Market report:Lacklustre was how one Dublin trader described activity in the Irish market yesterday as the Iseq treaded water at the end of a very positive week.
The index ended the day little changed, down just 21 points, with volumes generally light across the board.
There were, however, a few exceptions, and Allied Irish Bank was one those as almost four million shares changed hands.The stock climbed as high as €24.02, before falling back to close up just 10 cent at €23.75.
Davy yesterday upgraded its price targets for AIB and Bank of Ireland by 7 per cent, citing positive sentiment in the European banking sector and the likelihood of further earnings upgrades.
Bank of Ireland slipped 7 cent, however, to close at €18.31.
Property group Blackrock was again in demand following its positive results earlier in the week. Almost 32 million units changed.
In a statement to the stock exchange, Man Financial said it had decreased its holding in the company to 12.4 million shares, equal to less than 3 per cent of the company. Traders dismissed this as having no significance, saying it was simply a result of hedge fund trading.
Elsewhere, building services group Siteserv put in an impressive performance, jumping 9 per cent, or 10 cent, to €1.20.
Dealers attributed the climb to an overhang in the stock holding it back earlier in the week.
CRH, meanwhile, was a laggard, dropping 35 cent, or 1.1 per cent, to €33.10 after negative housing numbers out of the US affected sentiment. One dealer said he now expected the stock to struggle to remain above €33.
DCC also lost some ground, falling 70 cent, or 2.5 per cent, to €27.30, as investors took some profit following recent gains related to the planned sale of Manor Park Homebuilders.
