| Lawrence Stroll, the billionaire owner of the Racing Point Formula One motor racing team, is said to be preparing to bid for a significant stake in Aston Martin Holdings (AML). Mr Stroll, 60, father of Lance Stroll, 21, the Formula One driver, is heading a consortium to take a “major shareholding”, according to Autocar magazine. The Canadian made his money investing in and building brands including Pierre Cardin, Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger. | |
 | The Serious Fraud Office has begun an investigation into Glencore (GLEN) over “suspicions of bribery”. The fraud office said yesterday that it was examining the “conduct of business by the Glencore group of companies, its officials, employees, agents and associated persons”. Shares in Glencore promptly fell by 21½p to 216¾p, reducing its market value by almost £3 billion. |
 | Overhauling its website and avoiding a much-feared systems crash has been toasted as a significant victory by Dunelm Group (DNLM) investors who were cheered by a boost to profit forecasts. Shares in the homeware retailer rose by almost 20% yesterday after Dunelm issued an unscheduled trading update to tell the City that its website overhaul had gone smoothly and that profits would now be higher than expected. However, Dunelm said that the boost to guidance assumed “no significant change in consumer demand as a result of the outcome of the general election”. |
 | The owner of the Daily Mail said yesterday that it was primed for further deals after spending £50 million on the i newspaper last week. Daily Mail and General Trust A (Non.V) (DMGT) vowed to use some of its £247 million cash pile to buy “attractive” businesses if and when they come up for sale. It also will invest more in its existing businesses. Paul Zwillenberg, 52, chief executive, has pruned DMGT’s empire since joining three years ago, offloading assets including its interest in Zoopla, the property portal, its controlling stake in Euromoney, the listed financial information publisher, and selling Genscape, an energy information provider, for $364 million. The disposals have clipped earnings, according to its latest annual results. Adjusted revenues fell by 1% to £1.4 billion in the 12 months to the end of September and adjusted pre-tax profits dipped 21% to £145 million. |
| AJ Bell (AJB) has reported record annual profits in its first year as a public company, helped by attracting customers from its main competitor, which has been caught in the Woodford affair. Pre-tax profits at AJ Bell climbed by 33% to £37.7 million on revenues that rose 17% to £104.9 million in the 12 months to the end of September. It attracted more than 34,100 customers, taking its total to 232,066, with assets under administration rising by 13% to £52.3 billion. Some of the customers came from Hargreaves Lansdown, its larger rival, which had championed Neil Woodford, the fund manager, and has been embroiled in the fallout from the demise of the stockpicker’s main fund. | |
 | IG Group Holdings (IGG) has warned that its performance was held back by strict new regulations brought in last year. IG Group said yesterday that it expects its net trading revenue for the six months to the end of November to be about £250 million, just shy of the £251 million it generated in the same period last year. The European Securities and Markets Authority introduced a series of new rules on contracts for difference last summer, designed to protect inexperienced traders from racking up big losses. |
 | A £142 million stake sale by Boohoo.com (BOO) founders knocked shares in the online retailer business as the market suspected that a bullish update this week had been conveniently timed. Carol Kane sold a third of her stake, or 15 million shares, for 286p apiece to reduce her holding to 2.7%. Mahmud Kamani sold 35 million shares to reduce his stake to 13.1%. |
 | Burberry Group (BRBY) shares were back in vogue yesterday amid rumours of more consolidation in the luxury goods sector. Shares in the British fashion house famous for its trench coats rose amid talk that Kering, the owner of Gucci and Yves Saint-Laurent, was pondering a tie-up with Moncler, the Italian puffa jacket maker. Reports suggested that the pair had held exploratory discussions already, although Remo Ruffino, Moncler’s chief executive, dismissed the gossip. Not that his best efforts stopped tongues wagging in an industry where merger activity has never seemed more fashionable. Bank of America Merrill Lynch said that it expected consolidation to be “a key theme” in luxury goods next year and then added yet another famous name to the list of marriage candidates — that of Richemont, the Cartier owner, which could be under pressure to do a deal of its own. |
 | The market seems to be coming to the conclusion that a potential takeover of Centamin (DI) (CEY) is unlikely to happen. Centamin is being eyed up by Endeavour Mining, a Canadian rival, but the company’s board has unanimously rejected the deal on the table. If the share price is anything to go by, investors aren’t convinced that management will budge. Having risen after the initial bid, the stock fell yesterday. |
 | Stagecoach Group (SGC) shares hit a bump in the road after Liberum, the stockbroker, warned that political risks were looming, regardless of the outcome of next week’s election. “While it should be no surprise that a Labour-led government would be a material negative for Stagecoach, we believe it is under-appreciated how enthusiastic a new Conservative administration may be for locally led bus reregulation initiatives,” Gerald Khoo, its analyst, said. He added that any changes would likely have a detrimental effect on Stagecoach’s market share and margins and he downgraded the company to “hold” from “buy” as a result. |
 | Delays to the opening of two of its street markets will put a small dent in its profits this year, Time Out Group (TMO) has warned. The markets — in Montreal and Chicago — were opened last month, a few weeks later than bosses had hoped. Analysts at Liberum, the broker, said that the delays would result in the company slipping to a “small loss” for the second half of 2019, while Time Out confirmed that the hold-ups would have a “modest impact” on its full-year underlying profits. Despite the setback, the Aim-listed company reassured investors that it remained on track to reach profitability next year, having been “encouraged” by the early performance of its newest markets. |
| One of the UK’s biggest property funds, which owns shopping centres across the country, has alarmed investors by banning withdrawals and blaming both Brexit and the retail downturn for its problems. The £2.5bn M&G Property Portfolio was suspended after “unusually high and sustained outflows” – demand from investors for their money back – prompted by “Brexit-related political uncertainty and ongoing structural shifts in the UK retail sector”. Nearly £1bn has been withdrawn by investors from the fund over the last year. M&G PLC (MNG) admitted it had been unable to sell commercial property fast enough to fund the rush for the door by investors, leaving it with no choice but to block further withdrawals. The fund’s biggest holdings include shopping centres such as Fremlin Walk in Maidstone, Kent, where House of Fraser is one of the biggest tenants, the Gracechurch centre in Sutton Coldfield, where stores include House of Fraser, Topshop and New Look and the Wales designer Outlet in Bridgend, home to retailers including Marks & Spencer and Next. | |
 | The fashion brand Quiz (QUIZ) has made a £6.8m loss after sales fell across its high street store chain and concessions, forcing the retailer to warn of further store closures. Quiz, which operates 246 UK stores and concessions, reported a year-on-year sales slump of 11% across its UK retail estate in the six months to the end of September. The share price of Quiz, which reported a £3.8m profit in the same period last year, slumped by 16% in early trading. The company said: “The trading conditions on the UK high street have remained very challenging. A continued reduction in footfall across the group’s standalone stores and concessions have resulted in a sustained and weaker than initially anticipated negative like-for-like [sales] performance.” The high street sales slump prompted Quiz to review its UK retail estate and take a £7m non-cash charge to take into account issues such as onerous leases until it has a chance to renegotiate terms or shut stores. |
 | The Metro Bank (MTRO) chief executive is to step down only two months after the departure of the longtime chairman. Craig Donaldson, who has been in the role since the lender was founded in 2009, agreed to leave at the end of the month after leading it through a “challenging period” after the revelation of a significant accounting error in January. Dan Frumkin, who has been with the bank for only three months, will take over as interim chief executive. He joined Metro Bank from the Bermuda-based bank Butterfield and previously worked at Royal Bank of Scotland and Northern Rock. The announcement of Donaldson’s departure comes weeks after Metro Bank’s founder and chairman, Vernon Hill, resigned with immediate effect. |
