above the 'unsustainable' level of 7.0%. "With borrowing costs now rising on shorter term debt, something Spain have been reliant on recently, the country is on borrowed time to bring yields down," said analyst Craig Erlam from Alpari. Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has told the European Union (EU) that it will not provide any additional funds for Greece, prompting concerns that the country will default on its debt. German Vice Chancellor Philipp Roesler said he is "very skeptical" that the Troika can rescue Greece. FTSE 100: Evraz leads stocks lower Steel giant Evraz was pressured lower by comments from Morgan Stanley. The US investment bank said today that the group's plans to generate $5bn in EBITDA in 2016 is "ambitious" compared with its own base-case forecast of $3.1bn. "EVRAZ assumes higher steel and raw material prices than we do as well as additional improvements in EBITDA from projects where we think it too soon to put in our base case." Fund manager Aberdeen Asset Management saw assets under management slip 1% in the third quarter, but says that this result was resilient amidst an uncertain environment. Shares edged lower. Property giant Hammerson edged higher after seeing net rental income fall 1.6% in the six months to the end of June, though it was up 2.4% on a like-for-like basis. Water group Pennon was lower despite saying it has signed a 25-year waste services contract with Glasgow City Council, a key part of its growth strategy in Scotland. FTSE 250: ABG plummets after first-half results African Barrick Gold (ABG) tumbled today after announced that attributable gold production dropped 14% in the first half, while revenue fell 8% and EBITDA fell 30%. ABG also announced that it is proposing to buy up the outstanding share capital of Aviva Mining (Kenya), its first expansion outside Tanzania. Sector peer Aquarius Platinum was also among the fallers after it said that the likelihood of industrial action over the South African winter is high. "Aquarius is by no means immune to this threat, and intermittent unlawful industrial action has occurred at one of Kroondal's four shafts in July." LED lighting group Dialight was a rare high riser after seeing revenues climb 18.2% and operating profits rise 21% in the half year ended June 30th. FTSE 100 - Risers FTSE 100 - Fallers Evraz (EVR) 218.10p -6.95% Aviva (AV.) 275.20p -6.62% Vedanta Resources (VED) 835.00p -5.17% Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 548.00p -4.61% Schroders (SDR) 1,280.00p -4.41% Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,409.00p -4.41% ITV (ITV) 72.00p -4.38% Barclays (BARC) 152.55p -4.21% Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,108.00p -4.14% Kazakhmys (KAZ) 674.50p -4.12% FTSE 250 - Risers Dialight (DIA) 1,049.00p +5.22% Computacenter (CCC) 344.00p +2.29% Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 495.00p +2.19% Perform Group (PER) 370.00p +1.93% NMC Health (NMC) 199.50p +1.42% Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 2,874.00p +1.30% Big Yellow Group (BYG) 298.70p +1.25% CSR (CSR) 301.70p +0.90% KCOM Group (KCOM) 74.50p +0.54% International Public Partnerships Ltd. (INPP) 122.20p +0.25% FTSE 250 - Fallers African Barrick Gold (ABG) 317.00p -16.00% COLT Group SA (COLT) 111.20p -8.10% Aquarius Platinum Ltd. (AQP) 39.07p -8.01% Dixons Retail (DXNS) 15.30p -7.38% Afren (AFR) 119.40p -7.23% Morgan Crucible Co (MGCR) 252.20p -6.59% Lonmin (LMI) 663.00p -6.29% Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 43.90p -6.24% Yule Catto & Co (YULC) 137.20p -6.22% International Personal Finance (IPF) 236.20p -5.82% Europe Market Report FTSE 100 Euronext Dax perf CAC 40 Europe close: 'Eurogeddon' scenario edging closer - Greek bankruptcy fears grow - Spanish regions' finances add to panic - Italy and Spain introduce short selling bans FTSE 100: -2.14% Dax 30:-3.03% Stoxx 600: -2.40% Cac 40: -2.62% Ibex 35: -0.72% FTSE MIB: -2.76% European stocks suffered their biggest one-day drop in eight months as fears of a Greek insolvency grew and rumours circulated that a total of six Spanish regions may need to be bailed out by the cash strapped central government. The respected German magazine, Der Spiegel, reported the IMF will stop paying aid money to Greece as concerns grow the country will be unable to meet the terms of its two bailout programmes. In Madrid, the Spanish government saw the yield on its 10 year bonds rise to 7.49%, the highest since the euro currency began in 1999. El Pais reported six of the autonomous Spanish regions could go cap in hand to the central government after finding themselves unable to borrow in the open market. Spanish authorities introduced a three month ban on the short selling of all stocks in response to volatility on the IBEX, while Italian regulators announced a shorter