Greencore biggest faller among food groups

Iseq: 6,120.56 (+12.36) Settlement date: June 3rdEQUITIES FINISHED the day flat in Dublin yesterday, with the Iseq closing up 12 points, but volumes of trading were high due to technical reasons, as large international funds were re-weighted.

Independent News Media clocked in the highest number of shares traded at 13.6 million, with one block of seven million shares exchanging hands in the afternoon.

The stock climbed 12 cent to €2.18, a rise of 5.8 per cent, making it the highest significant climber of the day.

The performance of the financial stocks was mixed, with Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Life Permanent both having strong days and seeing their share prices climb by more than 3 per cent.

Anglo Irish Bank added 27 cent to close at €8.82, while Irish Life Permanent rose 35 cent to €11.06 as it paid its final dividend.

Bank of Ireland, which went ex-dividend, sank 31 cent to €8.07, a drop of 3.7 per cent, while AIB slipped 10 cent to €12.93.

The biggest faller among the major stocks was food group Greencore, which published interim results with adjusted earnings per share that were ahead of expectations, but which saw pre-tax profits fall 14 per cent as a result of a weak sterling and a lag in recovering a portion of its input cost increases.

Its shares fell almost 5 per cent to €3.07, closing down 16 cent on the previous day.

By contrast, yesterday brought a bounce for Ryanair, as a decline in crude oil prices took the pressure off its expected fuel bills.

The stock climbed 8 cent to €2.83, up 2.9 per cent.

The other winners of the day included Paddy Power, which rose 95 cent to €23.25, up more than 4 per cent.