Iseq finishes day down

It was a mixed day for markets, which were busy digesting a series of corporate earnings, while the lingering threat of unrest in the Middle East loomed over market sentiment.

The Iseq finished down 24 points, slightly underperforming its European peers, with most main stock market names finishing lower.

There was plenty of stock-specific news to give direction to the market, however.

The announcement that DCC had acquired British oil distribution firm Pace Fuelcare for €27.7 million greeted traders this morning. The share price failed to benefit from the news which was in line with DCC’s stated strategy. The stock finished 2 cents lower at €22.38, as analysts awaited further details on earnings and revenue.

United Drug was actively traded after the pharmaceutical company published a positive interim management statement ahead of its AGM. However, the stock finished lower, slipping 1.4 per cent to €2.19.

Paddy Power was one of the few larger cap stocks to make gains, adding a half a per cent to its share price, after Ladbrokes released 2010 figures which showed that the betting company saw operating profits rise 20 per cent to £202 million, ahead of expectations.

Smurfit Kappa continued to find favour with investors, adding 1.2 per cent to €8.96.

ESM-listed Petroceltic Resources also made gains after it announced details of a planned rights issue on Wednesday.

Ryanair lost a hefty 2.5 per cent, seeing a strong sell off towards the end of the day, amid spiralling oil prices and concern about the airline’s dispute with Barcelona Gerona airport. It closed down 11 cent at €3.64.