MARKET REPORT: MusicMagpie shares slump 16.5% as BT quits takeover race

Shares in MusicMagpie plunged as hopes over a potential takeover came to an end.

On Monday last week, the second-hand smartphone and DVD retailer said it was in talks with BT and Aurelius, the private equity group which owns Footasylum and The Body Shop, over a possible deal.

But yesterday BT confirmed it was not making an offer just days after Aurelius walked away. Despite the bruising setback, the AIM-listed firm insisted it remains on the hunt for ‘potential buyers’.

Shares in MusicMagpie fell 16.5 per cent, or 3.25p, to 16.5p, taking its losses for the year to more than a quarter, while BT rose 1 per cent, or 1.25p, to 123.5p.

The FTSE 100 dropped 0.4 per cent, or 27.5 points, to 7460.7 and the FTSE 250 slid 0.1 per cent, or 19.55 points, to 18438.55.

No deal: Shares in MusicMagpie fell 16.5% taking its losses for the year to more than a quarter after BT confirmed it was not making an offer

The price of Brent crude hovered around $80 a barrel amid ongoing uncertainty surrounding planned output cuts by a group of oil-producing nations.

Opec+, whose 23 members include Saudi Arabia, Russia and Congo, was due to meet on Monday but pushed back the latest round of talks to Thursday following disagreements over supply cuts. 

Since the end of last year Opec+, which produces around 40 per cent of global crude oil, has slashed output to raise prices.

But demand for oil remains weak and prices dipped below $80 a barrel before recovering.

Crude hit nearly $97 in late September while the World Bank recently warned it could top $150 if the war between Israel and Hamas escalates into full-blown conflict in the Middle East.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said oil prices remained under pressure as the potential for more production cuts lingered on.

BP inched up 0.3 per cent, or 1.45p, to 475.05p, Shell lost 0.9 per cent, or 24.5p, to 2570.5p and Harbour Energy slid 0.8 per cent, or 1.8p, to 222.8p.

Stock Watch – Epwin Group

Epwin Group has outlined its plans to return cash to shareholders.

The AIM-listed window and door maker said trading in the second half has been ‘resilient’ despite the turbulence in the UK construction sector.

The firm expects to meet market expectations for a profit of £24million this year.

Epwin said its ‘strong balance sheet and cash generation’ means it will buy back 3m shares.

Shares rose 6 per cent, or 4p, to 70p yesterday.

Miners bore the brunt of concerns about China’s troubled property sector as major lender Zhongzhi Enterprise Group faced a criminal investigation after it declared insolvency.

Fears over weaker demand saw Rio Tinto retreat 0.4 per cent, or 24p, to 5462p, Anglo American slide 0.5 per cent, or 11.5p, to 2205p and Glencore sink 0.6 per cent, or 2.65p, to 445.5p.

Chemical group Johnson Matthey made gains as the Bank of America upgraded the stock to ‘buy’ from ‘underperform’ and increased its target price to 2000p from 1600p. Shares rose 2.9 per cent, or 44.5p, to 1590.5p.

Entain headed in the other direction after Goldman Sachs voiced its concern over its sluggish online growth and joint business BetMGM losing market share in the US. 

The broker also said the gambling giant’s £585million settlement following a bribery probe into its former Turkish business was larger than expected.

As a result, it lowered the Ladbrokes and Coral owner to ‘sell’ from ‘buy’ and slashed the target price to 820p from 1450p. Shares fell 0.8 per cent, or 6.8p, to 845p.

Burberry traded lower as Deutsche Bank Research warned that its weakness in the US is an ‘issue’ and cut the target price to 1950p from 2200p.

Shares in the luxury fashion firm dropped 1.6 per cent, or 24p, to 1504p.

AstraZeneca sank after the City broker Jefferies stressed it needed to provide more clarity on its forecasts and cut its target price to 12500p from 13000p.

The pharma giant’s shares slid 2 per cent, or 204p, to 9976p.

There was good news for PPHE as it won planning approval from Westminster City Council to build a new hotel in London.

Shares in the hotel group behind Park Plaza rose 2.9 per cent, or 35p, to 1225p.

This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk