CURRENT ACCOUNT: When a company has regularly turned in 15 per cent earnings growth, it's a bit of an anti-climax when that growth slows to a relatively mundane 10 per cent. That probably explains the pretty muted reaction to Kerry's results this week and led to an extraordinary (at least to this observer) suggestion from an analyst that investors should switch out of Kerry into another food stock.

While most Dublin analysts waxed enthusiastically about Kerry's results, ABN-Amro's Rebecca Wood was the one to state the hitherto unthinkable - not so much because Kerry's prospects have dimmed but more because the share price is not only well up with corporate events but also has heavily outperformed the European market by 20 per cent.

It's simple valuations that led Ms Wood to recommend a switch out of Kerry and into ABF. She sees €15 as a sustainable level for Kerry shares.