Kingspan, financials post gains as ISEQ edges up

Market Report: The market closed a touch higher yesterday, with volumes holding up well across the board.

Settlement Day: June 1st

Kingspan was a highlight on the day as it climbed four cents to €4.71 on trade of 1.6 million shares. Dealers said the interest was driven by the upbeat trading statement delivered at the firm's a.g.m. earlier in the day.

Kingspan's inclusion from today in the MSCI Standard Index, which is tracked by fund managers, also acted as a driver. NCB has a price target of €5.00 on the firm.

Eircom, which will also join the index today, rose by one cent to €1.40 on volume of more than six million shares. Merrion has branded the stock a "hold", noting that its appeal will be strongest for income-oriented investors.

The main banks managed to hold on to the gains of the previous day, with Bank of Ireland steady at €10.10 and AIB adding four cents to close at €12.02. The effect of AIB's latest revelations on "unacceptable" internal practices on its share price remains to be seen.

Anglo Irish added 16 cents to close at €13.26 after trading as high as €13.32. "It has established a base above €13.00," said one dealer.

Irish Life and Permanent climbed by 25 cents to €12.55.

Elan flitted around for much of the day, eventually closing at €18.60, down 26 cents. The drop made only a small dent in the previous day's gains however.

Independent News and Media was busy as it rose by two cents to €1.97.

Ryanair, which will report full-year numbers next Tuesday, shed two cents to close at €4.35.

Datalex was quiet after seeing five million shares trade on Wednesday. The seller emerged yesterday as Monad - a vehicle believed to be controlled by former Datalex chief executive Mr Neil Wilson. The identity of the buyer has not yet emerged. Datalex climbed by 5.7 per cent to 55 cents.

IWP was also a significant winner as it added 10 per cent to close at 31 cents. The move came on reasonably light volume.