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Big News
Savills CEO steps down after nearly 40 years at firm
Thursday 18 Jan 2018Property business Savills ( SVS ) is set for new leadership after chief executive Jeremy Helsby announced plans to retire at the end of 2018 after a decade at the helm. Current UK and Europe boss Mark Ridley will take the top job. The news was announced alongside a trading update revealing a...
Sting in the tail for BP on Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Thursday 18 Jan 2018The fall-out from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill still has the capacity to throw up the odd nasty surprise for oil major BP ( BP. ) . While for the most part the company has been able to leave this near-existential crisis behind it, BP has now announced that higher BEL (Business Economic Loss...
Dividend downgrades for Card Factory
Thursday 18 Jan 2018Greetings cards-to-gifts retailer Card Factory’s ( CARD ) income credentials have weakened following a warning (11 Jan) full year earnings will disappoint due to ‘continued margin pressure’. We mentioned Card Factory, which pays a big chunk of its shareholder rewards as special dividends, in an...
Coal hits one-year high
Thursday 11 Jan 2018Power-generating thermal coal has reached its highest levels since late 2016 above $100 per tonne as strong manufacturing activity in Asia and China supports prices. A lack of new projects amid environmental concerns means supply is tight. Most observers expect any strength in coal to be short-...
Eco Atlantic gets Exxon discovery boost
Thursday 11 Jan 2018Oil exploration firm Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas ( ECO:AIM ) has enjoyed a storming start to 2018 with its share price up 90% year-to-date to 33.4p. The rally is thanks to US oil major ExxonMobil announcing a sixth big discovery on the Stabroek block, Guyana. This asset neighbours Eco’s 40%-owned...
The week in a minute
Thursday 11 Jan 2018GOOD NEWS Plus500 ( PLUS:AIM ) : Trading is yet again ahead of market expectations, prompting analysts to upgrade forecasts. Johnson Service ( JSG:AIM ) : Expects full year results to be ahead of management expectations. H&T ( HAT:AIM ) : Says full year pre-tax profit will be ahead of market...
Christmas boost for grocers
Thursday 11 Jan 2018Boosted by significant inflation, overall supermarket sales shot up by 3.8% in value over the 12 weeks to 31 December, an additional £1bn ringing through the tills versus the 2016 Christmas period. So says Kantar Worldpanel, whose latest grocery market share figures (9 Jan) reveal the average...
Which UK-listed stocks are affected by US tax reform?
Thursday 11 Jan 2018The green light for US tax reform is a potential boost for several UK-listed businesses with significant US operations. Some are taking hefty charges as they recalculate deferred tax assets. However, these one-off charges will have no cash impact and a cut in corporation tax from 35% to 21% is...
Where to invest your Worldpay takeover proceeds
Thursday 11 Jan 2018Shareholders in payment processing group Worldpay ( WPG ) will receive a mixture of cash and shares later this month in relation to the FTSE 100 member’s takeover by US peer Vantiv. They will get shares in the enlarged business which will be renamed Worldpay Inc and be listed on both the London and...
Is Mothercare a takeover target after share price slump?
Thursday 11 Jan 2018As Shares goes to press, the flurry of festive updates from retailers is arriving and proving something of a mixed bag. Set against low expectations, particularly for non-food categories, high street bellwether Next ( NXT ) fared better than feared over the Christmas period and WM Morrisons...