Global stock on Tuesday failed to maintain their
inflation-fueled gains, with Germany's DAX the only source of
strength as U.K. and U.S. indices lost ground. The prospect of
lower inflation pressures have spared a fresh move lower for
commodity prices today, IG Group PLC's senior market analyst Joshua
Mahony says. "Sharp declines across the likes of palladium, iron
ore, platinum and copper have sent miners lower, to the detriment
of U.K. markets in particular," Mahony says. Bulls will have to
hope that President Joe Biden's plan to ramp up infrastructure
spending will help drive asset prices upward once again, the online
trading provider says.
Companies News:
Tandem Group 1H Profit, Revenue Climbed
Tandem Group PLC said Tuesday that its profit and revenue rose
in the first half of 2021.
---
Springfield Properties FY 2021 Pretax Profit Rose
Springfield Properties PLC said Tuesday that fiscal 2021 pretax
profit and revenue rose, and that it enters the fiscal 2022 with
good visibility over full year revenue as it delivers against a
significant order book.
---
Accesso Technology Says 2021 Revenue Will Rise to Pre-Pandemic
Levels
Accesso Technology Group PLC said Tuesday that it expects 2021
revenue to be at least at pre-pandemic levels and improved
profitability.
---
Colefax Group's Tender Offer: Shares Valued at GBP6.7 Mln
Purchased
Colefax Group PLC said Tuesday that it purchased shares valued
at 6.7 million pounds ($9.3 million) via its tender offer.
---
Sanne Group 1H Profit Fell as Revenue Recovered
Sanne Group PLC said Tuesday that profit ticked down and revenue
rose in the first half of the year, as client activity recovered
after the Covid-19 hit.
---
Peel Hunt to Pursue AIM-Market Listing
Peel Hunt Ltd. said Tuesday that it intends to seek admission of
its ordinary shares to be admitted to trading on the London Stock
Exchange's AIM market.
---
EKF Diagnostics Raises 2021 Expectations on Strong 1H
Trading
EKF Diagnostics Holdings PLC said Tuesday that its profit and
revenue rose in the first half of 2021 and that it expects
full-year results ahead of its previous expectations.
---
TP Group 1H Pretax Loss Widened
TP Group PLC said on Tuesday that its pretax loss widened for
the first half after booking higher costs.
---
Bonhill Group Confirms Narrower 1H Pretax Loss, Lower
Revenue
Bonhill Group PLC said Tuesday that its pretax loss narrowed in
the first half, although revenue fell amid a lack of live events as
previously announced.
---
Fiske Swung to FY 2021 Pretax Profit, Shares Rise
Shares in Fiske PLC rose on Tuesday after the company said it
swung to a pretax profit for fiscal 2021 as revenue rose, and that
it had a good start to fiscal 2022.
---
Staffline Shares Fall After Cautious Outlook Despite Narrowed 1H
Loss
Staffline Group PLC shares fell on Tuesday despite a narrowed
first-half pretax loss, after it said it remains mindful of
pandemic-driven economic uncertainty and potential labor
shortages.
---
BP Taps Renewable Power Specialist in Green Energy Push
BP PLC has hired the former chief executive of one of the
world's largest wind power developers to run its gas and low-carbon
operations, as the oil giant looks to support its push into
renewable energy.
---
VP Appointment Lifts BP's Environmental and Gender-Diversity
Profile -- ESG Insight
Commentary by Gonçalo Lousada, research analyst, ESG &
impact investing
---
Kape Technologies Shares Rise on $354M Placing for ExpressVPN
Acquisition
Kape Technologies PLC shares rose Tuesday after it said it
raised $354 million from a share placing, and $2.5 million via its
retail offer on the PrimaryBid platform, to fund the acquisition of
ExpressVPN.
---
Geiger Counter Issues 1.2 Mln New Ordinary Shares to Meet Market
Demand
Geiger Counter Ltd. said Tuesday that it has allotted the issue
of 1.2 million new ordinary shares to meet market demand,
conditional on admission becoming effective.
