FTSE 100 Falls as Oil Stocks Drop; Experian Gains
0807 GMT - The FTSE 100 Index drops 0.1%, or four points to 7087 as losses for oil shares offset gains for Experian and financial stocks. Experian rises 5% after the credit-checking firm reported higher first-quarter revenue, while insurers Prudential and Admiral also advance. Still, BP and Royal Dutch Shell are among the biggest fallers as Brent crude drops 1.6% to $73.56 a barrel. "Reports of a deal between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates put the spotlight back on crude today, with markets eagerly awaiting details of who gave concessions to find an agreement," IG says. (philip.waller@wsj.com)
Companies News:
Kingfisher Raises 1H Guidance for LfL Sales, Adjusted Pretax Profit
Kingfisher PLC on Wednesday raised its like-for-like sales and adjusted profit guidance for the first half of fiscal 2022 following continued strong demand in the second quarter to date.
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Severn Trent Says Has Made Good Start to FY 2022; Outlook Unchanged
Severn Trent PLC said Thursday that it has made a good start to fiscal 2022, and that its outlook for the year remains unchanged.
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Hammerson Collects Most of 2021 Rent Due to Date, Footfall Encouraging
Hammerson PLC said Thursday that it has collected around 62% of its 2021 rent due to date, and that footfall trends are encouraging.
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ASOS Four-Month Revenue Rose Significantly, Boosted by UK Retail Sales
ASOS PLC said Thursday that revenue for the first four months of fiscal 2022 rose materially, and that it expects to post a full-year adjusted pretax profit in line with management views.
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Galliford Try Expects FY 2021 Pretax Profit at Upper End of Market Views
Galliford Try Holdings PLC said Thursday that it expects to report fiscal 2021 pretax profit at the upper levels of market consensus ranges and its outlook is positive.
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Darktrace Raises FY 2022 Guidance After Strong 2H 2021
Darktrace PLC on Thursday raised its expectations for fiscal 2022 after a strong second half of fiscal 2021.
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Brooks Macdonald's 4Q Funds Under Management Hit Record
Brooks Macdonald Group PLC said Thursday that it expects to post full-year results in line with market expectations and its own guidance after closing the year with a record funds under management performance.
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STV Group PLC 1H Advertising Growth Exceeded Market Views
STV Group PLC said Thursday that it made a strong start to 2021, with high levels of TV and digital audiences leading to advertising revenue growth ahead of market expectations.
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Bango 1H Earnings, Revenue Grew
Bango PLC said Thursday that earnings and revenue rose in the first half as the number of payments and users increased.
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Immedia Ends Talks to Buy Sprift Technologies; Mulls Sale of Main Unit
Immedia Group PLC said Thursday that it has ended talks to buy Sprift Technologies Ltd. with immediate effect, without giving any further information.
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Costain Group Says 1H Cash Position Ahead of Its Expectations
Costain Group PLC said Thursday that its net cash position was ahead of the company's expectations at the end of the first half while its order backlog was slightly below the level of a year earlier.
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Hays Fourth-Quarter Net Fees Rise 39%
Hays PLC said on Thursday that net fees rose 39% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021, and that although it entered fiscal 2022 with a positive trading momentum, a strong pound will likely act as a headwind to operating profit.
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Nuformix FY 2021 Operating Loss Widened on Development Costs
U.K. pharmaceutical development company Nuformix plc said Thursday that its loss widened in the 2021 financial year due to costs related to developing pipeline assets.
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BBGI Global Infrastructure Increases Share Placing to GBP75 Mln
BBGI Global Infrastructure S.A. said Thursday that is raising 75 million pounds ($104 million) via a share placing first announced last week, more than initially planed due to investor demand.
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Johnson Service's June Workwear Volumes at 98% of Normal Levels
Johnson Service Group PLC said Thursday that workwear volumes in June were at 98% of normal levels and that it has seen an uptick in sales opportunities in the six months to June 30 as businesses return to more normal trading patterns.
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Glanbia Raises FY Guidance After 1H Revenue Growth
Glanbia PLC said Thursday that revenue rose significantly in the first half of fiscal 2022, which has made the company upgrade its expectations for the full year.
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Gresham House 1H Assets Under Management Rose In Line With Views
Gresham House PLC said Thursday that assets under management rose in the first half of the year, delivering a performance in line with market expectations.
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Experian 1Q Total Revenue Rose; Expects to Book FY 2022 Further Growth
Experian PLC said Thursday that revenue for the first quarter of fiscal 2022 rose significantly at constant exchange rates thanks to all regions and segments delivering growth for the period, and said that it expects to report total revenue growth in the range of 13% and 15%.
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W.H. Ireland Swung to Pretax Profit for FY 2021
W.H. Ireland Group PLC said Thursday that it swung to pretax profit for fiscal 2021, its first profit for the last five years.
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Water Intelligence to Raise $10.2 Mln, More than Planned
Water Intelligence PLC said Thursday that it is now raising $10.2 million via its fundraising first announced on Wednesday, more than planned due to demand.
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Capital Ltd. 1H Revenue Rose Sharply, Raises Full-Year Guidance
Capital Ltd. said Thursday that its first-half revenue rose to a record high, up 52% on-year, and that it has raised 2021 revenue guidance.
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Alumasc Group FY 2021 Pretax Profit Expected Above Views as Revenue Grew
Alumasc Group PLC said Thursday that pretax profit for fiscal 2021 will come ahead of its expectations as revenue grew during the period.
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Air Partner Sees 57% on Year Rise in JetCard Bookings for Private-Jets Business
Air Partner PLC said Thursday that its Private Jets business saw a 57% on-year rise in JetCard bookings in the period from Feb. 1 to June 30, and that JetCard members and customer deposits were up globally as travel restrictions stemming from the pandemic eased.
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Jarvis Securities 1H Profit, Revenue Rose
Jarvis Securities PLC on Thursday posted an increased pretax profit and higher revenue for the first half of the year amid favorable trading conditions and growth in the business.
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Nanoco Raises GBP3.2 Mln in Loan Note Subscription
Nanoco Group PLC shares rose Thursday after it said that it has raised 3.2 million pounds ($4.4 million) through a non-dilutive loan note subscription, extending its cash runway.
Market Talk:
Kingfisher 1H Guidance Implies 8% Raise to FY Profit Consensus
0804 GMT - Jefferies expects to see Kingfisher benefiting from an 8% upgrade to full-year pretax profit consensus after the the home-improvement retailer issued new first-half pretax profit guidance. The market currently expects Kingfisher to report a second-half pretax profit of GBP264 million, with Jefferies anticipating a profit of GBP250 million for the period. "The fundamental reasons to own the shares remain the major rebuild in French margins," Jefferies says. Shares are up 1.6% at 368.20 pence. (sabela.ojea@wsj.com; @sabelaojeaguix)
Experian Faces Risk From US Economic Equality Drive
0808 GMT - Shares in Experian rise 5% after the credit-checking firm reported higher first-quarter revenue. Despite excellent environmental, social and governance reporting, RBC Capital Markets says it believes Experian is at longer-term risk of significant financial disruption from U.S. proposals to tackle economic inequality via changes to credit scoring and data regulation. "We think this material risk is at odds with the highly positive consensus view on the stock and believe the proposed policies could affect revenues in both the U.S. consumer-information bureau and consumer services divisions," RBC analyst Karl Green says. (philip.waller@wsj.com)
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
07-15-21 0427ET
