Schroders and Columbia Threadneedle to back Coast Capital coup against FirstGroup chairman
Schroders and Columbia, which own around 9% and 10% of the FTSE 250 group respectively, will oppose the re-election of Wolfhart Hauser at Tuesday's EGM
Company
FirstGroup PLC
LON:FGP
FirstGroup plc is engaged in the provision of passenger transport services. It operates in four divisions: Bus, UK Rail, North America and Greyhound.
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Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 closes shade higher as investors still fret about trade
On Wall Street, stocks were heading higher, through albeit with not much gusto
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News from FirstGroup, Stagecoach to drive corporate diary in coming week
Aside from the two mid-cap transport operators, blue chip contractor Bunzl will also issue a trading update, while the macro focus will be on the G20 meeting in Japan
FirstGroup activist shareholder Coast Capital comes back with fighting talk
The New York hedge fund has fired off responses to criticism from the transport group of its proposal to replace the board
FirstGroup announces meeting for 25 June to decide fate of six directors
The meeting has been requisitioned by Coast Capital, an activist investor that holds nearly 10% of the FTSE 250 group, in an effort to oust six directors and replace them with its own nominees
Activist investor Coast Capital slams “half baked” FirstGroup breakup plan
Chad Tappendorf, a partner at the New York-based hedge fund, told Proactive that the plan, which will see the company focus on its other US bus businesses First Student and First Transit, was “the height of folly”
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 regains ground at the close
The FTSE 100 closed 32.86 points higher at 7,218.16 on Thursday, just easing off its late afternoon high of 7,235
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Johnson Matthey's final results provide a step up in class for Thursday's corporate diary
The Day Ahead will also bring updates from two FTSE 250-listed firms, transport operator FirstGroup and water utility Pennon, plus numbers from newspapers group Daily Mail
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Enjoy the UK bank holiday, because there will be little else to get excited about in the coming week
The shortened trading Week Ahead will only bring updates from the likes of second-liners FirstGroup, Pennon, Wizz Air, and Daily Mail & General Trust
RBC puts chances of FirstGroup break-up at 50/50 following activist pressure
However, the bank upgraded the stock to ‘outperform’ from ‘sector perform’, saying disposals could generate “considerable value” for the transport group
Why are Britain’s bus and rail companies struggling to make money?
The rail system isn’t working for anyone, says Liberum’s Gerald Khoo, while the high street’s decline means fewer people are taking buses
Everybody off: activist calls for FirstGroup board to step down
A New York-based hedge fund proposes getting rid of six of the transport operator's eleven board members
FirstGroup appoints ex-Taylor Wimpey finance director as new CFO, former GM VP brought in as non-exec
The FTSE 250 transport group said Ryan Mangold would take up the CFO position, filling the vacancy left by Matthew Gregory who was promoted to chief executive last year
Go-Ahead reverses as HSBC downgrades to ‘hold’ from ‘buy’ on valuation grounds in mixed sector review
HSBC’s analysts pointed out that Go-Ahead shares have performed well but they can “no longer see a clear value case”
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AA’s performance to be eyed on Wednesday for any signs of possible breakdown
Investors will be looking to see if the breakdown services firm can continue its recent run of good fortune
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US jobs to provide main focus, though UK PMIs still key as Brexit SNAFU continues
Aside from the UK and US data - and Brexit - corporate news in the week ahead will include updates from blue-chip budget airline easyjet and Ladbrokes Coral owner GVC Holdings
Private equity bids surge as buyout firms exploit weaker valuations amid tough UK market
Struggles in a number of different sectors present takeover opportunities for private equity firms this year but investments in UK stocks are risky given the uncertainty surrounding Brexit
Southern train operators face £100mln legal action from London commuters
Stagecoach, FirstGroup and Go-Ahead are being sued by passengers for overcharging on London’s southern commuter routes.
FirstGroup shares up as in-line trading news provides reassurance
First Bus recorded like-for-like passenger revenue growth of +1.3%, while First Rail's like-for-like passenger revenue growth slowed to +4.2% in the Winter period
FirstGroup puts Manchester bus operation on sale in cut-price deal
The FTSE 250-transport operator could sell the operation, which previously had an annual turnover of £100mln, for as cheap as £20mln