to pay $50m over Brazil Samarco dam class action
Savills (SVS) profits plunge as home sales fall
Tea and dairy-free taste good for Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH). Coke may be its biggest brand but a big chunk of the growth reported yesterday by Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company in the first half came from new products, flavours and packaging.
Cruise ships help TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) take rough with the smooth
Worsening life expectancy trend lifts Legal & General Group (LGEN). Life expectancy increasing slower means that insurers need to set aside less cash for pension payments and that let L&G release reserves last year that had been held back to pay customers.
Sequels are proving box office gold for Cineworld Group (CINE). The world’s second-biggest cinema chain has predicted a strong year on the back of releases including Mission: Impossible — Fallout, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again and Incredibles 2.
Derwent London (DLN) runs past its targets. The office developer behind unusual buildings in London, including the White Collar Factory in Shoreditch with a running track on the roof, has raised its rental forecast as it continues to attract tenants from the technology and creative sectors.
Extreme temperatures cool Card Factory (CARD) sales. Card Factory has become the latest retailer to blame extreme temperatures in the first half of the year as well as a tough consumer environment for disappointing financial results.
Attacks on cash vans and prison staff pay demands take toll on G4S (GFS) shares
Ibstock (IBST) solid outlook after profit warning. Ten days after a profit warning, Ibstock reported a £1.3 million drop in comparable operating profits to £58.4 million on revenues only just ahead at £229 million.
Tension may ruin growth, Glanbia (GLB) says. A leading Irish nutrition group has warned that global trade tensions could destabilise dairy prices and scupper its expansion plan.
Web shopping lifts Tritax Big Box Reit (BBOX). The growth in storage for e-commerce distribution has helped a real estate investment trust to boost operating profits by more than a third.
AA (AA.) weathers extremes in drive to predicted profits of £340m
Spluttering drugmaker bought. Vernalis plc (VER), which has recently focused on selling prescription cough medicine in the US, has agreed a sale to Ligand UK at 6.2p per share in cash, valuing it at about £32.7 million.
Evidence from Adidas of the strength of the US market fed through to UK stocks. JD Sports Fashion (JD.), the sportswear retailer that announced plans to enter the North America market earlier this year, rose almost 11p to 487p. Coats Group (COA), an industrial thread manufacturer whose products are used in making sportswear, nudged up ¼p to 82¾p.
A series of broker upgrades helped lift Spirax-Sarco Engineering (SPX). It rose 420p to £72.40, after analysts at Morgan Stanley, Barclays and RBC Capital Markets all raised target prices for the company. The upgrades followed first-half results on Wednesday showing a 22% rise in adjusted pre-tax profit.
Directors of Spire Healthcare Group (SPI) went on a share acquisition spree, buying a total of 235,000 at about 160p per share in an attempt to give the private hospital chain a shot in the arm. Justin Ash, chief executive, spent £200,000 on shares; Peter Bamford, deputy chairman and senior independent director, just over £16,000; and Garry Watts, chairman, almost £160,000. That wasn’t enough, however, to halt the share price fall, which started earlier in the week after a profit warning.
EKF Diagnostics Holdings (EKF) soared after the Cardiff-based company said first-half earnings were ahead of its expectations. Investors were also buoyed by an update on new deals, including a distribution agreement with the US-based McKesson Medical-Surgical for its haemoglobin analyser Diaspect, which has regulatory clearance.
Tempus – BTG (BTG): Hold. Potential takeover target and recent setbacks priced in
Tempus – Secure Trust Bank (STB): Buy. The shares are cheap and the bank looks solid
