Shares & trading

The UK’s third largest supermarket, Sainsbury’s (LON:SBRY), has been tipped to claim second place in 2014 after revealing a rising market share and a 34th consecutive quarter of sales growth.

A hedge fund has bet that aerospace conglomerate EADS (EPA:EAD) will soar after a major trade show next week.

Investment firm Charles Stanley has revealed that pre-tax profits increased 7 per cent to £9.1 million in the 12 months to 31 March, but it saw post-tax profits dip as a result of a £1.9 million Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) levy.

A highly successful fund manager focused on biotechnology groups has revealed his expectations for which firms will profit from the next generation of market-leading treatments.

Shares in British water company Severn Trent (LON:SVT) fell 5.8 per cent to £19.50 on Monday, more than any other FTSE 100 company, after Longriver Consortium threatened to pull its takeover bid.

Speciality chemical company Johnson Matthey (LON:JMAT) led the FTSE 100 on Thursday as its shares rose over 7 per cent to £27.71, despite reporting lower full-year profits.

Tesco reported a 1 per cent fall in UK sales during the first three months of the year, casting doubts over the effectiveness of the firm's £1 billion revamp.

FTSE 100 building materials supplier Wolseley (LON:WOS) saw its share price plunge  nearly 4 per cent on Tuesday as revenues fell sharply in Europe.

Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) has confirmed that it will not proceed with a new rheumatoid arthritis treatment following disappointing results from a clinical trial.

An analyst has expressed scepticism over the enthusiasm for Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) bonds, after the tech giant tempted investors to hand it more than £11 billion last month.

British water company Severn Trent said pre-tax profit fell 3.3 per cent to £266 million in the 12 months to 31 March, but was silent on the possible re-submission of a takeover bid it rejected earlier in May.

United Utilities (LON:UU), the UK's largest listed water company, reported an 8.7 per cent hike in pre-tax profits to £305 million in the 12 months to 31 March 2013.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has argued that British banks are still insufficiently capitalised, urging them to shore up their balance sheets by slashing dividends or diluting existing shareholders’ equity.

US telecoms giant Verizon (NYSE:VZ) will acquire Vodafone’s (LON:VOD) stake in subsidiary Verizon Wireless ‘within 12 months’, according to a senior investor.

Profits at low-cost airline Ryanir (LON:RYA) rose 13 per cent to a record breaking €569 million (£481 million) in the twelve months to 31 March 2013, despite rising operating costs.