Sterling Boosted by Profit-Taking, Position-Closing

Sterling's recent gains probably reflect profit-taking or a closing of positions following previous sharp declines, given the absence of positive catalysts, BDSwiss says. "I struggle to find any fundamental reason why the currency should be gaining," BDSwiss analyst Marshall Gittler says. The Bank of England's senior officials have recently provided mixed messaging on whether an interest rate rise is imminent while political uncertainty is "heating up" with rising tensions between the U.K. and EU over the Northern Ireland protocol that is part of the Brexit trade deal, he says. 


 
Companies News:

AB Foods Reports FY 2021 Earnings Rise with Primark Growth, Declares Special Dividend

Associated British Foods PLC on Tuesday reported higher profits for the fiscal year ended Sept. 18, as Primark earnings rose, and declared a special dividend alongside the ordinary payment.

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Persimmon Sales Remain Above Pre-Pandemic Levels; Sees 2021 Increase

Persimmon PLC said Tuesday that performance over the summer was good with private sales reservations rates well above pre-pandemic levels, and that it expects full-year completions to increase.

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Rolls-Royce Holdings Gets Funding to Develop Nuclear Reactors

Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC said Tuesday that it has established the Rolls-Royce Small Modular Reactor business as part of the U.K. Government's net zero strategy and 10-point plan.

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Vistry Sees 2021 Profit in Line With Management Views

Vistry Group PLC said Tuesday that it is on track to deliver 2021 pretax profit in line with management expectations, and it has a strong forward sales position going into 2022.

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Coca-Cola Europacific Partners 3Q Revenue Rose; Raises 2021 Guidance

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners PLC said Tuesday that revenue for the third quarter rose, and that it is raising its guidance for the year.

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Savills Sees 2021 Profit Ahead of Pre-Pandemic Levels

Savills PLC said Tuesday that its performance has been strong since June, and that it expects full-year profit to materially exceed levels achieved before the coronavirus pandemic.

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Direct Line Insurance: 3Q Gross Written Premiums Grew But Own-Brand Motor Reduced

Direct Line Insurance Group PLC said on Tuesday that gross written premiums increased in the third quarter of 2021 but its own-brand motor premiums fell.

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Grafton Group Says 10-Month Revenue Increased; Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance

Grafton Group PLC said Tuesday that revenue in the first ten months of the year grew steadily on strong demand, and that it is increasing its adjusted operating profit guidance for the full year.

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Blue Prism Group Sees Higher FY 2021 Bookings; Backs FY Earnings Guidance

Blue Prism Group PLC said Tuesday that it expects total bookings for fiscal 2021 to be higher than last year and backed its earnings guidance.

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GYG Says 2021 Results Will Be Below Expectations After Shipyard Disruption

GYG PLC said on Tuesday that its financial outturn for 2021 will be much lower than the board's previous expectations.

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3i Infrastructure 1H Profit Rose; Raises Dividend

3i Infrastructure PLC said Tuesday that pretax profit in the first half of fiscal 2022 rose significantly on higher investment returns and a strong portfolio performance, and raised its interim dividend.

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Oxford Nanopore Technologies Raises Revenue Guidance on Contract Win

Oxford Nanopore Technologies PLC said Tuesday it is increasing its revenue guidance for 2022 and 2023 after it won a large contract in the United Arab Emirates.

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James Cropper Shares Rise on 1H Swing to Profit, Return of Dividends

James Cropper PLC shares rose in early trading Tuesday after it said it swung to a pretax profit for the first half of fiscal 2021, and reintroduced dividends.

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Arc Minerals Says Order on Zambian Mine Has Been Set Aside

Arc Minerals Ltd. said Tuesday that a court has ruled in favor of its Zambian subsidiaries in a case related to the Kalaba mine.

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Alfa Financial 3Q Revenue Rose; 2021 Revenue Seen Ahead of Views

Alfa Financial Software Holdings PLC said Tuesday that revenue for the third quarter rose, and that it expects to exceed the board's 2021 revenue estimates by around 3%.

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Oxford Instruments 1H Pretax Profit Grew, Backs FY View

Oxford Instruments PLC on Tuesday reported an improved profit for the first half of the fiscal year and said its full-year expectations are unchanged despite supply chain pressures.

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Watches of Switzerland Shares Jump on Improved Outlook

Shares of Watches of Switzerland Group PLC rose on Tuesday after the company upgraded its full-year guidance after a better-than-expected performance over the first half of fiscal 2022 on strong demand. 


 
Market Talk:

Petrofac Could Achieve Medium-Term Growth Targets by 2025

Petrofac may be able to secure around $3 billion of engineering and construction contract awards next year, Jefferies estimates. Such an orderbook would allow the energy-services company to return to growth from 2023 and ultimately achieve its medium-term ambition of $4 billion-$5 billion revenue with 6%-8% EBIT margin by 2025, the bank says. Jefferies upgrades the stock to buy, noting that the SFO case has been settled, OPEC+ is under pressure to increase production, and Petrofac has a material offshore wind track record. "We believe new awards in both areas will now come through, in addition to North Sea O&M contract renewals, all of which will benefit reset equity & balance sheet."

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AB Foods Shares Rise as Primark Outlook Improves

There is a lot to like about Associated British Foods's results for fiscal 2021, AJ Bell analyst Russ Mould says, as shares in the British conglomerate climb 5.7%. Attention is centered on Primark, and the outlook for the fashion brand is improving, he says. Lockdowns and forced store closures are now hopefully a thing of the past, and the company can concentrate once again on its expansion plans, particularly in the U.S., he says. "Primark is one of the few brands which still draws in the crowds on the high street which says something about how successful the business has been," Mould says.

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Direct Line Falls After 3Q Update

Direct Line Insurance Group drops 1.5% to 284 pence after the insurer reported higher third-quarter gross written premiums, but said its own-brand motor premiums fell. The update is positive overall and shows the company's strategy is working, Panmure Gordon says. While motor pricing is stabilizing and likely to improve, Direct Line has shown it doesn't need significant price increases to expand and its competitive edge of lower claims inflation should help it to weather the pricing cycle and achieve long-term organic growth, the brokerage says. "However, we continue to believe special dividends are the preferred route for shareholders rather than buybacks. We reiterate our buy rating with a reduced target price of 350p," Panmure analyst Ming Zhu says.

Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Dow Jones Newswires; sarka.halas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

11-09-21 0651ET