The FTSE 100 index closed higher on Tuesday, with Associated British Foods PLC leading the sessions risers list and Antofagasta PLC the fallers. "The FTSE is edging higher, lifted by large dollar-earning companies such as Diageo, Unilever and British American Tobacco as the pound falls. However, gains in the index are being capped by delays in lifting remaining Covid restrictions," says Sophie Griffiths, Market Analyst at OANDA. 


 
Companies News:

Sistema 1Q Net Loss Narrowed

Sistema JSFC said Tuesday that its net loss narrowed in the first quarter of 2021 as revenue rose, and that it expects 2021 revenue growth of no less than 4% for its telecommunications company, MTS.

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Pressure Technologies Shares Fall on Lower 2H Outlook; Swung to 1H Profit

Pressure Technologies PLC shares fell Tuesday after it said that it swung to a first-half pretax profit, but it lowered its expectations for the second half.

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UK Regulator to Probe NCR Corp.'s $2.5 Bln Cardtronics Acquisition

The U.K. Competition and Markets Authority said Tuesday that it has started an investigation into NCR Corp.'s $2.5 billion acquisition of ATM operator Cardtronics PLC to see if the deal will lead to a "substantial lessening" of competition.

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Sistema Increases Share Buyback to Maximum of RUB7 Bln

Sistema JSFC said Tuesday that it is increasing its share buyback program to up to 7.0 billion rubles ($97 million) until September 2022.

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Triad Group Shares Rise on Swing to Pretax Profit, Cash Increase

Shares in Triad Group PLC rose 13% Tuesday after the company reported a swing to pretax profit for fiscal 2021 due to lower costs, and said that its cash has increased significantly on the back of the move to profit as well as improvements in working capital.

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Sareum Holdings Launches Discounted Subscription Placing

Sareum Holdings PLC said Tuesday that it has launched a subscription share placing to raise 1.5 million pounds ($2.1 million) to be used toward two inhibitor drug development programs.

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Vaccitech Files 8K - Operations And Financial Condition >VACC

Vaccitech PLC (VACC) filed a Form 8K - Operations and Financial Condition - with the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission on June 14, 2021.

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Eni Agrees to Merger of Meleiha and Meleiha Deep Concessions in Egypt

Eni SpA said Tuesday that it has signed an agreement with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation and Lukoil PJSC for the merger of two concessions in the country's western desert.

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Phoenix Ends Talks to Sell European Business

Phoenix Group Holdings PLC said Tuesday that it has decided to discontinue the advanced discussions it had with a third party to sell its European businesses.

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Pelatro Raises GBP1.2 Mln via Discounted Offer

Pelatro PLC said Tuesday that it has raised 1.2 million pounds ($1.7 million) via a discounted PrimaryBid offer.

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Wentworth Resources Says 29% of Shareholders Rejected Remuneration Report

Wentworth Resources PLC said Tuesday that 29.29% of its shareholders voted against an advisory resolution on the director's remuneration report at the annual meeting.

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Riverstone Energy Invests $20 Mln in Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corp III

Riverstone Energy Ltd. said Tuesday that it has agreed to purchase $20 million worth of Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corp. III stock in a private-placement transaction.

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Concurrent Technologies Says 1H Should Meet Expectations

Concurrent Technologies PLC said Tuesday that it expects results for the first half of the year to be in line with its guidance, but that it is taking a cautious approach to revenue expectations for the full year. 


 
Market Talk:

Ashtead Is Riding US Recovery

1201 GMT - Ashtead has posted solid results as a recovery in the U.S. economy looks to drive a revival in the industrial-equipment-rental company's fortunes, AJ Bell says. "After the ultimately minor dip in pretax profit in the year to April, analysts are looking for momentum to continue into the new financial year, when earnings are expected to grow by 11%--although profits are not expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels until the year to April 2023," the brokerage says. Ashtead has a resilient operating model, strong cash flows and excellent dividend records, but investors shouldn't confuse a solid model with safety given its currently huge premium to the wider FTSE 100, AJ Bell says. Shares are up 3.6% at 5,268 pence.

