MARKET REPORT: Aston Martin in pole watch position for fresh start

Aston Martin took pole position on the FTSE 250 leaderboard after analysts said it ‘feels like a new start’ for the luxury car maker.

City broker Jefferies said the group has ‘mostly regressed or failed to improve’ in most areas since it made its debut on the stock market in October 2018.

But it added that ‘now feels like a new start’ for Aston Martin, given its considerable progress in stabilising debt, increasing the average selling prices of its cars and revamping its product range.

‘We expect the relaunch of Aston Martin’s traditional front-engine cars will drive improvement,’ the analysts said.

Jefferies upgraded the stock’s rating to ‘buy’ from ‘hold’ and hiked the target price to 420p from 300p.

Pole position: Jefferies upgraded the stock’s rating to ‘buy’ from ‘hold’ and hiked the target price to 420p from 300p

Shares, which have more than doubled so far this year, accelerated by 5.4 per cent, or 17.2p, to 338p.

The updated range, which will include the DB12 vehicles, is the group’s ‘most legitimate segment and profit contributor’, according to Jefferies. The broker added that although previous models such as DBX Gen and Valkyrie have failed to live up to expectations, Aston Martin remains among a handful of brands that can sell cars for more than £150,000.

The company has also strengthened its balance sheet by raising cash three times in as many months with the help of investments from its second-largest shareholder Geely, the Chinese car maker which has a 17 per cent stake.

The FTSE 100 inched up 0.07 per cent, or 4.95 points, to 7338.58 and the FTSE 250 lost 0.4 per cent, or 63.55 points, to 18131.02.

Tesco made gains after Barclays, which expects ‘strong’ first-half results at the start of October, raised the supermarket’s target price to 325p from 320p. Shares rose 1.9 per cent, or 4.9p, to 260.1p.

Britain’s biggest stock market-listed law firm, which is on the cusp of being taken private, warned that a delay in receiving payments from clients was hurting its business.

DWF said its lock-up days – the amount of time between performing work and invoicing clients to then being paid – increased year-on-year. It insisted that this was a timing issue which will ‘ultimately unwind’. Group revenue rose 8.6 per cent to £451.6m in the year to the end of April while profit fell 23.1 per cent to £17.2m.

But it remained optimistic that it will be taken over by London-based Inflexion Private Equity Partners, which last month tabled a 100p-a-share offer worth £342m, in the final quarter of 2023. Shares rose 0.2 per cent, or 0.2p, to 97.2p.

Mike Ashley’s retail empire strengthened its grip on the fast fashion industry after Frasers Group, which owns Sports Direct, Jack Wills and Flannels, increased its stake in Asos to 19.32 per cent from 18.02 per cent. Asos shares rose 0.4 per cent, or 1.7p, to 388.7p and Frasers Group fell 0.2 per cent, or 1.5p, to 783p.

Property landlord Hammerson, which owns the Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham, traded lower after Citigroup trimmed its target price. Shares fell 1.5 per cent, or 0.36p, to 24.38p.

David Beckham-backed Guild Esports has entered its own professional team in a hotly contested tournament for the popular hand-to-hand combat game Street Fighter.

The group will work with Sky to livestream the event where players must perform under pressure to defeat their opponent while seated in a heated room.

Chief executive Jasmine Skee said: ‘The tournament will deliver engaging content that is appealing to wide audiences.’

Beckham, the former England and Manchester United captain, owns almost 4pc of the company.

Shares, which have tumbled 54 per cent this year, soared 17.9 per cent, or 0.1p, to 0.66p.

This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk