The FTSE 100 closed Thursday down 0.1% at 7730 points, dragged by the miners and oil-exposed stocks, after the Bank of England raised interest rates and reiterated that further increases are likely if inflation proves persistent. "We see this as a clear signal that at least one additional hike is on the way in June, with another to perhaps follow in August," Ebury strategist Matthew Ryan said in a note. The aerospace and defense company Rolls-Royce lead the falls, down 6.65%, followed by Airtel Africa, which saw its shares drop 5.3% after reporting a worse-than-expected 2023 performance.
COMPANIES NEWS:
Airtel Africa FY 2023 Pretax Profit Fell, Revenue Rose; Misses Market Views
Airtel Africa said Thursday that its fiscal 2023 pretax profit fell on higher foreign exchange losses and derivative losses, while revenue rose but below market expectations.
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John Wood Group Backs 2023 Guidance as 1Q Revenue Rose
John Wood Group said Thursday that revenue rose in the first quarter of the year, while earnings came in line, and backed its full-year outlook.
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3i Group FY 2023 Pretax Profit Rose on Investment Returns
3i Group on Thursday said its pretax profit for fiscal 2023 rose as its net asset value per share beat expectations and it flagged good momentum across its portfolio.
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JD Sports Names Dominic Platt as Incoming CFO
JD Sports Fashion said Thursday that it has appointed BGL Group Ltd.'s Chief Financial Officer Dominic Platt as its own incoming CFO, currently expected to join later this year.
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ITV 1Q Revenue Fell as Advertising Declined
ITV PLC said Thursday that first-quarter revenue fell, but that it performed in line with expectations as its total advertising revenue decreased.
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Rolls-Royce Performance to Date is in Line With Views, Strategic Review on Track
Rolls-Royce Holdings said Thursday that its financial performance for the year to date is in line with expectations and that the strategic review is on track.
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TBC Bank Backs Mid-Term Targets After 1Q Pretax Profit Rose
TBC Bank Group on Thursday said its pretax profit for the first quarter of 2023 rose on both interest and non-interest income and reiterated its mid-term targets.
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Grainger 1H Profit Drops on Property Revaluations; Rental Income Rose
Grainger on Thursday reported a significant drop in first-half pretax profit on a reversal in property valuations, though rental income rose and it hiked its dividend.
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Ashtead Technology Shareholder Sells Shares at 360 Pence Each
Numis Securities said Thursday that it has sold 7.2 million ordinary shares in Ashtead Technology Holdings at 360 pence each on behalf of BP Inv2B Bidco and Joe Connolly, as first announced late Wednesday.
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Character Group 1H Pretax Profit Fell as Sales Dropped
Character Group said Thursday that its pretax profit dropped in the first half of fiscal 2023 as revenue fell 36%, but that it expects significant improvement in the second half of the year.
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Man Group Names Robyn Grew CEO as Luke Ellis Retires
Man Group PLC on Thursday appointed Robyn Grew as its next chief executive officer after Luke Ellis said he is retiring.
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Abrdn ditches co-CEOs in investments division overhaul -- Financial News
René Buehlmann will become sole CEO of Abrdn's investments business
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Costain Says Performance Is Meeting Management Views, Is Confident in Long-Term Prospects
Costain said Thursday that it is performing in line with management expectations, and while it is mindful of the macroeconomic backdrop, it remains confident in its strategy and long-term prospects.
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S4 Capital 1Q Revenue Rose Led by Strength in the Americas
S4 Capital said Thursday that revenue rose in the first quarter, led by strength in the Americas and reflecting the growing relative importance of North and South America.
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MTN Group 1Q Earnings Rose; Backs FY View
MTN Group Ltd. said Thursday that earnings rose in the first quarter despite difficult market conditions and that it backed its expectations for the full year.
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Genel Energy Posts 1Q Output Fall, Withdraws Guidance as Pipeline Closure Continues
Genel Energy Thursday retracted its 2023 production guidance due to the temporary closure of the Iraq-Turkey export pipeline, and said first-quarter production has slipped on year.
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Dechra Pharmaceuticals Gets Extension to EQT Bid Deadline
Dechra Pharmaceuticals said Thursday that the U.K. Takeover Panel has extended the deadline for EQT to either make an offer for the company or walk away until June 2 so that EQT can finalize its due diligence.
