Shares in Moneysupermarket.com Group (MONY) slumped over 10% after the group admitted it was still having problems with ‘product availability’ across its money arm. The group’s money division, which spans everything from credit cards to travel money, shrank 5% to £20.6million in the three months to the end of September. While the group’s money division struggled, overall, the group’s total revenue grew 4% year-on-year to £100.9million. The company’s insurance arm sales rose 3% to £50million. ‘Insurance grew in a subdued premium environment despite some volatility in our natural search rankings,’ MoneySupermarket said. Meanwhile, the group’s home services division, which includes energy, saw revenue rise 21% to £17.7million.
Domino’s Pizza Group (DOM) is set to pull the plug on it sizeable international operations as sales in these markets remain lacklustre. Outgoing chief executive David Wild said today that, following a review of the division – which spans Iceland, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland – the firm is better off selling out and focusing on its core UK market, where it has more than 1,100 shops. ‘We have concluded that, whilst they represent attractive markets, we are not the best owners of these businesses. The board has therefore decided to exit the markets in an orderly manner,’ he said.
Shares in WH Smith (SMWH) jumped over 6% this morning after the retailer announced it had snapped up Las Vegas-based Marshall Retail Group for £312million. While WHSmith looks set to continue losing money across its high street branches in the UK, the deal with Marshall will enable it to continue expanding at travel hubs in the US. For this year, WHSmith expects its UK high street revenue to fall by 2%, while its profits are predicted to stay flat at around £60million. Once the deal is completed, the number of stores WHSmith has is the US will double. Marshall has 170 stores in North America, 59 of them in airports. WHSmith will pay for Marshall by raising £155million from shareholders in an underwritten share placing and by taking on more debt.
Feedback (FDBK) is in advanced talks with the NHS to trial its app Bleepa at pilot sites. The encrypted messaging app allows doctors to send each other pictures of X-Rays and other scans. Doctors usually use WhatsApp to do this when diagnosing patients, leaving them vulnerable to lawsuits. The firm is also pondering other commercial opportunities for Bleepa, within and outside the NHS.
Grafton Group Units (GFTU) shares sank after it became the latest building materials supplier to warn that the construction slowdown and DIY drought is chipping away at its profits. The firm warned profits would be 4% to 8% lower for the full-year as sales suffered in its merchanting arm, which sells to builders. Although chief executive Gavin Slark was quick to say that recent trading was more reflective of a nervous market than the nuts and bolts of the business. Group revenue rose 0.9% between July and September, but fell 1% in the UK and 3% in the Netherlands. Grafton, whose stores include Selco, Buildbase and Woodie’s, blamed a court ruling on nitrogen emissions in the Netherlands for holding up construction projects there, and, like many firms, pointed the finger at ‘economic uncertainty’ for the stumble in the UK.