Market Talk:
JD Sports' US Bet Is Paying off
1058 GMT - The integration of JD Sports' acquisitions in North
America shows positive early signs, and the fashion company looks
on track to earn far more in the U.S. this year than it does in its
core U.K. market, Freetrade analyst David Kimberley says. "The U.S.
is a graveyard of U.K. businesses that have tried and failed to
expand there, whether it is Tesco or Arcadia," he notes. However,
the company's performance in the U.S. suggests that its strategy of
keeping acquired firm's brands along with opening JD stores is
paying off, Kimberley says. Shares in JD soared 8.3% after
reporting first-half results and raising its 2021 guidance.
---
Business Breakup at SSE Could Unlock Additional Value
1038 GMT - There is potential valuation upside for SSE, as a
breakup could unlock additional value via greater visibility of two
attractive businesses--renewables and networks--or via asset
disposals and acquisitions, RBC Capital Markets says, after reports
that a shareholder is pushing for a breakup of the FTSE 100 energy
company. The bank's analysts estimate a breakup value of more than
2,000 pence a share compared with the current price of 1,638 pence.
"SSE and Elliot have not commented on the latest news article and
we believe it may be some time before anything potentially
materializes from the situation," RBC says.
---
Ocado's Robot Fire Damaged More Than Sales
0958 GMT - Online grocer Ocado's latest warehouse accident
involving robots has cost it millions at a time when it is also
facing considerable extra costs from human labor, particularly
delivery drivers, Russ Mould at AJ Bell says. The company's
business model depends on signing up more grocery sellers to use
its logistic platform, and suffering two fires caused by robots is
damaging to more than just one quarter's sales because prospective
clients might think twice before signing up with the company given
the considerable disruption a small accident can cause, Mould says.
"The share price has taken a real beating this year because it has
been slow to sign up new grocery partners for its systems, and the
second robot fire has hurt its credibility," Mould say
---
Sterling Could Rise if Labor Market Remains Strong
0946 GMT - Sterling and some U.K. stocks which are sensitive to
interest rates could rise if the unemployment rate continues to
decline after the furlough scheme ends, says Emma Mogford, fund
manager at Premier Miton Monthly Income Fund. If the unemployment
rate continues to fall after a government-backed employee retention
scheme ends on Sept. 30, "that should provide a boost to sterling
and interest rate sensitive stocks," she says. Official data from
the Office for National Statistics showed employee numbers were
back at pre-Covid levels in August. Higher consumer prices and a
robust labor market could potentially prompt the Bank of England to
tighten monetary policy earlier than anticipated. Sterling is last
up 0.2% at $1.3860.
---
Bunzl's Latest Acquisitions Expected to Be EPS Accretive
0931 GMT - Distribution-and-outsourcing group Bunzl acquired two
businesses with combined revenue of GBP77 million, and given the
targets' Ebitda profile, they should be low-mid single digit
accretive to EPS, analysts at Jefferies say. One of the businesses,
McCue, is fast-growth and high-margin and subsequently attracted a
higher multiple than usual, but it should create value creation in
three years, and the deal opens an appealing new market, the U.S.
bank says. The company's spend to date is GBP390 million, compared
with GBP134 million at the interims, and this implies the company
spent GBP256 million on both of these deals, with the bulk probably
going to McCue, the bank says. Jefferies rates the stock buy with a
3,000-pence target price.
---
UK Labor Market Showed Strength in Summer; Challenges Ahead in
4Q
0802 GMT - Job creation remained strong over summer in the U.K.,
Pantheon Macroeconomics says. The number of people employed was
183,000 higher in the three months to July than in the previous
three months, according to the Labour Force Survey. "The strength
of the employment indicators of Markit's purchasing managers index
survey and the KPMG/REC Report on Jobs in August suggest that
employment growth will remain brisk throughout the third quarter,"
Pantheon Macroeconomics' chief U.K. economist Samuel Tombs says.
Further growth in employment will likely push down the unemployment
rate even further toward its pre-Covid low of 3.8%, he says.
However, the winding up of the furlough program will probably lead
to an increase in unemployment and underemployment in 4Q, Tombs
says.
Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Write to Sarka
Halas at sarka.halas@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 14, 2021 12:33 ET (16:33 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
FTSE 100
Index Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
FTSE 100
Index Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024