BP PLC (LSE:BP.) investors are starting to accept the oil giant's new, scaled-back transition plan, according to Citi Group analysts.
Investors had been “distrustful” and felt the vague strategy would not play into BP’s strengths, according to Citi analysts, though the evolving plan now provides “much greater economic certainty”.
Quadrise PLC (AIM:QED) has announced a new joint development agreement with BTG (LSE:BTG) Bioliquids, a renewable biofuels specialist, which sets up a collaboration.
Together the intention is to use BTL’s fast pyrolysis bio-oil (FPBO) as a source for the production of bioMSAR, the proprietary sustainable fuel created by Quadrise.
Airbus Group (EPA:AIR) is on track to meet delivery targets this year, after boosting the number of aircraft rolling off the production line in May, Jefferies analysts say.
63 Airbuses were delivered during the month, a rise of 34% on May 2022 and a 3% increase this year so far.
FirstGroup PLC (LSE:FGP) shares were trading almost 15% higher on Thursday afternoon as consensus-beating results impressed investors and analysts.
Liberum Capital analyst Gerald Khoo said: “The results reflected a clear margin recovery in bus operations and surprising strength in its rail division.
Amazon confirmed a partnership with buy now, pay later (BNPL) group Affirm Holdings.
Merchants using Amazon Pay will have access to Affirms service, which allows customers to spread the payment of bills over time.
Aviva is now in the operational improvement stage of its strategic change plan, according to Deutsche Bank.
Analysts maintained their buy recommendation on the stock.
The Barclay family, up until yesterday the owners of The Daily Telegraph, have tabled a proposal to restructure its debt with Lloyds Bank in a last-ditch attempt to regain control of the newspaper and its sister titles.
According to Sky News, the Barclay family submitted an offer to Lloyds on Wednesday that would have entailed the bank writing off a portion of the roughly-£1bn it is owed.
Frasers Group, the owner of Sports Direct, has picked up more shares in troubled online retailer, Asos.
The online fashion chain told the City that Frasers now owns 9.86% of Asos stock, up from 8.8%. On Tuesday, it revealed Frasers had bumped its holding up from 7.4%.
Entain PLC (LSE:ENT) expects its recent acquisitions of TAB New Zealand and 365scores to boost EBITDA by £50mln by 2025.
The owner of Ladbrokes and Coral updated investors following presentations from Entain's senior management regarding the two recently acquired companies.
Wizz Air Holdings PLC (AIM:WIZZ) is finally on course to overcome a “turbulent” few years following the pandemic, brokers hailed following the company’s full-year results release.
Wizz Air forecast a net profit of between €350mln and €450mln in 2024, having delivered an expected reported loss of €535.1mln in the 12 months to March.
Britain’s pension dashboard has been delayed again with the government saying it will not now be ready fully until October 2026.
In a statement, pensions minister Laura Trott said: “More time is needed to deliver this complex build, and for the pensions industry to help facilitate the successful connection of a wide range of different IT systems to the dashboard's digital architecture".
Google will begin tracking staff’s office attendance and issuing warnings to those working from home too much, the technology giant updated on Wednesday.
Staff’s in-person office attendance will be tracked and logged based on badge taps when entering Google buildings, the firm’s chief people officer Fiona Cicconi revealed.
Deliveroo is the ‘top pick’ among analysts at Jefferies, who expect gross transaction value (GTV) growth in the second quarter of this year.
Analysts were bullish on the food delivery service’s “market share momentum in key markets, its leadership on advertising and its best-in-class balance sheet quality and free-cash-flow generation.”
Britain will host the world’s first summit on artificial intelligence this autumn, the government has announced, amid an intense debate over the viability of the technology.
AI already contributes £3.7bn to the UK economy and supports over 50,000 jobs, according to the government, though questions have been raised over the safety of the increasingly-human-like programmes.
The cost of Government borrowing jumped further after two surprise interest rate rises this week delivered a reality check to investors hoping for an end to monetary tightening.
Bond yields – the interest the Government must offer to buyers of its debt – have steadily climbed as global inflationary pressures have eased more slowly than hoped forcing central banks to keep interest rates high.
UK households have shifted their supermarket shopping habits amid soaring inflation and post-pandemic, according to industry research.
Amid food price inflation above 17%, spending has increased on cheaper own-label goods and use of discounts from loyalty schemes has increased, market research firm Kantar has found.
Royal Mail’s hopes to end Saturday deliveries have been dealt a blow by ministers who have recommended there should be no change to the current six day service.
Royal Mail, owned by International Distributions Services PLC, had warned that its poor financial performance will continue unless ministers let the company abandon Saturday letter deliveries.
Coinbase’s CEO said the crypto exchange will continue operating its staking service despite lawsuits from state and federal regulators.
