FTSE 100 Closes Up 0.6% After Breaking 8000 Point Mark Earlier in the Day

The FTSE 100 closed up 0.6% at 7997.83 on Wednesday after breaking the 8000 mark earlier in the session. "It is redemption day for the FTSE 100 as it breached the 8,000 mark after a long spell in the wilderness. The 8,000 level is a purely psychological milestone, but investors in the U.K. stock market will nonetheless be happily counting their coffers after a year in which it has been one of the best performing major markets," AJ Bell head of investment analysis Laith Khalaf says in a research note. Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust led the risers, ending up 4.0%, while Barclays was the biggest faller, finishing down 7.9%.

 
Companies News: 

Barclays 4Q Pretax Profit Misses Consensus

Barclays PLC on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter pretax profit below market views as it declared a higher total dividend for the year and said it intends to launch a share buyback.

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Hargreaves Lansdown Beat 1H Revenue Expectations as Net Interest Margin Levels Rose

Hargreaves Lansdown PLC said Wednesday that it beat revenue expectations for the first half of fiscal 2023 as net interest margin levels increased, in turn leading to a rise in pretax profit for the period.

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Dunelm 1H Pretax Profit Slipped as Expected; Declares Increased Dividends

Dunelm Group PLC said Wednesday that pretax profit fell for the first half of fiscal 2023 as expected, though revenue rose and it declared increased special and interim dividends.

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LPA Group Sees FY 2023 in Line With Its Views; Wins GBP5.3 Mln Order

LPA Group PLC said Wednesday that it has received a 5.3 million pounds ($6.5 million) order to supply electro-mechanical products to the U.K. rail industry and that it is on track to deliver results for fiscal 2023 in line with its expectations.

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Brighton Pier Reports Strong Trading Across All Units Over 78-Week Period

Brighton Pier Group PLC said Wednesday that it performed well over the 78 weeks ended Dec. 25 with strong trading across all its divisions, helped by the acquisition of Lightwater Valley in June 2021 as well as government Covid-19 support and pent-up demand.

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Serinus Energy Wins Arbitration Case Against Former Romanian Partner

Serinus Energy PLC said Wednesday that it has won an arbitration case against Oilfield Exploration Business Solutions SA, its former partner in the Satu Mare Concession in Romania, taking control of its stake.

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Gattaca Warns of 2H Permanent Hiring Weakness; 1H Net Fee Income Rose

Gattaca PLC said Wednesday that permanent hiring in the second half of fiscal 2023 is likely to be hurt but that net fee income for the first half rose.

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Barclays 4Q Pretax Profit Misses Views, Issues 2023 Guidance -- Update

Barclays PLC on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter pretax profit below market expectations and issued guidance for the year ahead.

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Zephyr Energy Sees Williston Assets 2022 Revenue Beating Guidance

Zephyr Energy PLC said Wednesday that it expects 2022 revenue from its Williston Basin assets in North Dakota, U.S., to beat guidance as fourth-quarter net revenue to the company totaled $7.4 million.

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Sondrel's 2022 Revenue, New Orders Significantly Rose

Sondrel (Holdings) PLC said Wednesday that its 2022 revenue rose significantly on year, and it received an all-time high number of new design orders.

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Barclays' investment bank profit slides 23% as dealmaking fees slide -- Financial News

Barclays' dealmaking fees slipped by 39% to GBP2.2bn, which was the smallest drop of its Wall Street and European rivals

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Getech CEO Jonathan Copus to Step Down at End of February

Getech Group PLC said Wednesday that Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Copus will step down from the role and board at the end of February, and Nonexecutive Chairman Richard Bennett will assume the role of interim executive chairman.

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Bidstack Group Names Thomas Bullen as New CFO

Bidstack Group PLC on Wednesday appointed Thomas Bullen as chief financial officer and said current interim CFO Bhavesh Hirani will resume his role as head of finance.

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Doric Nimrod Air Two Names Fiona Le Poidevin As New Chair

Doric Nimrod Air Two Ltd. on Wednesday said its board will be chaired by Fiona Le Poidevin as of March 1 as Geoffrey Hall stepped down from his position as chair.

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Corero Network CEO Lionel Chmilewsky Resigns

Corero Network Security PLC said Wednesday that Chief Executive Officer Lionel Chmilewsky has resigned with effect from Feb. 28 to pursue other opportunities, but will remain at the company until May 31 to ensure a smooth handover.

