FTSE 100 makes gains on Japan stimulus boost "We reiterate our view that [the company] is the most attractively valued UK water stock, still trading below our 755p fundamental [price objective]," they said. "We believe a bid from a consortium seems more feasible than a bid from a single fund due to [United Utilities"] large size." The broker added that Severn Trent and Pennon could benefit from the speculation, and shares in the former advanced 4p to £17.12, while the latter added 5½ to 745p. United Utilities, which itself gained 19½ to 727p, releases its latest trading update tomorrow. Fellow utility Centrica edged 1.8 higher to 335½p amid vague talk of interest from Gazprom, which was dismissed by sources close to the companies. Another rumour magnet, Sage Group, crept up 2.1 to 318.3p on lingering deal chatter, this time emanating from the blogosphere and centring on a sale of its US business. While dismissing the speculation as "tosh of course," George O'Connor at broker Panmure Gordon added: "Sage could well be hawking one of its underperforming operating units - this would be very consistent with company strategy." One takeover tale that did come true, however, was Sportingbet, which jumped 7¼ to 51p as William Hill, down 6.1 at 312.6p, and gaming services provider GVC confirmed they are looking at a possible offer for the company. Market speculation has persisted in recent weeks and, by Tuesday, shares in the online gaming group had risen more than 30pc since the start of August. Back among the blue-chips, Anglo American advanced 25p to £20.34, despite trouble near one of the mines operated by Anglo American Platinum, which is majority-owned by the London-listed company. On the FTSE 250, Lonmin, the initial focus of violence in South Africa when trouble flared up last month, agreed a pay deal with striking workers and the shares advanced 1½ to 651½p, after earlier climbing as high as 719p. The group gave up the majority of its gains as investors weighed the additional costs the agreement would bring. Fellow mid-cap company Centamin was the biggest riser on the FTSE 250, gaining 4.35 to 95p after advancing 1.95p on Tuesday. The gold miner benefited from a bullish note from heavyweight broker Merrill Lynch earlier in the week, which said Centamin was "deeply undervalued." The broker reckons the latest round of QE in the US will continue to lift gold prices. Elsewhere on the FTSE 100, Kingfisher put on 0.3 to 273.8p despite a bearish write-up from Nomura. Analyst Sunita Entwisle, who cut the company to "neutral" from "buy," noted that "improvements in discretionary spend have been few." The Japanese bank also said WPP was its "top pick" among the European advertising agencies, adding that the company won the most new business during August. Shares in the group ticked up 13 to 860½p. Emerging markets fund manager Ashmore received a boost from analysts too, after Morgan Stanley started its coverage of the group with an "overweight" recommendation. They thought that concerns about the performance of the group's funds and margin pressure were already priced in, and shares in Ashmore gained 3½ to 338½p. AstraZeneca climbed 54½p to £29.59 as Exane BNP lifted the drugmaker to "neutral." HSBC was in scribblers" good books, with Barclays claiming the market underestimates the lender's earnings as well as its "dividend trajectory." The broker expects underlying profits to grow 26pc this year, compared with 4pc in 2012. That helped HSBC advance 9.9 to 587.8p, the biggest gainer among Britain's banks. Among the small cap stocks, Lookers drew attention after Trefick, Jack Petchey's investment vehicle that pulled a bid for the car dealer last year, sold its entire 17.3pc stake in the group at 66p apiece. Because the holding was sold at a discount, the announcement weighed on Lookers" share price, which dipped 3 to 68¾p. However, the sale is likely to be beneficial in the long-term. Trefick was "a bit of an unknown variable" and the transaction is likely to improve the liquidity of the stock, said Mike Allen, an analyst at Panmure Gordon. Meanwhile, Aim-listed Europa Oil & Gas surged 4.875 to 10.375p after it revealed it had found two large and previously unknown prospects off the Irish coast.