InterContinental Hotels climbs on investor cash hopes.The hotel group was one of the FTSE 100"s biggest risers.

InterContinental owns the Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza brands

　　Talk of further cash rewards in the offing for investors inInterContinental Hotels saw traders check-in and chase the shares higher.

　　Although the company returned $500m (£314m) to shareholders through a special dividend last month and is undertaking a $500m share buy-back, Barclays reckons “there is significant potential for the group to deliver more than is currently being expected by the market”.

　　The company could sell about $1.9bn of assets in Hong Kong, London, New York and Paris in 2013 and 2014, the broker forecast, leading to further cash returns to shareholders. The date to keep an eye on is February 19, when the group reports full-year earnings, Barclays said. Investors can expect an update on the company’s assets then.

　　Having fallen from a high of £17.27 in August, the broker also advised that there is now “an attractive entry point” to buy into the shares. Barclays lifted its recommendation on the company to “overweight” from “equal weight” and the shares climbed 43p to £16.33 - one of the biggest-risers on the FTSE 100.

　　In the wider market, Europe was back in focus and weighing on investor sentiment, ensuring the blue-chip index put in a more muted performance than on Monday, when optimism about US negotiations over tax increases and spending cuts saw the FTSE 100 surge 132.07 points. The loss of France’s top AAA credit rating at Moody’s rekindled concerns over the debt crisis but London’s benchmark index still ended the day 10.44 points higher at 5,748.10, while the mid-cap FTSE 250gained 76.04 points to 11,820.83.