– Supplier in challenge to Ashley. Shortages in House of Fraser stores as warehouse halts work in payment row. The Times understands that workers at the chain’s distribution centre in Wellingborough have been told by XPO Logistics, which operates the site, to stop accepting goods and processing deliveries, leading to product shortages in some House of Fraser outlets.
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) settles US claim and pays dividend. Royal Bank of Scotland will pay the first dividend since its near-collapse a decade ago after agreeing last night to pay $4.9 billion to settle American claims that it misled investors on residential mortgage-backed securities between 2005 and 2008.
Royal Mail (RMG) fined record £50m over market abuse of Whistl. Royal Mail is facing a legal action from Whistl, a letter-handling rival, after the privatised postal group was fined a record £50 million for a deliberate breach of the Competition Act.
esure Group (ESUR) founder Sir Peter Wood to stay at wheel after takeover
Full inquiry into Menzies(John) (MNZS) aviation deal. John Menzies faces an in-depth investigation by regulators over its £75 million purchase of a rival aviation services business.
Post-Grenfell safety spending knocks Mears Group (MER). In its housing maintenance division, which accounts for 75% of its business, Mears reported a 10% drop in revenues sending its operating profits in housing, including property management and building development, down more than 8% in the first half of the year.
Capital & Regional (CAL) counts cost of rent reductions. The wave of administrations and rent reductions among familiar high-street businesses has led the shopping centre owner Capital & Regional to warn that it is likely to take a £1.2 million hit to its rental income this year.
H&T Group (HAT) cashes in on luxury items. Profits at Britain’s biggest pawnbroker jumped by 10% as more people pawned luxury watches and jewellery and took out personal loans.
Polypipe Group (PLP) building up to a recovery. Polypipe has become the latest company to say that it was a victim of the Beast from the East winter snow and the demise of Carillion. However, an upbeat report on how its construction markets in the UK are growing at 5% a year and that delayed projects are coming back on track.
Quarto Group Inc. (QRT) power struggles are a tale full of sound and fury. In a demonstration that the truth is sometimes stranger than fiction, the illustrated book publisher has gone through three chief executives in as many months and its ousted founder returned only to be defenestrated once again. To cap it all, it will today ask shareholders to approve a plan to allow it to boost worrisome levels of debt.
Merlin Entertainments (MERL), the owner of Legoland and Alton Towers, had a bumpy ride after analysis by UBS raised concerns about the popularity of its city centre attractions.
The premier index was dragged lower by Antofagasta (ANTO), the Chilean copper producer, which announced a 16.2% fall in first-half earnings and warned that trade tensions were clouding the short-term copper demand outlook.
Utilities companies were among the limited gainers in the FTSE 100 amid positive sector sentiment driven by results from RWE of Germany. That helped to bolster United Utilities Group (UU.), which is seen to be undervalued compared with its mainland European peers. British utilities have weakened amid fears that the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn would nationalise Britain’s energy network. Severn Trent (SVT) gained 24½p to £19.94½.
Hill & Smith Holdings (HILS) rebounded after analysts at Peel Hunt said that the fall in the manufacturer’s share price last week was a “huge over-reaction” to its interim results.
Elementis (ELM) rose 6½p to 262¼p after analysts at Berenberg put a 90% probability on its proposed deal to buy Mondo Minerals, the Dutch talc minerals group, not completing. Analysts also pointed to hidden value in the group’s portfolio.
esure Group (ESUR) climbed 10½p to 277½p after Bain Capital confirmed that it had agreed to buy the car insurer for 280p a share in cash.
ClearStar Inc. (DI / REG S) (CLST) rose 2p to 73p, after it was named the preferred contract labour screening provider by Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, the aircraft manufacturing company.
Tempus – Antofagasta (ANTO): Hold. Short-term risks over 2018 performance and trade wars hitting prices, but longer-term upside from exposure to rising copper demand
Tempus – Jackpotjoy (JPJ): Hold. There should be a boost from FTSE 250 status and M&A