 | M&C Saatchi (SAA) share price plunged after the advertising agency admitted its accounting scandal was much worse than previously thought and issued a second profit warning in less than three months. The embattled group, which has clients including O2 and Sky in the UK, said that after an external review by PricewaterhouseCoopers, it would be taking an £11.6m hit. When the scandal was revealed in August, the company said the charge would be £6.4m, prompted by “overaggressive” revenue recognition at its UK operation. The “misapplication of accounting policies” also extends to areas including understating project costs, wrongly listing assets on the balance sheet such as obsolete software, or overstating the value of assets such as fixtures and fittings. |
 | Ted Baker (TED) appoints consultancy to review operations. AlixPartners tasked with drawing up turnround strategy in wake of difficult year |
| Lombard – M&C Saatchi (SAA) 1980s model leaves investors seeing red. Advertising group was built on shared ownership — but not shared accounting policies |
| Metro Bank (MTRO) chief Craig Donaldson to step down. Departure will leave struggling UK bank without permanent CEO or chairman |
 | Stockbroker Numis Corporation (NUM) suffers from London stock market slowdown. Aim-listed group also blames Brexit uncertainty as profits plunge 61% |
| Lex – Numis Corporation (NUM): poll dancer. A clear Tory win in the election would help calm business nerves |
 | Zopa backer cuts valuation almost in half. Investor Augmentum Fintech (AUGM) takes writedown as sentiment towards lending platforms weakens |
| The tycoons behind M&C Saatchi (SAA) had more than £11m wiped off their fortunes as an accounting fiasco sent shares in the advertising agency plummeting dramatically. A brutal sell-off saw nearly half its value wiped out after it admitted ‘adjustments’ needed to its books now totalled £11.6m – almost double a previous estimate of £6.4m. M&C said a review by auditor PwC found divisions in the firm’s UK business had overstated income and amounts owed by clients, forcing it to issue a profit warning. It cost four of the agency’s founding partners – David Kershaw, Maurice Saatchi, Jeremy Sinclair and Bill Muirhead – about £2.8m each, or £11.2m in total. And it took the stock’s losses since the accounting review was first announced in August to a staggering 76.5%. In addition, the agency, which recently lost major client Natwest, expects profits in 2019 to be between 22% and 27% lower than the previous year. |
| Thousands of investors in Britain’s biggest commercial property fund have been blocked from accessing their money – triggering fears that other funds will follow suit. Blaming Brexit and the downturn in the retail sector for its problems, M&G PLC (MNG) revealed investors had been rushing to pull their money out of its £2.5 billiopn Property Portfolio. Those now locked into the fund will still be charged nearly £300,000 a week in fees. Some £1.5 billion has been withdrawn from the M&G fund since the start of 2019, but it has been unable to sell assets fast enough to pay back investors. It said: ‘Brexit-related political uncertainty and ongoing structural shifts in the retail sector have made it difficult for us to sell commercial property.’ | |
| Fashion retailer Quiz (QUIZ) revealed disappointing sales for the six months to September and warned of store closures. Not only was revenue from its stores down 11% to £31.3m, but online revenue was flat at £20m. The fast-fashion company, which targets young women and features a collection by the reality TV star Sam Faiers, was hit with a £7m charge relating to the slipping value of its stores. This pushed it to a loss of £6.8m, from a profit of £3.8m the year before, while revenue fell from £66.7m to £63.3m. |
 | The City toasted Stock Spirits Group (STCK) after demand for its vodka in Poland helped to lift revenues across the group by 9% to £261m last year. Its vodka is so popular there that the east European spirits maker will spend £21m expanding its Polish distillation plant over the next three years. It is aiming to cash-in on demand in Poland for high-end spirits, and is selling more whisky through an agreement to distribute tipples such as Jim Beam. It was also boosted by a surge in sales in the Czech Republic, where it is the sole distributor of Diageo staples such as Baileys and Johnnie Walker. Full-year profits rose almost a quarter to £32m. |
| rose 6.5p, to 204p, as it said it was looking to triple the number of its UK sites after revenues jumped 22% to £80m in the 24 weeks to October 6. Loungers, which operates the Lounges and Cosy Club chains, cut its loss to £2.5m, from £4.2m last year. | |
 | Eddie Stobart Logistics (ESL) has put administrators on red alert amid fears the trucking company could collapse in a matter of days. The company has lined up Deloitte to prepare it for insolvency if investors reject a rescue led a secretive offshore fund, sources said. Eddie Stobart has struck a deal with DBay Advisors to save the cash-strapped business. However, the rescue – which includes a £55m high-interest loan in exchange for DBay taking a majority stake – must be approved by shareholders in a crunch vote on Friday. If investors reject the proposal, it is understood that plans are in place to put Eddie Stobart’s holding company into administration shortly afterwards – a move that would wipe out shareholders. |
