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magazineBurberry, Sports Direct, Ryanair and other big news
It’s been a good week for British luxury brand Burberry (BRBY), which added more than £1bn to its market value after better than expected first quarter results.
Its shares rose 12.7% to £22.44 following a 4% rise in comparable store revenues. The iconic brand has man of the moment Riccardo Tisci to thank. The Italian fashion designer, renowned for his work at French fashion house Givenchy, has produced a swathe of new designs for Burberry. And it is the increased availability of his products which has driven the company’s improved results.
DELAYED RESULTS
Shares in Sports Direct (SPD) plunged 15% to 237p after it delayed publishing its full-year results. The sports retailer cited uncertainty around trading in its House of Fraser chain for the delays, as well as its auditor Grant Thornton facing increased scrutiny for working with Sports Direct.
Two firms who’ve also had a bad week are software company Micro Focus (MCRO) and recruiter PageGroup (PAGE).
Shares in Micro Focus fell 17.3% to around £16.52 after executive chairman Kevin Loosemore sold £11.6m worth of personal shares in the business, casting a gloomy shadow over the firm’s near-term prospects in the eyes of investors.
PageGroup tumbled 17% after it warned profits would be lower than expected because Brexit, trade wars and the Hong Kong protests have lowered the number of people being hired in its markets across the world.
AIRLINE TURBULENCE
Ryanair’s (RYA) shares rallied despite cuts to routes and lowered growth ambitions as 737 MAX delays hit home. The low-cost Irish airline said it expected to get only 30 of the 58 jets it ordered from Boeing by May 2020, meaning it has had to scale back its anticipated growth next summer from 7% to 3% by lowering its number of flights.
The rise in the share price could have been a result of the airline tackling the issue by looking to make itself leaner, moves that could act as a defence mechanism for future profits.
Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary said as a direct result of the Boeing delays, the company is starting talks with airports to determine which of its underperforming or loss-making bases should receive cuts or closures from November 2019.
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