Gluten-free cakes, breads and pastries have helped a bakery business rustle up bumper sales. Finsbury Food Group (FIF), which supplies supermarkets and catering businesses, said like-for-like revenues rose 3.1% to £299.3 million in the year to June 29. And when its £17 million takeover of gluten-free baker Ultrapharm was included, overall group sales rose 3.8% to £315.3 million. The deal boosted revenues in the second half of the year, a Finsbury spokesman said.
Pets at Home Group (PETS) is betting on a surge in demand for dog walkers after taking a stake in website Tailster. Around 4.4 million Pets At Home loyalty scheme members will get access to Tailster’s 26,000 self-employed animal carers. Tailster, a dog-walking and pet- sitting app, offers features such as GPS tracking during minders’ visits and is available throughout the UK. The move will give Pets At Home – which did not say how much it had paid for the 12% stake – access to a lucrative market that is estimated to be worth £1 billion a year. It is part of a wider strategy to generate 50% of its revenue from pet services, rather than sales of goods at the company’s 452 stores.
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has hailed a major breakthrough with one of its cancer treatments. The British drugs firm reported positive results from a final-stage trial of Zejula, one of the most promising medicines being developed by its subsidiary Tesaro. It said the daily pill improved survival rates among women who had previously had chemotherapy for ovarian cancer. Zejula is a type of drug known as a ‘PARP inhibitor’, which aim to stop cancer cells in a tumour from repairing themselves, causing them to die.
Mike Ashley’s stake in tumbled by more than £83 million after the clothing company admitted it would be late in publishing its accounts. In an update which alarmed investors, Sports Direct said that uncertainty over House Of Fraser’s future trading performance was partly to blame for the delay. Sports Direct bought the ailing department store for £90 million last year as Ashley expanded his vast retail empire, but it appears the tycoon may have bitten off more than he can chew. The complexities of integrating House Of Fraser into Sports Direct, the company said, meant its audited results were taking much longer to compile than usual. In yet another blow for investors, Sports Direct added that its final results could be much lower than it forecast in December. Even then, Ashley had described trading as ‘unbelievably bad’.
Shares in Micro Focus International (MCRO) plunged after its boss flogged half his stake in the software giant for £12 million. Executive chairman Kevin Loosemore insisted he sold the stock for ‘personal finance reasons’. The 60-year-old, who divorced his former wife Joy last year, said he wanted to diversify his wealth. His move comes after half-year sales at Micro Focus dropped and the FTSE 100 company suffered one of this year’s biggest shareholder revolts over pay. He said: ‘Until now, all of my assets have been held in Micro Focus shares. Having recently turned 60, it is time for me to diversify a little, although around half my personal wealth remains in the stock. ‘As executive chairman, I remain committed to the business as we continue to execute our established business model.’ Micro Focus shares plummeted 16% at the end of last week, making it the worst-performing company on the Footsie. Loosemore sold two chunks of shares over two days.
Swallowfield (SWL) surged after agreeing to sell its manufacturing arm to North American cosmetics maker Knowlton Development Corporation for £35 million. Swallowfield is now hoping to change its name to Brand Architekts, a company it bought in 2016 for £11 million. The AIM-listed firm’s focus will be on Brand Architekts’ existing product lines, including The Real Shaving Co, Dirty Works and Kind Natured.
A bumper resolution for Antofagasta (ANTO) to a years-long disagreement about its Reko Diq copper site sent its shares popping yesterday. A World Bank tribunal has ordered Pakistan to pay Tethyan Copper Company – a 50/50 joint venture between Antofagasta and Canada’s Barrick Gold – £4.6 billion in damages for wrongly refusing to issue it with a permit. In 2011 Tethyan was refused a mining lease for Reko Diq, a sprawling undeveloped copper and gold project in Western Pakistan, sandwiched between the borders with Iran and Afghanistan. At the time, Pakistani authorities claimed this was due to opposition from nearby villagers and security concerns. But the ruling, released on Friday, means Antofagasta is in line to get a £2.3 billion payout from the debacle. The Chile-focused miner has tempered expectations somewhat, saying it will not account for the money until it has actually been received, acknowledging that it could take a long time to recover the cash.
Some of Britain’s big-name insurers slid after a change in how compensation is awarded to people who suffer serious, life-changing injuries in a car crash. A formula used to set the amount given to victims was tweaked by the Government, meaning they will get less in future. Although this is positive for insurers because it will reduce their costs, the alteration was not as big as they had been expecting, meaning savings will be less than initially hoped. Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) fell 2.4p, to 334.1p, while Admiral Group (ADM) lost 2p, to 2271p.
Indivior (INDV) stock shed 3.27p, to 42.61p, in the first day of trading after a US court on Friday ruled against the drug maker in a battle over other companies selling generic versions of its headline opioid addiction treatment, Suboxone. A US federal appeals court ruled that Dr Reddy’s Laboratories and Alvogen did not infringe some of Indivior’s patents for Suboxone. The treatment is London-based Indivior’s major cash-cow, accounting for around 80% of revenue.