| Metro Bank (MTRO) was hurled into fresh chaos as chief executive Craig Donaldson announced he is following founder Vernon Hill out of the door after a disastrous year. Mr Donaldson will step down from his role at the troubled lender later this month, leaving it with no permanent chief executive or chairman. The shock decision came days after Colombian billionaire Jaime Gilinski Bacal, one of the wealthiest people in Latin America, became one of Metro’s top five shareholders after buying a 4.28% stake in the business. An insider insisted the move was unrelated to investor pressure and there had been no intervention from regulators. |
 | Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) finance chief Trevor Strain has inched closer to the top job after being handed a promotion. Mr Strain has taken on more responsibilities at the supermarket including looking after its supply chain, online and wholesale operations as well as manufacturing and marketing. City analysts welcomed the reshuffle, saying it makes the 44-year-old the heir apparent to current boss David Potts. Andrew Porteous at HSBC said: “If Trevor were leaving the business this would be cause for concern. “However, he is not, and we expect very little change strategically as a result of these personnel changes”. |
| Tens of thousands of savers have been blocked from taking cash out of a £2.5bn M&G PLC (MNG) property fund after a stampede for the exits – but will still be charged fees of nearly £300,000 a week. The M&G Property Portfolio fund has shut its doors after a crisis on the high street triggered a slump in the value of retail sites it owns. It means customers will be unable to withdraw their money while M&G seeks to sell property, potentially for months. Meanwhile, the firm will continue charging fees equal to 70% of what it normally takes. This amounts to £14.25m a year or £274,000 every week. | |
 | Ryanair Holdings (RYA) blamed the crisis engulfing the Boeing 737 Max as the airline slashed passenger forecasts for the second time in less than six months, forcing it to cut flights next year and close two bases. The 737 Max was grounded in March after two crashes that claimed the lives of 346 people. Ryanair has 135 Max planes on order and had been due to receive the first one in April. However, deliveries have been suspended since the second crash as regulators investigate the causes and Boeing tries to develop a fix for the aircraft. |
 | Questor: this under-the-radar tech star counts Apple and Spotify among its clients. Questor share tip: Boku, Inc (DI) Reg S (BOKU) enables the technology giants’ customers to sign up to services without the need of a bank account – and it gets a cut of every transaction |
| M&G PLC (MNG) has suspended trading in a property fund that manages more than £2.5 billion of assets after suffering a rush of redemptions and struggling to sell assets in a market plagued by Brexit uncertainty. The fund manager said that there had been “unusually high and sustained outflows” from the M&G Property Portfolio Fund, which is held by tens of thousands of small investors, because of “Brexit-related political uncertainty and ongoing structural shifts in the UK retail sector”. Difficult market conditions also had made it difficult to sell commercial property such as shops and offices, M&G warned. The decision to suspend trading will cause concern that other open-ended property funds will suspend investor withdrawals. | |
| The founders of Boohoo.com (BOO) have announced plans to sell shares worth up to £150 million in the online fast-fashion retailer. Mahmud Kamani, 55, and Carol Kane, 53, founded Manchester-based Boohoo in 2006 and supplied clothes to high street retailers such as Topshop. They began selling directly to consumers, undercutting their clients. The company has grown into a retailing giant with a market value of almost £3.5 billion. At yesterday’s closing price of 297¼p they would raise about £104 million and almost £45 million respectively, although the stock is expected to be placed at a discount. |
| The chief executive of Metro Bank (MTRO) is to leave after paying the price for a terrible year in which an accounting scandal forced it to raise emergency cash. Craig Donaldson led the embattled high street lender for ten years, including its stock market listing in 2016. However, Metro’s share price has collapsed since January, when it discovered that it had misclassified almost £1 billion of loans that were actually more risky than it had reported. It has had to raise £725 million in new equity and debts in order to shore up its balance sheet. Mr Donaldson, 47, offered to resign several times after the scandal, details of which are being investigated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. |
