Sterling's Rise Vs Euro Unlikely to Be Sustained

1305 GMT - Sterling rises against the euro but this is unlikely to mark the start of a sustained trend higher, ING says. Bank of England and European Central Bank officials are both pushing back against speculation that they could soon ease their policy stances but "we don't see a key catalyst for the two currencies to dramatically diverge in the current environment," ING analyst Francesco Pesole says in a note. EUR/GBP falls 0.2% to 0.8888. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)

Companies News: 

Barratt Developments 1H Pretax Profit Rose; Reservation Rate Improved in January

Barratt Developments PLC said Wednesday that it saw a rise in pretax profit for the first half of fiscal 2023 and said its private reservation rate has modestly improved in January.

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Smurfit Kappa 2022 Pretax Profit Rose, Boosted by Investment Program

Smurfit Kappa Group PLC said Wednesday that pretax profit rose in 2022, with performance reflecting the continuing benefits of the investment program.

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Severn Trent Backs FY 2023 View

Severn Trent PLC said Wednesday that there have been no material changes to the business performance or outlook since its half-year earnings in November and backed its fiscal 2023 outlook.

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Ashmore Group 1H Pretax Profit Halved; Sees Outperformance As Markets Recover

Ashmore Group PLC said Wednesday that pretax profit more than halved in the first half of fiscal 2023 as market volatility in the period led to losses on investments, and that emerging markets are set to outperform as markets recover.

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Grainger Early FY 2023 Rent, Occupancy Rose

Grainger PLC said Wednesday that rent and occupancy rose in the first four months of fiscal 2023.

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Tate & Lyle Updates Five-Year Targets for Revenue, Earnings Growth

Tate & Lyle PLC said Wednesday that it expects to deliver revenue growth of 4% to 6% a year in the five years to March 2028, underpinned by high single-digit growth in its food and beverage solutions division.

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M&C Saatchi Sees 2022 Net Revenue at GBP271.4 Mln, Headline Pretax Profit at GBP31.8 Mln

M&C Saatchi PLC said Wednesday that 2022 net revenue is expected to be 271.4 million pounds ($327 million) and headline pretax profit is seen at GBP31.8 million.

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Sosandar to Raise up to GBP4.5 Mln to Fund Growth

Sosandar PLC said Wednesday that it is planning to raise up to 4.5 million pounds ($5.4 million) via a share placing and will use the money to capitalize on the opportunities in its markets and to accelerate future growth.

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FirstGroup to Buy Ensign Bus Company for Undisclosed Sum

FirstGroup PLC said Wednesday that it is buying Ensign Bus Company Ltd. for an undisclosed sum.

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Future Sees FY 2023 Adjusted Operating Profit in Line on Continuing Good Performance

Future PLC said Wednesday that it expects to deliver fiscal 2023 adjusted operating profit in line with expectations as its diversification of revenue streams and content verticals, together with the operational leverage, continue to deliver.

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PZ Cussons 1H Pretax Profit, Revenue Rose; Backs Full-Year Guidance

PZ Cussons PLC said Wednesday that pretax profit significantly rose for the first half of fiscal 2023 together with revenue, and backed its full-year guidance.

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Renold Sees FY 2023 Profit Ahead of Views on Strong Performance

Renold PLC said Wednesday that it now sees fiscal 2023 underlying operating profit above current market forecasts as it has performed strongly since its interim results, with order intake running ahead of sales.

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Cenkos Securities Sees 2022 Underlying Profit at Break Even

Cenkos Securities PLC said Wednesday that it expects to break even at underlying profit level for 2022 due to significantly depressed market conditions over the year, and that it has seen an encouraging start to 2023.

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Speedy Hire Expects One-off Writedown After Identifying GBP20.4 Mln Equipment Shortfall

Speedy Hire PLC said Wednesday that it expects a one-off non-cash writedown after a count of its hire equipment identified a shortfall worth around 20.4 million pounds ($24.6 million).