one week ban on short selling selected banking and insurance equities. Making matters even worse, a senior member of China's monetary policy committee, Song Guoqing, was quoted as saying the country's growth rate may drop to 7.4% in the three months to the end of September - the seventh consecutive monthly slowdown. COMPANIES Eurotunnel, which runs the rail tunnels between France and the UK, fell 5.8% after missing earnings targets for the first half of 2012. One bright spot was Dutch company Philips, the world's biggest maker of light bulbs, which rose 5% after sales of €5.89bn in the second quarter beat the consensus expectation. On the benchmark Stoxx 600 the weakest sector was insurance, which fell 4.29%, the strongest was health care but it too dropped, falling 1.53%. OTHER MARKETS By 17:06 in London the euro had fallen 0.3% against the dollar to $1.2122. US Market Report US open: Fed President says further action may be needed -SF Fed President sees arguments for further action, doesn´t commit –FT -Negative comments on Apple from analysts at Pacific Crest -McDonald´s results hit by dollar strength Dow Jones: -1.17% Nasdaq Comp.: -1.86% S&P 500: -1.41% The main US equity indices are still in the red, but off their lows for the day, after Spain announced a ban on short-selling. That on a day in which the data calendar is almost empty and following weaker than expected second quarter results out of fast-food heavy-weight Mc.Donalds. Net income fell to $1.35bn, or $1.32 a share, versus the $1.38 forecast by analysts. Significantly, given the continuing woes Europe-side, negative fluctuations in exchange rates seem to have played a key role in the weaker than expected bottom-line figures out of Mc.Donald´s today. Also worth pointing out, Bloomberg cites analysts at Pacific Crest according to whom Apple customers may be delaying their purchases ahead of the roll-out of new models. Quarterly results out of the likes of Coca Cola Enterprises, Eaton and Halliburton, on the other hand, seem to have come in ahead of analysts´ estimates. On the mergers&acquisitions front Chinese outfit CNOOC is to buy Canadian energy producer Nexen for approximately $15.1bn. Fed needs to act further on rates In an interview with the Financial Times the President of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, John Williams, argues that the US will make little headway in reducing unemployment unless it takes "further action." The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago´s national activity index for the month of June has come in at -0.15, above the previous month´s reading of -0.48. Treasury yields plumb new lows Front month West Texas crude futures are now off by 2.87% to 89.19 dollars per barrel on the NYMEX. 10 year US Treasuries are now higher by 8/32 dollars, with yields at 1.43%. S&P 500 - Risers NRG Energy Inc. (NRG) $19.55 +8.31% Eaton Corp. (ETN) $41.55 +6.37% Hasbro Inc (HAS) $35.11 +3.75% Cooper Industries Plc (CBE) $70.10 +2.80% Dean Foods Co. (DF) $12.46 +2.72% PulteGroup Inc. (PHM) $11.06 +1.84% Cummins Inc. (CMI) $87.57 +1.72% Parker-Hannifin Corp. (PH) $78.15 +1.55% Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI) $46.28 +1.51% D. R. Horton Inc. (DHI) $19.16 +1.48% S&P 500 - Fallers JDS Uniphase Corp. (JDSU) $8.76 -5.86% Citrix Systems Inc. (CTXS) $76.33 -5.47% AK Steel Holding Corp. (AKS) $4.97 -5.17% Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) $28.49 -4.75% Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $475.28 -4.66% Harman International Industries Inc. (HAR) $37.66 -4.54% Sprint Nxtel Corp. (S) $3.50 -4.37% First Solar Inc. (FSLR) $14.17 -4.19% Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX) $32.36 -4.18% Avon Products Inc. (AVP) $15.11 -3.94% Dow Jones I.A - Risers Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $81.87 +1.14% Home Depot Inc. (HD) $51.03 +0.65% JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $34.07 +0.50% Dow Jones I.A - Fallers Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $29.10 -3.38% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $89.11 -2.70% Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) $18.14 -2.53% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $16.01 -2.14% Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $61.49 -1.95% Alcoa Inc. (AA) $8.10 -1.94% Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $47.69 -1.84% Chevron Corp. (CVX) $107.22 -1.80% United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $72.92 -1.76% Bank of America Corp. (BAC) $6.95 -1.70% Nasdaq 100 - Risers Sandisk Corp. (SNDK) $39.07 +0.96% PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $37.54 +0.86% Research in Motion Ltd. (RIMM) $6.81 +0.52% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $12.82 +0.12% Nasdaq 100 - Fallers Citrix Systems Inc. (CTXS) $76.33 -5.47% Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $475.28 -4.66% Nll Holdings Inc. (NIHD) $8.03 -4.40% First Solar Inc. (FSLR) $14.17 -4.19% Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $105.99 -3.85% Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $47.55 -3.71% Qiagen N.V. (QGEN) $16.27 -3.67% Logitech International S.A. (LOGI) $8.99 -3.54% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $29.10 -3.38% VeriSign Inc. (VRSN) $41.75 -3.33% Sponsored by: Capital Alternatives OPP Best Alternative Investment Award Winner! SIPP Approved Agricultural Land Investment, Find out more. London Market Report FTSE 100 Euronext Dax perf CAC 40 Please click on the images to view our interactive charts London close: Footsie drops two per cent on Eurozone fears Market Movers techMARK 2,041.19 -1.57% FTSE 100 5,533.87 -2.09% FTSE 250 10,896.91 -2.43% - Footsie near one-month low - Spanish regions ask for aid; bond yields surge - Evraz leads the Footsie lower Indices across Europe and the US tanked on Monday, with the FTSE 100 finishing near a one-month low, as Eurozone debt concerns spread fear across equity markets. The Footsie dropped 2.09% today with every constituent finishing flat or in the red; the last time the Footsie closed lower was June 28th when it finished at 5,493. The German Bundestag voted on Thursday to support Spain's application for EFSF aid for its banks, while the Eurogroup approved the terms of the 'up to €100bn' loan for Spain on Friday. However, the focus has now shifted to Spain's regions, after Valencia (and Murcia, according to rumours) asked the government for financial help from the newly established support fund. Catalonia may also be close to asking for aid, according to reports. Bond yields have soared as of late prompting concerns that the Spanish government may have to ask for a full-scale bailout. The yield on a 10-year Spanish Treasury was up 21.1 basis points at 7.478% by the close, well above the 'unsustainable' level of 7.0%. "With borrowing costs now rising on shorter term debt, something Spain have been reliant on recently, the country is on borrowed time to bring yields down," said analyst Craig Erlam from Alpari. Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has told the European Union (EU) that it will not provide any additional funds for Greece, prompting concerns that the country will default on its debt. German Vice Chancellor Philipp Roesler said he is "very skeptical" that the Troika can rescue Greece. FTSE 100: Evraz leads stocks lower Steel giant Evraz was pressured lower by comments from Morgan Stanley. The US investment bank said today that the group's plans to generate $5bn in EBITDA in 2016 is "ambitious" compared with its own base-case forecast of $3.1bn. "EVRAZ assumes higher steel and raw material prices than we do as well as additional improvements in EBITDA from projects where we think it too soon to put in our base case." Fund manager Aberdeen Asset Management saw assets under management slip 1% in the third quarter, but says that this result was resilient amidst an uncertain environment. Shares edged lower. Property giant Hammerson edged higher after seeing net rental income fall 1.6% in the six months to the end of June, though it was up 2.4% on a like-for-like basis. Water group Pennon was lower despite saying it has signed a 25-year waste services contract with Glasgow City Council, a key part of its growth strategy in Scotland. FTSE 250: ABG plummets after first-half results African Barrick Gold (ABG) tumbled today after announced that attributable gold production dropped 14% in the first half, while revenue fell 8% and EBITDA fell 30%. ABG also announced that it is proposing to buy up the outstanding share capital of Aviva Mining (Kenya), its first expansion outside Tanzania. Sector peer Aquarius Platinum was also among the fallers after it said that the likelihood of industrial action over the South African winter is high. "Aquarius is by no means immune to this threat, and intermittent unlawful industrial action has occurred at one of Kroondal's four shafts in July." LED lighting group Dialight was a rare high riser after seeing revenues climb 18.2% and operating profits rise 21% in the half year ended June 30th. Traders can turn £3k into £150k – Learn how Earn a tax free income trading, from just 20 minutes a day – no experience needed Our powerful trading software will help you decide when to enter trades and how to maximise profits. Register for a FREE brochure and trading guide, Click Here. FTSE 100 - Risers FTSE 100 - Fallers Evraz (EVR) 218.10p -6.95% Aviva (AV.) 275.20p -6.62% Vedanta Resources (VED) 835.00p -5.17% Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 548.00p -4.61% Schroders (SDR) 1,280.00p -4.41% Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 1,409.00p -4.41% ITV (ITV) 72.00p -4.38% Barclays (BARC) 152.55p -4.21% Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,108.00p -4.14% Kazakhmys (KAZ) 674.50p -4.12% FTSE 250 - Risers Dialight (DIA) 1,049.00p +5.22% Computacenter (CCC) 344.00p +2.29% Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 495.00p +2.19% Perform Group (PER) 370.00p +1.93% NMC Health (NMC) 199.50p +1.42% Daejan Holdings (DJAN) 2,874.00p +1.30% Big Yellow Group (BYG) 298.70p +1.25% CSR (CSR) 301.70p +0.90% KCOM Group (KCOM) 74.50p +0.54% International Public Partnerships Ltd. (INPP) 122.20p +0.25% FTSE 250 - Fallers African Barrick Gold (ABG) 317.00p -16.00% COLT Group SA (COLT) 111.20p -8.10% Aquarius Platinum Ltd. (AQP) 39.07p -8.01% Dixons Retail (DXNS) 15.30p -7.38% Afren (AFR) 119.40p -7.23% Morgan Crucible Co (MGCR) 252.20p -6.59% Lonmin (LMI) 663.00p -6.29% Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 43.90p -6.24% Yule Catto & Co (YULC) 137.20p -6.22% International Personal Finance (IPF) 236.20p -5.82% Global Forex trading... ...is believed by many to be the fastest way to make a fortune in the world today. Learn to trade is an award winning Trader Coaching company who offer a Forex Education Programme that anyone from any educational background can learn and implement immediately. To find out more click here. Europe Market Report FTSE 100 Euronext Dax perf CAC 40 Europe close: 'Eurogeddon' scenario edging closer - Greek bankruptcy fears grow - Spanish regions' finances add to panic - Italy and Spain introduce short selling bans FTSE 100: -2.14% Dax 30:-3.03% Stoxx 600: -2.40% Cac 40: -2.62% Ibex 35: -0.72% FTSE MIB: -2.76% European stocks suffered their biggest one-day drop in eight months as fears of a Greek insolvency grew and rumours circulated that a total of six Spanish regions may need to be bailed out by the cash strapped central government. The respected German magazine, Der Spiegel, reported the IMF will stop paying aid money to Greece as concerns grow the country will be unable to meet the terms of its two bailout programmes. In Madrid, the Spanish government saw the yield on its 10 year bonds rise to 7.49%, the highest since the euro currency began in 1999. El Pais reported six of the autonomous Spanish regions could go cap in hand to the central government after finding themselves unable to borrow in the open market. Spanish authorities introduced a three month ban on the short selling of all stocks in response to volatility on the IBEX, while Italian regulators announced a shorter one week ban on short selling selected banking and insurance equities. Making matters even worse, a senior member of China's monetary policy committee, Song Guoqing, was quoted as saying the country's growth rate may drop to 7.4% in the three months to the end of September - the seventh consecutive monthly slowdown. COMPANIES Eurotunnel, which runs the rail tunnels between France and the UK, fell 5.8% after missing earnings targets for the first half of 2012. One bright spot was Dutch company Philips, the world's biggest maker of light bulbs, which rose 5% after sales of €5.89bn in the second quarter beat the consensus expectation. On the benchmark Stoxx 600 the weakest sector was insurance, which fell 4.29%, the strongest was health care but it too dropped, falling 1.53%. OTHER MARKETS By 17:06 in London the euro had fallen 0.3% against the dollar to $1.2122. Learn How We Made $119,016 Profit - TAX FREE Discover how simple and profitable our strategies are!  Click Here. US Market Report US open: Fed President says further action may be needed -SF Fed President sees arguments for further action, doesn´t commit –FT -Negative comments on Apple from analysts at Pacific Crest -McDonald´s results hit by dollar strength Dow Jones: -1.17% Nasdaq Comp.: -1.86% S&P 500: -1.41% The main US equity indices are still in the red, but off their lows for the day, after Spain announced a ban on short-selling. That on a day in which the data calendar is almost empty and following weaker than expected second quarter results out of fast-food heavy-weight Mc.Donalds. Net income fell to $1.35bn, or $1.32 a share, versus the $1.38 forecast by analysts. Significantly, given the continuing woes Europe-side, negative fluctuations in exchange rates seem to have played a key role in the weaker than expected bottom-line figures out of Mc.Donald´s today. Also worth pointing out, Bloomberg cites analysts at Pacific Crest according to whom Apple customers may be delaying their purchases ahead of the roll-out of new models. Quarterly results out of the likes of Coca Cola Enterprises, Eaton and Halliburton, on the other hand, seem to have come in ahead of analysts´ estimates. On the mergers&acquisitions front Chinese outfit CNOOC is to buy Canadian energy producer Nexen for approximately $15.1bn. Fed needs to act further on rates In an interview with the Financial Times the President of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, John Williams, argues that the US will make little headway in reducing unemployment unless it takes "further action." The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago´s national activity index for the month of June has come in at -0.15, above the previous month´s reading of -0.48. Treasury yields plumb new lows Front month West Texas crude futures are now off by 2.87% to 89.19 dollars per barrel on the NYMEX. 