| Concerns about the general election weighed on the dominant services sector last month, causing business activity to shrink at its steepest rate since March. The economy is on course to decline in the final quarter of the year, after the IHS Markit/CIPS UK services purchasing managers’ index fell to 49.3, down from 50 in October. The index, based on a monthly survey of 650 services sector companies, is regarded as a good guide to economic health and is carefully monitored by policymakers. Although the services sector shrank, the reading was higher than the preliminary “flash” reading of 48.6. | |
| A reshuffle of Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) top team has been welcomed by analysts as the next stage of the supermarket group’s succession planning. Trevor Strain has been made full-time chief operating officer and is handing his chief financial officer role to Michael Gleeson, the trading director. Mr Strain, 44, will be responsible for commercial, manufacturing, supply chain, logistics, online and wholesale functions and will report to David Potts, the chief executive. Analysts at HSBC said: “After taking on expanded responsibilities in commercial a little while ago, this evolution in the Morrisons management team is understandable and logical.” The Bradford-based chain was started as an egg and butter stall by William Morrison in 1899. His son Ken took over in 1952. |
| Workers’ representatives at Eddie Stobart Logistics (ESL) have begun an 11th-hour attempt to prevent a takeover of the trucking group, saying that a promised £75 million cash injection by Dbay could be worth a fraction of that amount. Investors in the logistics company, shares of which have been suspended on the stock market since the summer, are voting tomorrow on a proposal for the Isle of Man-based private equity firm to take control of the business, which employs 6,000 people and operates 2,600 lorries. Dbay has promised a £55 million high-interest loan plus a £20 million overdraft facility with the group’s lending banks. |
| A fashion chain has warned that it will shut a significant number of stores unless landlords cut rents, putting still more pressure on the high street. Quiz (QUIZ) yesterday announced an 11% fall in like-for-like shop sales in the six months to September 30. Group sales fell by 5% to £63.3 million. The retailer, which has issued three profit warnings in the past year, swung into the red with a £6.8 million statutory pre-tax loss, compared with a £3.8 million profit a year ago. |
| The crisis at M&C Saatchi (SAA) has deepened after the advertising agency revealed that an accounting scandal was worse than had been thought and issued a profit warning. Shares in the company plunged by 67¾p to 79p yesterday — their lowest level since 2010 — after it disclosed that its accounting problems could date back to 2014 and that weak spending by customers meant that underlying annual pre-tax profits were likely to be “significantly lower” than had been forecast previously. It said that its profits were likely to fall by between 22% and 27% from £29.5 million last year. |
| A slump in flotations and thin equity trading volumes contributed to a 61% profit slide for the year to September at Numis Corporation (NUM), although the broker yesterday reported a strong start to its new financial year. Numis said that revenues for October and November were ahead of last time thanks to a pick-up in deals and in share trading volumes. The mid-market group blamed the worst market conditions for flotations since 2012 for a 16.1% fall in deal fees during the year. Revenues from equities trading and research were down by 21.4%. Overall profit before tax slumped to £12.4 million, not a surprise after a profit warning in September. |
  | The competition watchdog has issued an interim order against JD Sports Fashion (JD.) proceeding any further with its £90 million takeover of Footasylum (FOOT) pending the conclusion of its phase 2 investigation into the deal. The Competition and Markets Authority started scrutinising the deal in May, two months after JD Sports swooped on its smaller rival. In October, the regulator increased its scrutiny of the merger on the grounds that it could “result, in a substantial lessening of competition in any market or markets in the UK for goods or services.” Yesterday the watchdog said it “wishes to ensure that no action is taken pending final determination of the reference which might prejudice the reference or impede the taking of any action by the CMA”. |
