LLOY

With the markets seeing a frenzied sell-off, shares in the UK’s fifth-largest bank reached lows last seen in February, around the current 530p mark. This despite the bank saying in June that it expected double-digit pre-tax profit growth for the first half of the year over the same period in 2006 – which will be announced the day after this section goes to press. On top of that, the bank’s closed-end fund Abbey Life is for sale for £1 billion, with several heavyweight investors, including Deutsche Bank and Pearl, vying for it, and it is rumoured that more assets could be sold. City Index Advisory reckons that the 530p level acted as a support and coincides with a rising three-year uptrend line, given that the price does not fall below 525p, which would change the technical picture. City Index’s Apollo platform sees the current price at a discount of 14% fair value.

ACTION: BUY Lloyds TSB • Target 588p • Stop loss 525p

TIME TARGET: 4 WEEKS