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The FTSE100 has opened down nearly 30 points this morning at 6,683.78 as drugmaker AstraZeneca released updated late-stage clinical results showing its vaccine AZD1222 is 76% effective preventing symptomatic COVID-19.
This revised figure is slightly below the 79% efficacy reported earlier this week. The update comes after an independent agency in the U.S. requested up to date data from the phase 3 trial.
Astrazeneca's share price fell slightly on the back of the announcement to £71.03.
United Utilities expects group revenue to be lower this year, reflecting the reduction in 'allowed regulatory revenue', with lower consumption from businesses as a result of Covid-19 largely offset by higher consumption from households.
In a trading update, the company also said it expects underlying operating profit to be lower than 2019/20 largely reflecting the lower revenue and higher infrastructure renewals expenditure (IRE). Its share price was up 0.66% to 916p.
Primary Health Properties has announced a second quarterly interim dividend in 2021 of 1.55p per ordinary share of 12.5 pence each will be paid as a Property Income Distribution on 21 May 2021.
Plus500 has announced the proposed appointment of Professor Jacob A Frenkel as chairman of its board of directors. It is intended that he will succeed Penny Judd as chairman following the conclusion of the 2021 Annual General Meeting on 4 May 2021, subject to shareholder approval. The news boosted the share price up 0.44% to £13.76
Solar power renewable energy investment company, NextEnergy Solar Fund (NESF), has reached its subsidy-free development target of c.150MWp, through two newly approved subsidy-free development assets. Both assets are currently being prepared for construction and are expected to be energised in early 2022.
However, its share price fell slightly to 99.20p.
Cinema group Cineworld swung to a $3 billion annual loss on asset writedowns and lower revenue after Covid-19 restrictions forced it to shut its doors. For the year ended 31 December 2020, pre-tax losses were $3.0 billion, compared with a profit of $212.3 million last year as revenue fell 80.5% to $852.3 million.
Its share price fell 8.86% on the back of the announcement, to 93.82p.
Online trading brokerage CMC Markets upgraded its outlook on annual profit following strong fourth-quarter performance. For the financial year ended 31 March 2021, net operating income was now expected to be 'slightly ahead' of the upper end of the current range of consensus of £399.61 million, the company said.
The news sent its share price up almost 6% to 470p.
Food services group Compass said it expected to report a fall in organic revenue, but improved margins for the first of the year as the company continued to control costs and resize its business.
For the six months ending 31 March 2021, organic revenue was expected to to fall by 31% following a 33.7% fall in Q1 and 28% fall in Q2.