Quiet time for stocks

It is closed season for many of the big hospitality companies in the run-up to a series of results. First in the queue was Ladbroke, which reported yesterday. City pundits were predicting healthy results.

There is, however, worry about a possible link-up between Ladbroke's Hilton International and Hilton Hotels Corporation, the separate US-based chain.

One analyst said that if Ladbroke made no attempt to acquire Hilton Hotels it would be bad news, but if it was acquired by paying too much, the outlook would be similarly gloomy.

The biggest movement came from My Kinda Town, which released interim results on Tuesday. The share price had fallen prior to this, probably due to concerns about the acquisition of Roland Holdings at the end of February.

But nobody should draw hard and fast conclusions from swings in the share price of relatively small companies such as My Kinda Town, as the whims of even small investors of these companies can substantially alter share values.