UK Banking, Financial Stocks Drop After SVB Collapse
1003 GMT - London-listed banks and financial stocks drop following the collapse of U.S. tech lender Silicon Valley Bank. Standard Chartered backtracks 5% and Barclays, Abrdn and Lloyds Banking Group are also among the biggest FTSE 100 fallers as the blue-chip index drops more than 2%. HSBC retreats 3% following news that it was buying SVB's U.K. arm for GBP1 in a rescue deal. "Despite governments' and regulators' best efforts, the market was still very edgy Monday as investors considered the fallout from SVB's collapse," AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould writes. "There's plenty to worry about, whether it be the conflict in Ukraine, inflation, rising interest rates and now a potential banking crisis. Little surprise people are feeling a bit spooked." (philip.waller@wsj.com)
COMPANIES NEWS:
HSBC Buys UK Arm of Silicon Valley Bank
HSBC Holdings PLC said Monday that it has purchased Silicon Valley Bank UK Ltd., the U.K. arm of the collapsed Silicon Valley Bank, for 1 pound ($1.20).
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Direct Line Swung to 2022 Pretax Loss, Sees 2023 Earnings Hit by Motor Claims Inflation
Direct Line Insurance Group PLC on Monday said it swung to a pretax loss 2022 as it was affected by high claims inflation, regulatory reforms, exceptional weather and difficult investment markets, adding it sees these headwinds hurting its 2023 performance.
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Mincon 2022 Pretax Profit Rose on Organic Revenue Growth, Price Hikes
Mincon Group PLC said Monday that 2022 pretax profit rose on strong organic growth and price increases, and said it expects significant progress in 2023.
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Nightcap 1H Pretax Loss Widened, But Says It Is Confident for 2H
Nightcap PLC said Monday that its pretax loss widened for the first half of fiscal 2023 as it posted higher revenue, boosted by Christmas trading despite the impact of rail-worker strikes.
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Ricardo Buys Aither for Up to GBP17 Mln -- Deal Digest
ACQUIRER: Ricardo PLC, an engineering, technical, environmental and strategic consultancy company.
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Global Ports Holding Nine-Month Revenue Rose as Recovery Continues
Global Ports Holding PLC said Monday that revenue rose in the first nine months of fiscal 2023 supported by a continued postpandemic recovery in the cruise market.
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Stelrad 2022 Pretax Profit Fell on Lower Sales Volume; Proposes Dividend
Stelrad Group PLC said Monday that its pretax profit fell in 2022 as sales volumes declined due to the macroeconomic environment, and that it was proposing a dividend.
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Woodbois Raises GBP3 Mln Via Discounted Share Placing
Woodbois Ltd. said Monday that it has raised 3 million pounds ($3.6 million) through a conditional share placing and that the funds will be used for general working capital.
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Springfield Properties CFO Michelle Motion Resigns
Springfield Properties PLC said Monday that Michelle Motion has resigned as chief financial officer with immediate effect.
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MTI Wireless 2022 Pretax Profit Rose; 2023 Began Well
MTI Wireless Edge Ltd. said Monday that 2022 pretax profit rose as all of its divisions saw growth, and 2023 has started well.
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Transense Technologies COO Nick Hopkins to Resign
Transense Technologies PLC said Monday that Chief Operating Officer Nick Hopkins will resign with immediate effect.
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PCI-PAL Has GBP3.2 Mln With Silicon Valley Bank; Early 2023 Met Views
PCI-PAL PLC said Monday that it has 3.2 million pounds ($3.9 million) of cash with collapsed principal banker Silicon Valley Bank across the U.S. and U.K., and that its early 2023 performance has met its expectations.
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Condor Gold Shares Rise as Nicaragua Gold Project Sale Already Receives Offers
Condor Gold PLC shares rose Monday after it said the sales process of its La India gold project in Nicaragua is entering the end of its first phase, with three formal expressions of interest and further offers expected.
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Anglo Asian Mining Identifies Copper Mineralization at Azerbaijan Mineral Deposit
Anglo Asian Mining PLC on Monday it has identified a significant copper mineralization at its Xarxar mineral deposit in Azerbaijan.
