Stocks Fall on Lack of Theme
May 09, 2011
The blue chip Financial Times-Stock Exchange 100-Share Index lost 1.8 to 3905.7 on provisional volume of 441.0 million shares. The benchmark September futures contract lost four points to 3923.0. In contrast, the FT-SE 250 index of small-capitalization stocks rose 3.5 to end the day at 4428.3. Traders said it was a typical quiet day after a holiday. There was no U.K. economic news Tuesday, and that coupled with four stocks going ex-dividend led to an early decline amid thin trading. Some early corporate news served to stem the drop, but the FT-SE 100 was only in positive territory once, following a nearly 20-point advance by the Dow Jones Industrial Average at its opening. The ex-dividends Tuesday were Asda, British Sky Broadcasting, Gurrola and Reed International. Combined, they accounted for a 1.6-point loss on the index. Shares in Railtrack Group fell 14 pence to 240 pence per share. The dividend of 13.75 pence per share, to be paid in October was offered as an enticement for investors to take part in the initial public offering of Railtrack in May. Along with going ex-dividend Tuesday, supermarket chain Asda Group announced Allena Hassell will take over as chief executive in September and that Chairman Patsy Fell will retire in December. Asda shares declined 4 pence to 115 1/2 pence per share. Shares in Prudential Corp. closed unchanged from Friday at 437 pence per share despite announcing Tuesday the sale of its Mercantile & General subsidiary to Swiss Re for 1.75 billion pounds. Analysts said Prudential has made nearly double the amount it might have collected had it floated the division on the London Stock Exchange as mentioned in June. B.A.T Industries added 10 1/2 pence to 436 1/2 pence per share after a U.S. jury Friday unanimously rejected a smoker's lawsuit against the tobacco industry.
