The FTSE 100 closed up 0.3%, with a reserved reaction to the resignation of U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss. "The best outcome for markets would be a rapid rallying of the parliamentary Conservative Party around a single candidate who would validate [Treasury chief Jeremy] Hunt's approach," said Trevor Greetham of Royal London Asset Management. Fresnillo was the day's biggest riser, up 4%, followed by Lloyds Banking Group and Endeavour Mining, both up 3.5%. Vodafone was the session's biggest faller, down 2.4%, followed by Bunzl, down 2.1%, and BT, down 1.8%.
Companies News:
Schroders 3Q Assets Under Management Fell
Schroders PLC said Thursday that its assets under management for the third quarter of the year fell when compared with the previous quarter.
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RELX Nine-Month Underlying Revenue Growth Was 9%; Continues to See Full-Year Growth in Revenue, Profit
RELX PLC said Thursday that underlying revenue growth for the year to date across the business was 9% and that it continues to see full-year underlying growth in revenue and adjusted operating profit as momentum remains strong.
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St. James's Place 3Q Funds Under Management Fell; Remains Confident With 2022 Performance
St. James's Place PLC said Thursday that funds under management in the third quarter of 2022 decreased amid lower inflows, but added that it is comfortable with the full-year performance despite the challenging backdrop.
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Segro 3Q Rental Income Fell; Year-To-Date Rent Rose
Segro PLC said Thursday that contracted rental income fell 23% in the third quarter of 2022 and its vacancy rate slipped slightly, but that occupier demand was strong while year-to-date contracted rent rose.
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National Express 3Q Revenue Rose on Recovery in Passenger Journeys
National Express Group PLC said Thursday that revenue increased in its third quarter thanks to a continuing recovery in passenger journeys.
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Dunelm 1Q Sales Fall 8% Against Strong Comparatives; Backs FY 2023 Outlook
Dunelm Group PLC on Thursday reported an 8% fall in first-quarter sales against a strong comparative period, and backed its full year guidance as provided for last month.
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Travis Perkins 3Q Sales Rose; Sees Full-Year Operating Profit Slipping
Travis Perkins PLC said Thursday that its third-quarter sales rose and that it expects full-year operating profit to slip, falling around the middle of the current range of market expectations.
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Bunzl 3Q Revenue Rose on Organic Growth, Acquisitions
Bunzl PLC said Thursday that revenue for the third quarter rose after it booked organic growth and a boost from acquisitions.
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Mediazest FY 2022 Results to Be a Significant Improvement on Prior Year
Mediazest PLC said Thursday that it expects fiscal 2022 results to be a significant improvement on the prior year after encouraging demand across key sectors.
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RPS Group 3Q Fee Revenue Rose 15%; Order Book Up 5%
RPS Group PLC on Thursday reported a 15% rise in fee revenue for the third quarter of the year on a constant currency basis, which it attributed to positive market trends in urbanization, natural resources and sustainability.
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Jupiter Fund 3Q Assets Under Management Fell on Negative Market Movements
Jupiter Fund Management PLC said Thursday that assets under management fell in the third quarter amid a continued deterioration on investor sentiment.
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Naked Wines Trims FY 2023 Revenue Expectations; Replaces Chairman in Board Shakeup
Naked Wines PLC said Thursday that it has trimmed its revenue expectations for fiscal 2023, and that it is replacing its chairman amid a board reshuffle.
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XPS Pensions Group Raises FY 2023 Guidance After Strong 1H
XPS Pensions Group PLC on Thursday raised its full-year guidance for fiscal 2023 after a strong first-half performance which was driven by growth in all its business units.
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International Personal Finance 3Q Customer Lending Grew
International Personal Finance PLC said in a trading update Thursday that customer lending growth in the third quarter was 15%, with all divisions seeing positive performances.
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PensionBee Says on Track to Achieve 2023 Adjusted Ebitda Profit; 2022 Revenue Increase
PensionBee Group PLC said Thursday that it is on track to achieve adjusted Ebitda profitability by the end of 2023, but revenue for the current year is expected to come in toward the low end of its guidance as markets are likely to remain subdued.
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Fiske Swung to FY 2022 Pretax Loss; Chairman to Step Down Next Year
Fiske PLC said Thursday that it swung to a pretax loss in fiscal 2022 as revenue fell on macroeconomic volatility, and that Chairman Clive Harrison will step down in 2023.
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Centamin 3Q Revenue Rose on Higher Production; Backs 2022 Guidance
Centamin PLC on Thursday reported increased revenue for the third quarter on higher production and reaffirmed full-year production and cost guidance.
