LONDON -- After closing above 6,600 for three days in a row, the FTSE 100 (FTSEINDICES: ^FTSE ) has beaten its five-and-a-half-year record again today, climbing 0.11% to 6,693 points by 7:40 a.m. EDT. A period of strong earnings reports and positive sentiment toward further economic stimulus will have helped the index close above 6,500 points for eight days in a row, provided there's no slump later today.
But not all of the FTSE 100's constituents are on the up. Here are three that are falling today.
Severn Trent
After soaring yesterday when an international consortium lined up a bid for the water company, Severn Trent's shares have fallen 1.3% today after the firm rejected the approach. The board told us today that "a conditional proposal was tabled ... at only a modest premium to the share price before the announcement of 14 May." Saying that the offer "completely fails to recognise the existing and potential value of Severn Trent," the board rejected it.
Whether there will now be an improved offer remains to be seen, but with the share price still up 12.4% on the pre-approach price, there appear to be quite a few investors who are hoping for further developments.
ITV
Despite ITV telling us this morning that it is on track for another year of good growth, the television company's shares have dropped 2.6%. Broadcast and online revenues for the first quarter of the year are up 6% to 456 million pounds. At ITV Studios, Q1 revenue is down 5% to 201 million pounds, but that is apparently due to a front-loaded delivery of programs last year, and full-year revenue growth is expected to reach double figures.
Chief executive Adam Crozier said, "As we anticipated, the quarterly pattern of demand from advertisers in 2013 is very different to 2012 although we expect it to even out over the course of the year," and he said the firm's objective is still to outperform the market over the full year.
BG Group (LSE: BG )
After BG Group revealed its new long-term strategy yesterday, the company's share price rose 3.5%. But this morning it has lost some of that gain, falling 0.4%.
The oil and gas exploration and production firm will focus on areas in which it has a "distinct competitive advantage," with concentration on exploration and on liquified natural gas. Exploration spending over the next three years is expected to rise to $1.8 billion per year.
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