LONDON -- The FTSE 100 (INDEX: ^FTSE) closed above 6,300 again yesterday, at 6,359 points. Today it has dropped back 0.56% to 6,324. News that the French and German economies contracted in the last three months of 2012 didn't help -- Germany's GDP shrank by 0.6%, while France's is down 0.3%.
But some FTSE 100 constituents are enjoying good times right now. Here are three whose prices are on the up.
Tesco (TSCO -0.83%) (TSCD.Y -0.51%)
In January last year, in the wake of a poor 2011 Christmas trading period, a lot of people were writing off Tesco as a has-been after the price slumped from about 410 pence to a little more than 300 pence. But what a difference a year makes: After a steady climb from early October, the shares closed yesterday on a 52-week high of 374 pence.
We're expecting a small fall in earnings per share for the year to February, putting the shares on a P/E of about 12, but there's a dividend yield of about 4% expected. And with rises in earnings and dividends forecast for the next two years, are Tesco shares a bargain now? That's for you to decide.
International Consolidated Airlines (IAG -0.74%)
International Consolidated Airlines Group shares closed on a 52-week high of 225 pence yesterday, though they're down a penny today. Why such strong gains for the snappily named new entity that came from the merger of the U.K.'s BA with Spain's Iberia?
The company is oscillating between loss and profit, with a loss expected for the year just ended. And there's only a small profit expected for 2013, putting the shares on a P/E of 21. Forecasts for 2014 suggest a 160% rise in earnings, dropping the P/E to eight. But that's a long way in the future, especially for an unpredictable business like an airline. And though BA is doing well, Iberia has been dragging the group down. It all depends now on the firm's strategy for turning round its Spanish flag carrier.
Wolseley (LSE: WOS)
Shares in plumbing and heating products supplier Wolseley are up more than 30% over the past 12 months, reaching a new closing high yesterday of 3,084 pence -- though the price is down to 3,046 pence today.
The firm suffered a few tough years during the recession and had to suspend its dividend, but over the past two years profits are back, and dividends of about 2.5% have been paid. And that looks set to continue this year and next.
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