 | A war of words has broken out in the Irish High Court, where Michael O’Leary, the boss of Ryanair Holdings (RYA), has been accused of being a bully by a former senior executive who has resigned to go to easyJet (EZJ). Peter Bellew, Ryanair’s chief operating officer, left in the summer for a job at its arch-rival. Ryanair has taken him to court to prevent him from joining Easyjet soon because of the amount of commercially sensitive information to which he is party. Mr Bellew, 54, accused Mr O’Leary of bullying him when trying to enforce a 12-month non-compete clause to prevent him from joining a rival. |
 | International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) – Sir Richard Branson plans to redouble his efforts to wage war on British Airways and achieve parity at Heathrow after revealing that he is not selling his interest in Virgin Atlantic after all. Sir Richard said this week that he was reversing his plan negotiated two and half years ago to sell a 31% stake in Virgin Atlantic to Air France-KLM to raise £220 million. Instead, he will keep his residual 51% in the airline that he founded and, with Delta Air Lines, the American carrier that is the 49% shareholder, will arrange a code-sharing deal with Air France and KLM to sell seats and services on each other’s airlines. |
 | easyJet (EZJ) has landed back in the FTSE 100, following a quarterly reshuffle of the leading City share index. The budget airline has regained its membership of the club six months after its relegation. The carrier had been expected to return to the benchmark index despite a turbulent year in which it struggled with rising fuel prices and economic uncertainty around Brexit. But the airline’s share price was boosted in recent months by rising passenger numbers, the addition of more aircraft and tougher action on costs. EasyJet’s closing price on Tuesday was £13.07, up 18% on the year, which was enough to confirm its return to the UK’s biggest stockmarket index. The carrier has also benefited from problems at its competitors, from the collapse of Thomas Cook Airlines to strikes at Ryanair and British Airways. EasyJet has been promoted at the expense of insurer Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX), which was demoted to the FTSE 250 after its share price fell by 17% this year. The Bermuda-based specialist insurer has been hit by an increase in claims for damage from large storms and typhoons in the US, the Caribbean and Japan. Its share price slid after the release of a trading update last month, when the firm announced it was setting aside extra money to cover claims from extreme weather events. |
| Lombard – Centamin (DI) (CEY) should Endeavour to listen to offer. Merging gold miners brings benefits to both sides |
| Endeavour bids £1.5bn for Centamin (DI) (CEY) in gold dealmaking wave. Canadian group makes all-stock proposal public after talks fail to get off ground |
 | Judge clears $6bn Inmarsat (ISAT) buyout as hedge funds drop opposition Investors led by Oaktree Capital had argued takeover valuation of satellite group was too low |
| A British songwriter who crafted hits with Adele and Stormzy has sold part of his back catalogue to a music investment firm. Hipgnosis Songs Fund (SONG) said it had snapped up worldwide income rights held by Fraser T Smith to 298 songs, including several UK and US number one hits. Smith was entitled to royalties from 2011’s Set Fire To The Rain by Adele, as well as Sam Smith’s 2014 album In The Lonely Hour. Hipgnosis did not disclose how much it had paid for the income rights. The company has raised more than £625million from the markets since it listed in London in July last year. | |
| The £4.7billlion takeover of Inmarsat (ISAT) by a private equity-led consortium was rubber stamped by London’s High Court after a group of rebel shareholders dropped their opposition the deal. In a bid to extract more cash from the buyers, hedge funds Oaktree Capital, Kite Lake and Rubric Capital had been due to urge a judge to withhold final approval of the deal today. But the group of shareholders said they had dropped their opposition after the buyers – a private equity consortium, involving Apax Partners, Warburg Pincus and Canadian pension funds – confirmed they would not increase or extend their offer. It comes after the buyout won approval from regulators and a majority of shareholders. |
| Glencore (GLEN) has been ‘shocked to the core’ by a spate of deaths at its mines and is ramping up efforts to improve safety. As chief executive Ivan Glasenberg hinted he could step down next year, the company’s head of industrial mining, Peter Freyberg, said: ‘We know it’s something we have to deal with, and we’re dealing with it.’ Sixteen people have died at the Anglo-Swiss group this year, up 23% from last year and 77% more than in 2017. |