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Beazley Names Clive Bannister as Chair Designate

Beazley PLC said Wednesday that it has appointed Clive Bannister as chair designate and non-executive director with immediate effect.

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Renalytix Shares Fall on $20.3 Mln Fund Raising

London-traded shares of Renalytix PLC fell as much as 14% on Wednesday after the company said it is raising $20.3 million via a placing of ordinary and American depositary shares, and that it will use the money for sales and marketing, clinical product development, and corporate support and financing costs.

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Cellular Goods Shares Fall After Cannaray Brands, Love CBD Deal Collapses

Shares of Cellular Goods PLC fell 30% on Wednesday after the company said that it no longer plans to buy Cannaray Brands Ltd. and Love CBD Health Ltd. from Cannaray Ltd. as announced in September.

Market Talk: 

Unilever Faces Three Big Hurdles in 2023

1213 GMT - Unilever faces three main hurdles that it could find difficult to overcome in 2023, UBS says ahead of the European consumer-goods company's full-year results on Thursday. A tough consumer environment is likely to disproportionately affect Unilever's low gross-margin/less differentiated product lines, UBS says. Persistent inflationary pressures and lack of clarity on the company's long-term strategy could also weigh, the Swiss bank says. "In other words, the tweaks to Unilever's strategy announced last year could be scrapped for more draconian and radical measures," UBS analyst Guillaume Delmas says in a note. (philip.waller@wsj.com)

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AstraZeneca Investors Look Set to Eye Margins at FY Results

1218 GMT - AstraZeneca investors are likely to focus on margins in the drug company's fourth-quarter and full-year results on Thursday. Though the pace of the company's margin expansion is below market expectations, that largely reflects increased investment into research and development, thereby placing greater importance on drug trial results in 2023, Berenberg says. "The most important of these, in our view, is the first Phase III (P3) readout for Dato-DXd in lung cancer," Berenberg analysts say in a note. "We believe there is a high chance of success in this trial, supporting our overall peak sales estimate of $10 billion." Berenberg reiterates the buy recommendation and price target of GBP126 for the stock. Shares rise 2% to 10,792 pence. (philip.waller@wsj.com)

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FirstGroup's Ensign Bus Acquisition Seen as Positive

1238 GMT - FirstGroup's acquisition of Essex-based EnSign Bus is seen as a positive for the transport operator as it should strengthen its market position, Citi analyst Sathish B. Sivakumar says in a note. The transaction is expected to complement FirstGroup's offering and the company anticipates FY 2023 adjusted net cash position in the GBP70 million to GBP80 million range if it closes within the calendar year, Sivakumar says. "We expect the U.K. regional bus market to see further consolidation given the structural challenges facing the industry," Sivakumar says. Citi rates the stock buy and has a 133 pence target price. Shares are up 4.5% at 113.80 pence. anthony.orunagoriainoff@dowjones.com)

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Invesco Getting New Heads of Investments

0739 ET - Long-time Invesco chief Marty Flanagan isn't the only top executive leaving the investment manager. Invesco says Greg McGreevey, senior managing director of investments, is retiring on Oct. 1 and is immediately stepping down from his current post. Invesco says Stephanie Butcher, who has been chief investment officer of its EMEA business since January 2020, and Tony Wong, who's been global head of fixed-income investments since March 2019, will now serve as senior managing directors and co-heads of investments. (colin.kellaher@wsj.com)

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UK Regulator Adds Voice of Opposition to Microsoft, Activision Deal

0743 ET - The UK's antitrust regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority, says that Microsoft's $75B deal to buy Activision Blizzard could hurt gamers by driving prices higher and reducing access to certain games, adding another voice of opposition to the deal. The FTC in the US has already sued to block the deal. While the UK's CMA hasn't yet moved to block the deal, the concerns raised add another obstacle to closing the deal. Shares of Activision slipped almost 5% to $72 a share in pre-market trading. Microsoft has agreed to pay $95 a share for the company in an all-cash deal. (will.feuer@wsj.com; @WillFOIA)

 

Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires;

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 08, 2023 08:42 ET (13:42 GMT)

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