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Fonix Mobile 1H Pretax Profit Rose on Mobile Payments, Messaging; Proposes Dividend
Fonix Mobile PLC said Monday that its pretax profit rose in the first half of fiscal 2023, as revenue grew across mobile payments and messaging services.
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Tungsten West Names Neil Gawthorpe As CEO
Tungsten West PLC on Monday said it has appointed Neil Gawthorpe as chief executive officer with immediate effect, adding one of his priorities will be to secure funding to restart the Hemerdon project.
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Venture Life Has No Deposits With SVB; Says 2023 Has Started Well
Venture Life Group PLC said Monday that it has no deposits with the collapsed Silicon Valley Bank, and that its early 2023 performance has been positive.
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Naked Wines Says It Doesn't Expect Losses from SVB Closure
Naked Wines PLC on Monday said it doesn't expect any losses to the group from the closure of Silicon Valley Bank.
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Dekel Agri-Vision Says February Palm-Oil Production Fell But Fresh Fruit Bunch Production Improving
Dekel Agri-Vision PLC said Monday that its palm-oil production fell on year in February, but that fresh fruit bunch production improved late in the month, and that March volumes are ahead of the comparable period in 2022.
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Silicon Valley Bank's U.K. Arm to Be Bought by HSBC -- WSJ
By Patricia Kowsmann
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McKinsey Consulted VA While Advising Opioid Makers to Target Agency for Sales -- WSJ
By Alexander Gladstone
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Gresham House Energy 2022 Earnings Significantly Rose; Expects Higher 2023 Capacity
Gresham House Energy Storage Fund PLC said Monday that its 2022 earnings significantly rose and it expects further operational capacity growth in 2023.
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Pan African Resources Shares Rise on $21.8 Mln Funding for Mintails Project
Pan African Resources PLC shares rose Monday after the company said it will recieve 400 million South African ($21.8 million) in a gold-supply agreement with FirstRand Bank, which it will use to fund the Mintails tailing project in South Africa.
MARKET TALK:
HSBC Buy Up of SVB's UK Arm Calms Nerves, for Now
1010 GMT - HSBC emerges as a white knight to buy the U.K. arm of lender SVB and take on all its deposits and liabilities, says AJ Bell in a market comment, noting such swift action and the banking giant's ample liquidity means companies will be able to meet their payrolls. Most big banks don't have the liquidity problems SVB does so the situation doesn't look like the 2007 credit crunch, says investment director Russ Mould. "Speculation is likely to turn next to how the Federal Reserve responds - will it be confident this is a bit of a one-off and continue on its higher-for-longer rates path or will it dial back for fear of creating more cracks in the wider financial system?" (elena.vardon@wsj.com)
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Bunzl Has Positive 2023 Ahead, Says JPMC
0947 GMT - Bunzl's continued pricing tailwinds, record low leverage and reasonable valuation support a rating upgrade to overweight from neutral, says J.P.Morgan Cazenove in a note. Analysts at the brokerage note that the distribution-and-outsourcing group's pricing is a positive driver into 1H but also the full year as customers are drawn to its own brand products in the current environment, and that its leverage is notably low with material low-single-digit to mid-single-digit upside from M&A as well as a normalized valuation relative to the market. "We see some upside, catalyzed by earnings momentum," say the analysts, raising the target price on the stock to 3,375 pence from 3,250 pence. (elena.vardon@wsj.com)
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Heightened Investor Scrutiny on Banks Is Expected After SVB Collapse, JPM Says
0937 GMT - Increased investor scrutiny on European banks is expected as focus shifts toward refinancing costs for corporates and potential asset-quality issues, valuation of bond portfolios and cost inflation, J.P.Morgan says in a note on the read-across from the SVB situation to European peers. Analysts at the brokerage see scrutiny falling on bond portfolios as a percentage of deposits, valuation of Available For Sale and Held To Maturity books and deposit outflows, and the pace of deposit beta increases, as well as regulatory oversight of smaller banks and liquidity related bonds. The banking sub-index of the pan-European Stoxx 600 falls 3.8%, widening Friday's losses. (elena.vardon@wsj.com)
Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires;
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-13-23 0628ET
