Risers & Fallers courtesy of Spreadex

Risers: 

Barclays, +1.13%

Topping the risers within the FTSE 100, Barclays shares have been given a boost by analysts at Societe Generale who upgraded the stock rating to buy. The firm currently has a 320p target price on the stock, down from their previous price target of 325p. Societe Generale’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 18.61% from the stock’s previous close. 

Domino’s Pizza Group, +2.46%

Registering the most impressive gains within the FTSE 350, shares in Domino’s have rocketed after confirming that Q3 total sales were up by 10.4% to £140.9M – compared with £127.6M in 2012. Additionally, Q3 like-for-like sales in the 669 mature stores were up by 4.0% – compared with 3.7 percent in 2012. Domino’s have also made clear their plans to open a further 50 stores within the next 12 months whilst confirming that they are confident that their plans to firmly establish themselves in Germany are on track.   

Electrocomponents, +1.11%

Electrocomponents, a distributor of electronics and maintenance products, enjoyed a strong first half of the year reporting on underlying sales growth of around 1 percent. The firm are currently investing in strategic priorities to enable the firm to grow market share and improve financial performance. 

Griffin Mining, +6.44%

Griffin Mining were pleased to announce  the latest upgrade in resources for its Caijiaying Zinc-Gold Mine in the Hebei Province in the People’s Republic of China. A significant portion of the Mineral Resource is now confirmed in the higher Measured and Indicated categories and this material will underpin mining operations for many years to come. Drilling is continuing and further drill access is being provided by new underground mine development. 

Daniel Stewart Securities, +42.86%

Daniel Stewart shares have been propelled higher after the company CEO Peter Shea bought 11,651,000 shares in the company on the 1st October 2013 at a price of 23.00p. The Director now holds 83,838,873 shares. 

Fallers: 

Tesco, -3.17%

Tesco has seen a sharp drop in its group pre-tax profits of 23.5% to £1,387m in the first half of the year, while rival Sainsbury’s has enjoyed a like-for-like sales growth. The supermarket’s group pre-tax profits fell by nearly a quarter in the 28 weeks to 26 August, due to “significantly reduced profits from property related items”. The supermarket’s UK sales remained flat in the second quarter, leading to an overall 0.5% drop in like-for-like sales in the first half of the year. 

Hochschild Mining, -5.67%

Falling the most amongst shares within the FTSE 350, precious metals company Hochschild Mining has announced its plan to raise up to $96m to fund buying the remaining 40 per cent stake in its Peruvian assets. The full cost of the acquisition stands at about $280m. Latin American Hochschild has a 60 per cent interest in the Peruvian Pallancata mine and the Inmaculda project assets, with the 40 per cent stake currently owned by International Mineral Corporation. 

Ophir Energy, -4.49%

Ophir Energy‘s stock had its “sell” rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Liberum Capital in a note issued to investors today. They currently have a 255p price objective on the stock. Liberum Capital’s price objective would suggest a potential downside of 23.08% from the stock’s previous close. 

Dunelm Group, -3.89%

Despite Q1 sales growing 1.7 percent, like-for-like sales fell 5.3 percent following a “marked reduction” in football during the heatwave. The 126-store retailer said it suffered a “significant decline” in sales in the first four weeks of the 13 weeks to September 28 however it returned to like-for-like growth over the remainder of the quarter. Gross margins continued to increase year on year, up an estimated 70 basis points. 

Evocutis, -54.9%

Biotechnology business Evocutis has said it is no longer in discussions with potential suitors in relation to a merger with a third party or a sale of the company. However, the Wetherby company, which is focused on advanced laboratory and clinical evaluations of skincare products for the health and cosmetic markets, added that it continued to evaluate a number of strategic options to maximise value for shareholders.