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John Lewis of Hungerford Shares Fall on Delisting Plan
Shares in John Lewis of Hungerford fell as much as 19% in early trade on Thursday after the company said it plans to seek shareholder approval to cancel the trading of its shares on London's junior AIM and if approved will launch a tender offer to buyback up to 10% of shares.
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Uniphar 2022 Earnings, Gross Profit Rose
Uniphar said Thursday that its gross profit and earnings rose in 2022, and that performance in the current year has been in line with expectations.
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SDI Group Shares Drop as Profit Seen Flat on Year
Shares in SDI Group fell 16% on Thursday after the company said that it expects revenue to rise for fiscal 2023 but that adjusted pretax profit will be flat on year.
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Cairn Homes Experiencing Strong Demand, Reaffirms 2023 Guidance
Cairn Homes said Thursday that demand for new homes remains exceptionally strong, and backed its fiscal 2023 guidance.
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Ocean Wilsons 1Q Revenue Rose
Ocean Wilsons Holdings said Thursday that revenue rose in the first quarter of the year, while earnings came in flat on year.
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Gresham House 1Q Assets Under Management Rose, Meeting Management Views
Gresham House said Thursday that business in the first quarter of 2023 has met management expectations, with a rise in assets under management.
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Petroneft Resources Says Stimul-T Licenses Sale Process Continues
Petroneft Resources said Thursday that the sales process for licenses L61 and L67 in Russia continues after the voluntarily filing for bankruptcy administration of Stimul-T.
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Spire Healthcare Backs Full-Year Outlook
Spire Healthcare Group said Thursday that it has seen last year's good momentum continue through to the first four months of 2023, and that it backs its full-year outlook.
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Eleco Sees 2023 Results in Line With Views
Eleco on Thursday said it is confident it will deliver full-year results in line with market expectations.
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Network International Gets Extension to CVC Consortium Bid Deadline
Network International Holdings said Thursday that the U.K. Takeover Panel has extended the deadline until June 1 for CVC Advisers and Francisco Partners Management to either make a formal offer for the company or walk away.
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FBD Holdings Underwriting Performance Meets Views; Written Premiums Rose
FBD Holdings said Thursday that its underwriting business performance in 2023 to date has met its expectations, with growth in written premiums.
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Keywords Studios Buys Hardsuit for Up to $15 Mln to Boost Digital Entertainment Offering
Keywords Studios said Thursday that it has bought U.S.-based game development studio Hardsuit for up to $15 million to strengthen its offering in digital entertainment.
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Genflow Biosciences Names Tamara Joseph New Chair in Board Shakeup
Genflow Biosciences PLC said Thursday that it has reshuffled its board of directors and scientific advisory board and replaced Chairman Yassine Bendiabdallah with U.S.-based nonexecutive director Tamara Joseph.
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CAP-XX Names Lars Stegmann as Its New CEO
CAP-XX on Thursday appointed Lars Stegmann as its chief executive officer replacing Anthony Kongats.
MARKET TALK:
Sterling Could Fall if BOE Fails to Signal Further Rate Rises
1014 GMT - Sterling could fall if the Bank of England fails to signal further interest rate rises beyond an expected increase at Thursday's meeting at 1100 GMT, Commerzbank says. "In view of continued high inflation rates in the United Kingdom the market assumes that the BOE will hike its key rate by a further 75 basis points until the summer, including today's step," Commerzbank currency analyst Antje Praefcke says in a note. That means the BOE's voting patterns and possible indications of future monetary policy tightening will be decisive for sterling, she says. If the BOE fails to meet expectations for a restrictive policy approach because of fears that past rate rises might hurt the economy, sterling could weaken, she says. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)
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S4 Capital Set for Improvement as Year Progresses
0947 GMT - S4 Capital's first quarter was at the lower end of the guidance range, but comparables for the rest of the year will get easier, Peel Hunt's Jessica Pok and Melanie Yang say in a research note. The U.K. digital advertising and marketing-services company has seen stronger growth rates in the second quarter so far, and the fact that employee numbers are down 2% versus the end of 2022 gives reassurance that costs are under control, they say. (kyle.morris@dowjones.com)
Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Dow Jones Newswires; paul.larkins@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
05-11-23 1217ET