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IG Design 1H Performance Improved as Customers Place Orders Early; Shares Rise
Shares of IG Design Group PLC rose 9.3% on Thursday after the company said it expects to report an improved performance for the first half of fiscal 2023 as customers have placed their orders early to avoid the supply-chain issues that they experienced last year.
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GB Group Sees Higher 1H Revenue, Profit Despite Tough Comparators
GB Group PLC said in a trading update Thursday that it expects revenue and adjusted operating profit to grow in the first half, despite tough comparators driven by cryptocurrency last year.
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Luceco 3Q Revenue Fell, Sees 2022 Adjusted Operating Profit Slipping; Shares Fall
Luceco PLC shares fell Thursday after it said that third-quarter revenue fell and said it expects adjusted operating profit to fall for the full-year.
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Gear4Music 1H Sales Rose Slightly After Irish, Spanish Distribution Hub Rollout
Gear4Music (Holdings) PLC said in a performance update Thursday that sales for the first half rose slightly after the rollout of Irish and Spanish distribution hubs last year.
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Trifast Sees FY 2023 Profit Below Views on Inflationary Pressures
Trifast PLC said Thursday that it expects adjusted pretax profit for fiscal 2023 below market expectations, despite a revenue forecast ahead of views, due to inflationary pressures and price recovery lag.
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Synthomer Agrees with Lenders to Temporarily Relax Financial Covenants
Synthomer PLC said Thursday that it has agreed with its banking syndicate to relax a financial covenant, giving it increased financial headroom to the end of 2023.
Market Talk:
Segro Performing Well But Macroeconomics Weigh on Share Price
1009 GMT - Segro's balance sheet looks robust despite wider economic headwinds and the company has no material debt maturities until 2026, but the share price discount to its net tangible asset value is unlikely to reverse for a while, Shore Capital says. The company looks weighed by U.K. and European economic instability, inflation and bond yields, but it shouldn't be overlooked Segro delivered an impressive performance year-to-date, Shore analyst Andrew Saunders says in a note. "Management is also to be admired for continuing to deliver rental growth through challenging times and the company should ultimately emerge from the current economic gloom in strong shape for continued growth," Saunders says. Shore retains its hold rating on the stock. Shares are up 2.1% at 730.2 pence. (joseph.hoppe@wsj.com)
National Express 3Q May Prompt Rise in Consensus Expectations
1002 GMT - National Express's 3Q saw a recovery in passenger volumes result in group revenue around 5% above the levels seen in 2019 on a constant currency basis, Citi analyst Sathish Sivakumar says in a note. The transport operator reiterated guidance as its Spanish division, Alsa, which enjoyed strong volume growth of around 15% above 2019's levels, while North America revenue grew around 11% year-on-year. Meanwhile, U.K. revenue growth was around 30% compared with the same period last year, mostly driven by the performance of the coach business, Sivakumar says. "Overall, we see upside to consensus expectations," he says. Citi rates the stock buy and has a 350 pence target price. (anthony.orunagoriainoff@dowjones.com)
Dunelm's Value Brand Gives it Resilience
0958 GMT - Dunelm Group backing its full-year guidance despite a fall in 1Q revenue reflects business resiliency that is likely to benefit from it having a value brand amid a challenging sector backdrop, Hargreaves Lansdown senior investment and markets analyst Susannah Streeter says in a note. The U.K. home furnishings retailer has a wide range of products for the costumers that have been saving to add coziness to the home ahead of winter, Streeter adds. "If people feel they can't afford big items to freshen or refurbish the home, they may decide to make do with a cheaper makeover for now, which would benefit Dunelm," Streeter says. (michael.susin@wsj.com)
Sterling Might Be Vulnerable Even as Gilt Market Recovers
0948 GMT - Sterling looks vulnerable even as the gilt market has recovered since the U.K. government backtracked on unfunded fiscal stimulus, says MUFG currency analyst Lee Hardman in a note. "Regaining confidence in the U.K. public finances is not sufficient on its own to trigger a more sustained rebound for the pound," he says. The pound is "vulnerable to further weakness" given risks to economic growth from tighter fiscal policy and reduced pressure on the Bank of England to deliver hefty interest-rate rises, Hardman says. GBP/USD falls 0.2% to 1.1189 while EUR/GBP rises 0.3% to 0.8736. The 30-year gilt yield is at 3.935, down from Wednesday's close of 3.995, having risen above 5% just over a week ago, according to Tradeweb. (jessica.fleetham@wsj.com)
Contact: London NewsPlus; paul.larkins@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
10-20-22 1245ET