 
Market Talk: 

UK Favorable Inflation Data Masks Persisting Price Pressures

0803 GMT - U.K. consumer-prices data for January looks encouraging, but it is only a small step in the right direction as inflation pressures persist amid a tight labor market, J.P. Morgan Asset Management global market strategist Hugh Gimber says in a note. The monthly decline in price pressures in services such as restaurants and hotels is welcome as these sectors have experienced acute labor shortages, he says. Still, the Bank of England faces a long journey to get inflation back to the 2% target and a tight labor market will make it more difficult, Gimber says. "The overall message from this week's data is that inflationary pressures in the U.K. economy remain strong, and further [interest] rate hikes are necessary," he says. ([e-mail])

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Barclays' Buyback Isn't Good Enough, Jefferies Says

0806 GMT - Barclays' intended share buyback is underwhelming, Jefferies says in a note after the U.K. lender posted weaker fourth-quarter results. "The GBP500 million share buyback isn't good enough in our view as worth only 15bps of capital against CET1 ratio of 13.9%, 30bps ahead of consensus," analyst Joseph Dickerson and associate Aqil Taiyeb say. Consensus expected a GBP675 million buyback and Jefferies' estimate stood at GBP1.0 billion. They add the bank's 2023 outlook is hard to read against consensus. The brokerage rates the stock buy. ([e-mail])

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Barclays's 4Q Print, Outlook Disappoints, Says Citi

0816 GMT - Barclays's set of figures is disappointing overall and the stock has had a good run into numbers, Citi says in a note after the U.K. lender posted a fourth-quarter pretax profit and revenue miss. "At face value, if one were to plug in the [Barclays UK net interest margin guidance] and group loan loss guidance, then the impact on consensus earnings should net out, but we expect the lower top-line progression will be met with disappointment," says analyst Andrew Coombs on the bank's outlook. He sees the disappointing Barclays UK net interest income guidance leading to readacross to peers Lloyds and Natwest. Barclays shares trade 7.4% lower while Lloyds and Natwest shed 2.3% and 2.5% respectively. Citi rates Barclays stock buy. ([e-mail])

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Pound May Fall as Pause in Rate Rises Looms if Inflation Eases Further

0827 GMT - Sterling could fall further as the Bank of England may soon pause interest rate rises if inflation continues to ease, ING says. Data on Wednesdazy showed U.K. inflation decelerated to 10.1% year-on-year in January from 10.5% in December, compared to expectations of 10.3% in a WSJ survey of analysts. The BOE's focus on inflation persistence means it's not looking at single-month inflation changes but Wednesday's data go against its forecast, ING analyst Francesco Pesole says in a note. "We would still expect a 25 basis points [rate] hike in March, but if this trend continues then it would heavily lean towards a pause in May." EUR/GBP could rise to 0.9000 over the course of 2023 from 0.8870 currently, Pesole says. ([e-mail])

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UK Gilt Yields Drop as Inflation Falls Below Expectation

0835 GMT - U.K. gilt yields drop after official data showed U.K. inflation in January fell to 10.1%, below the 10.3% consensus in a WSJ poll. The 10-year gilt yield last trades down nearly 8 basis points at 3.433%, while the 2-year gilt yield is down around 10 basis points at 3.670%, according to Tradeweb. "Inflation marched one step closer to that Government target of halving by the end of the year. We saw a chunky fall in the CPI rate of inflation from 10.5% in December down to 10.1% in January, as various areas of our lives were less expensive," says AJ Bell head of personal finance Laura Suter in a note. ([e-mail])

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Hargreaves Lansdown's 1H to Be Well Received by Investors

0838 GMT - Hargreaves Lansdown's 1H net inflows and assets under administration were broadly in line with consensus as revenue of GBP350 million beat consensus by 9%, driven by higher cash margins, Citi analyst Nicholas Herman says. Higher cash margins for the retail-investment platform have increased revenue margin guidance by 4% to 50-55 basis points, from 49-52 bps, with cost guidance broadly in line with consensus, Herman says. "Amid weak sentiment on the stock, we believe that this should be well received and for the shares to perform well on the back of these results," Herman says. Citi rates the stock neutral with a 910 pence target price. Shares are up 3.7% at 983.20 pence. ([e-mail])

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Barclays's 2023 Guidance Looks Unambitious, Says RBC

0839 GMT - Barclays's guidance for the year ahead is unambitious, says RBC Capital Markets in a note after the U.K. bank posted fourth-quarter results below market views. "The operating environment is currently very good for U.K. banks, however we see more risk at BARC vs. peers that an 'unknown-unknown' derails the positive story," says analyst Benjamin Toms. Interest-rate sensitivity from lower-than-expected deposit betas in the U.K. is providing useful momentum to the bank's income statement, but not as much as some peers, says the analyst. RBC has a sector perform rating on the stock. Shares drop 8.1% at 172.1 pence. ([e-mail])

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Barclays Recent Rally Points to Changing Fortunes Despite 4Q Blow

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02-15-23 1255ET