10 year US Treasuries are now higher by 8/32 dollars, with yields at 1.43%. S&P 500 - Risers NRG Energy Inc. (NRG) $19.55 +8.31% Eaton Corp. (ETN) $41.55 +6.37% Hasbro Inc (HAS) $35.11 +3.75% Cooper Industries Plc (CBE) $70.10 +2.80% Dean Foods Co. (DF) $12.46 +2.72% PulteGroup Inc. (PHM) $11.06 +1.84% Cummins Inc. (CMI) $87.57 +1.72% Parker-Hannifin Corp. (PH) $78.15 +1.55% Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI) $46.28 +1.51% D. R. Horton Inc. (DHI) $19.16 +1.48% S&P 500 - Fallers JDS Uniphase Corp. (JDSU) $8.76 -5.86% Citrix Systems Inc. (CTXS) $76.33 -5.47% AK Steel Holding Corp. (AKS) $4.97 -5.17% Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) $28.49 -4.75% Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $475.28 -4.66% Harman International Industries Inc. (HAR) $37.66 -4.54% Sprint Nxtel Corp. (S) $3.50 -4.37% First Solar Inc. (FSLR) $14.17 -4.19% Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX) $32.36 -4.18% Avon Products Inc. (AVP) $15.11 -3.94% Dow Jones I.A - Risers Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $81.87 +1.14% Home Depot Inc. (HD) $51.03 +0.65% JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $34.07 +0.50% Dow Jones I.A - Fallers Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $29.10 -3.38% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $89.11 -2.70% Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) $18.14 -2.53% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $16.01 -2.14% Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $61.49 -1.95% Alcoa Inc. (AA) $8.10 -1.94% Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $47.69 -1.84% Chevron Corp. (CVX) $107.22 -1.80% United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $72.92 -1.76% Bank of America Corp. (BAC) $6.95 -1.70% Nasdaq 100 - Risers Sandisk Corp. (SNDK) $39.07 +0.96% PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $37.54 +0.86% Research in Motion Ltd. (RIMM) $6.81 +0.52% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $12.82 +0.12% Nasdaq 100 - Fallers Citrix Systems Inc. (CTXS) $76.33 -5.47% Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $475.28 -4.66% Nll Holdings Inc. (NIHD) $8.03 -4.40% First Solar Inc. (FSLR) $14.17 -4.19% Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $105.99 -3.85% Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $47.55 -3.71% Qiagen N.V. (QGEN) $16.27 -3.67% Logitech International S.A. (LOGI) $8.99 -3.54% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $29.10 -3.38% VeriSign Inc. (VRSN) $41.75 -3.33% Broker Tips    Broker tips: Weir, Senior, Morgan Crucible Galvan Research and Trading has labelled engineering group Weir as a 'buy', saying that there is 'rebound potential' in the shares. "The underperformance from Weir Group's oil and gas division earlier in the year was taken literally by the markets as a signal to sell the stock, with the 25% profits gain for the previous year also ignored," said Galvan's head of research Andrew Gibson. "But the reiteration of full-year guidance and Jefferies's positive appraisal has caught the markets on the hop, and in the view of the Galvan Research team merits a 'buy' rating for Weir Group at current levels," he said. Investec has reiterated its 'buy' recommendation and 250p target for aerospace engineer Senior on the back of a strong first half and inexpensive valuation. "Senior's interims are excellent and whilst the outlook statement is cautious, the long-term fundamentals of the group have never been stronger," the broker said. The shares are trading at 10.2 times next year's earnings, which Investec labels as "inexpensive for a group offering strong growth prospects in a low growth environment". Jefferies has downgraded its rating for materials group Morgan Crucible from 'buy' to 'hold' and slashed its target for the stock from 365p to 300p ahead of the firm's first-half results tomorrow. "After deliberating very hard, we take a more conservative stance on Morgan going into Tuesday's 1H12 results and lower our recommendation to 'hold'," the broker said in a research note on Monday morning. "Morgan's valuation is not expensive, in our view, and there are reasons to be positive over the longer-term, but we expect a muted 1H12 update and risk of consensus downgrades.