Liberum: Stocktrade deal sets stage for fresh Brewin rally

Brewin Dolphin's sale of execution-only platform Stocktrade to Alliance Trust has been tipped to prompt a further turnaround in investors' view of the wealth manager.

Brewin announced this morning it is to offload the Edinburgh-based business to Alliance Trust Savings for £14m, allowing it to focus on its core wealth management business. Stocktrade has arguably been a peripheral part of Brewin's business for some time: chief executive Matthew Collis was not replaced when he left in 2014, and some analyst reaction reflects that: at 1.4% of Brewin's market cap, the disposal is "immaterial" to the investment case, according to Canaccord Genuity. But analysts at Liberum have taken a different view, saying the disposal gives credence to the recent impro...