 | The success of blockbusters like Joker and Frozen 2 were not enough for Cineworld Group (CINE), which warned full year revenues were likely to come in lower than expected. The group said UK cinema admissions in the 11 months to 1 December fell by 13%, blaming it on the delay in the release of some ‘highly anticipated’ movies like Avatar 2, to next year. However, the owner of Picturehouse cinemas said the second half of the year started ‘strongly’ thanks to the popularity of movies like Joker and Spider-Man: Far from Home. And Cineworld bosses are hoping the new Star Wars movie – Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker – and Jumanji: The Next Level, due to be released this month, will boost sales. |
 | Lens maker Gooch & Housego (GHH) rose 17.5p, to 1270p, despite the US-China trade war sending profits down 20% to £15million. Annual revenue at the Somerset engineer, which makes parts for medical devices, aerospace and surveillance, rose 3.4% to £129million. It said in June that profits would be hit by a drop in Chinese demand for products used in industrial lasers to make silicon chips. This cancelled out record demand for fibre optics products, used in undersea cables. |
 | Bosses at Centamin (DI) (CEY) have snubbed a £1.5billion merger bid from Canada’s Endeavour Mining, as the latest wave of deal-making in the gold industry reached London. In its rebuttal, Centamin’s board said the terms of the offer undervalued the mid-cap miner and that Endeavour would benefit more from the tie-up. Centamin’s investors would have owned 47.1% of the new entity, while Endeavour’s would have 52.9%. But analysts saw potential, with Peel Hunt saying the timing was right and there was a good combined business model on offer. With just a single main project – the Sukari gold mine in Egypt – Centamin is seen as a bit of a one- trick pony. Despite being high-quality, Sukari is struggling with sluggish production. Centamin is also exploring for gold in Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso – two of the three countries, incidentally, in which Endeavour has a presence. The third is Mali. Endeavour must formally make an offer, or announce it is not making one, by the end of December. Centamin rocketed 16.6p, to 128.8p, ahead of the 126p per share bid, suggesting the City is gearing up for a sweetened bid or hostile takeover. Finncap analyst Martin Potts said the bid could have wider repercussions and pave the way for a cut-price overseas takeover of struggling Yorkshire fertiliser miner Sirius Minerals (SXX). |
| The £4.5bn takeover of satellite firm Inmarsat (ISAT) has won court approval after a group of hedge funds dropped their objections. The move to rubber-stamp the deal means that the company is days away from being delisted from the stock market. It follows an abandoned challenge to the takeover by billionaire Howard Marks’ Oaktree Capital and other hedge funds. The investors had been planning to intervene at a High Court hearing on Tuesday to sanction the scheme of arrangement for the Inmarsat takeover, one of the final steps in the process that is usually a formality. |
| Retailers enjoyed a reprieve from the high street gloom after Black Friday delivered record sales for a string of companies including John Lewis and Boohoo. The number of visitors to shopping destinations across the UK rose by 3.1% in the four days of sales from Black Friday to Cyber Monday, according to retail data company Springboard. It was the first time that footfall – a measure of shop visits – for Black Friday has increased since 2016. The bargain extravaganza helped John Lewis rack up a record week of sales as shoppers flocked to its stores to take advantage of its “Never Knowingly Undersold” price pledge where the firm matches discounts offered by any high street rival. | |
| Delays to the release of blockbuster film Avatar 2 has triggered a sales slump at cinema chain Cineworld Group (CINE). Full-year revenue will be below what bosses hoped for despite the success of Disney smash hit Frozen 2, which has raked in a record £15.1m at UK cinemas on its opening weekend last month. Total revenue for Cineworld was 9.7% lower in the 11 months to Dec 1 than it had been a year earlier. Box office takings were 12.8% lower and retail sales fell by 7.4%. Cineworld complained about highly anticipated movies being pushed back to 2020, a gripe thought to be directed at thought to Avatar 2, the belated sequel to 2009’s groundbreaking 3D sci-fi fantasy. |
 | Questor: there’s no doubt that Croda International (CRDA) is a quality stock, but does it deserve this pricey valuation? Questor share tip: a price-to-earnings ratio of 26 sits uneasily with a lack of growth in sales and profits so far this year |
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