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Non-Standard Finance's Sector Prospects Seen as Positive

1057 GMT - Non-Standard Finance should benefit from strong opportunities for growth in its sector in the aftermath of the coronavirus crisis, Shore Capital says. "A well-capitalized and well-funded lender should be able to capture growth subject to being able to operate within the constraints of a market that has become much more tightly regulated in recent years," the U.K. brokerage says on the subprime lender's prospects.

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BOE Expected to Stay Put at June's Meeting

1036 GMT - The Bank of England is expected to keep its monetary policy unchanged at its next meeting at the end of June, though it's likely to sound more upbeat about the economy, says HSBC. The U.K.-based bank expects no change to the May vote, with 9-0 voting to keep Bank Rate on hold at 0.10%, and 8-1 in favour of keeping the quantitative easing target unchanged at GBP895bn. "The data have been strong and we expect a relatively upbeat tone to the minutes, despite the delay to unlocking," senior economists Elizabeth Martins says. The U.K. now plans to lift the remaining Covid-19 restrictions on July 19, after delaying unlocking by four weeks.

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Allocation to Global Equities Rises in June

1022 GMT - Fund managers' global equities allocation rose in June as investors took on more risk, a closely-watched Bank of America survey showed Tuesday. Global equity allocation reached a year-to-date high of net 61% overweight this month, up 7 percentage points from May, according to BofA's fund manager survey. Allocation to U.S. equities remained steady at net 6% overweight while allocation to eurozone equities rose 6 percentage points to net 41% overweight and allocation to U.K. equities increased 2 percentage points to 4% overweight, the highest since March 2014. Some 18% investors said they were taking higher-than-normal risks, up 4 percentage points from a month ago.

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IG Design Set to Deliver Strong Growth With New Plan, Canaccord Says

1018 GMT - IG Design Group is well positioned to deliver attractive and sustained growth in shareholder value in the future, through a combination of organic growth and acquisitions, Canaccord Genuity says. The gift-products designer, manufacturer and distributor's ambitious new growth plan to double revenue and Ebitda through a combination of organic growth and acquisitions will likely further support the company's medium-term growth ambitions, the Canadian investment bank says. Canaccord raises its forecasts for IG's fiscal 2022 sales to $938.7 million from $894.2 million, and its adjusted Ebitda forecast to $95.3 million from $92.9 million. Canaccord retains its buy rating and 790 pence price target. Shares are down 1.4% at 567.0 pence.

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Corporate Insolvencies in England, Wales Tick Higher

1015 GMT - Corporate insolvencies in England and Wales increased in May, in the latest sign that businesses still face choppy trading conditions, says R3, which represents insolvency and restructuring practitioners in the U.K. Corporate insolvencies increased by 8.8% to 1,011 in May compared with April's figure of 929, and increased by 6.9% compared with May 2020's figure of 946. "Today's increase in corporate insolvencies has been driven by a rise in Creditors' Voluntary Liquidations, while administrations have fallen to the lowest number since the start of the pandemic," says R3's Duncan Swift. While it is too early to say whether the mild increase in corporate insolvency numbers is the start of something bigger, times remain tough for U.K. businesses, he adds.

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Kin & Carta's Core Business Momentum Coming to the Fore

1011 GMT - Kin & Carta is now showing strong underlying core business momentum, which had been hidden by the pandemic as well as its own internal transformation, Numis says. The digital-transformation consultancy is converting its high order backlog well, implying material growth in the second half as digital-transformation trends accelerate after the Covid-19 pause, the U.K. brokerage says. "A highly valued, high-growth, software/services-driven peer group suggests Kin & Carta remains relatively modestly rated, despite recent share-price strength," the broker says. Numis has a buy rating on the stock and a 295 pence target price. Shares are up 22% at 241 pence.

Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; +44-20-7842-931

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

06-15-21 1212ET