Brian Armstrong said at the Bloomberg Invest Conference that "We’re not going to wind down our staking service," after the firm was charged US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) earlier this week.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is warning that expectations of further interest rate rises from the Bank of England may put renewed downward pressure on the market in the months ahead.
RICS Senior Economist, Tarrant Parsons said: "“However, it seems storm clouds are gathered, with the UK’s stubbornly high inflation likely undermining the recent improvement in activity by prompting the Bank of England to take further action through interest rate rises, leading to higher mortgage rates and ultimately reducing affordability and buyer demand."
RWS Holdings (AIM:RWS) PLC shares surged 12.3% higher on Thursday morning after the language translation specialist announced plans to return £50mln to shareholders via a buyback and held its guidance for the current year.
In its interim results statement, RWS posted revenue of £366.3mln for the six months ended 31 March 2023, a rise of 2.5% on the same period last year, while adjusted pre-tax profit dropped 10% to £54.4mln.
PetroTal Corp (TSX-V:TAL, OTCQX:PTALF, AIM:PTAL) shares fell nearly 5% after it announced an illegal and violent river blockade against vessels providing services to the company's operations in Peru.
The company said the Indigenous Association for Development and Conservation of Bajo Puinahua (AIDECOBAP) initiated the blockade on 3 June 2023 in the Puinahua Canal, posing a threat to vessel crew and local residents. It noted that the blockade disregards the recently signed agreements that ensure transparent and fair allocation of social fund resources, with over US$8mln already accumulated in a restricted bank account.
Shares in Bonhill Group PLC (LSE:BONH) tanked 29% in the wake of its prelims and as the chairman lamented the events and publishing business’ failed American foray.
“As a group, Bonhill has struggled to bounce back in a post-Covid world,” said Jonathan Glasspool in commentary accompanying the results.
Gama Aviation (LSE:GMAA) shares flew almost 7% higher to 54.44p after it reported stronger profits and cashflow following the significant growth and improved profitability from Jet East, its US business aviation maintenance and repair operations.
Underlying group profit (EBITDA) jumped 94% to US$22.9mln as revenue rose 21% to US$285.6mln.
Sabien Technology Group PLC (AIM:SNT) shares rose 7% in morning trade on Thursday after the firm announced that its M2G business, Sabien Technology Ltd, has experienced strong sales performance and accelerated growth in the financial year ending June 2023.
The company said it attributes this success to increased demand from existing and new customers, as well as the successful rollout of its M2G Cloud Connect solution. New customers from various sectors, including life sciences, data centers, universities, and local government, have placed orders for CO2 mitigation devices for commercial boilers.
Barryroe Offshore Energy PLC (AIM:BEY, OTC:PVDRF) has confirmed that it can no longer proceed with its previously announced equity raise, which would’ve resulted in a €20mln injection of capital.
The Irish oil company is now discussing the possibility of raising working capital from its substantial shareholders and directors in order to maintain the company in the near term.
China's biggest banks have lowered interest rates on yuan deposits in an attempt to ease pressure on profit margins and reduce lending costs, providing some relief for the financial sector and wider economy.
Lenders including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank and Bank of China are now offering 2.45% and 2.50%, respectively, on three- and five-year time deposits, down by 15 basis points from September, according to their websites.
FirstGroup PLC shares soared 12% in early exchanges after the company reported better-than-expected results, a fresh share buyback and a much improved dividend.
Liberum analyst Gerald Khoo said: "The results for the year to March 2023 were ahead of our forecasts and consensus across the board.
CAB Payments Holdings Ltd, a provider of cross-border payments and foreign exchange for businesses, is looking to float on London’s main market with an estimated market value of close to £1bn.
The Sutton-based company said it has appointed Barclays and JPMorgan to run the deal, with Cannacord Genuity, Liberum and Peel Hunt to be joint bookrunners if the offer proceeds, with a retail investor offer planned through the REX platform.
UK Oil & Gas PLC (AIM:UKOG) (UKOG) will again defend plans to produce gas and later develop a hydrogen storage site near Guildford in the High Court in London on Thursday.
Alongside Secretary of State Suella Braverman, UKOG will argue against opponents of plans to convert the Loxley gas discovery in Surrey into a blue hydrogen storage site once the well has been depleted.
Bitcoin and Ethereum continued their downward spiral with uncertainty expected to continue to weigh on the market.
The largest coin by market cap, Bitcoin, lost 1.3% to US$26,432, while Ethereum shed 1.9% to US$1,839.
Midwich Group PLC (AIM:MIDW) said it has raised over £51mln via a placing and retail offer to fund its acquisitive move into Canada.
The UK audio visual distributor yesterday said it had agreed the purchase of Canadian rival SF Marketing (SFM) for C$44.3mln (£26.7mln).
Amicorp FS (UK) PLC (LSE:AMIF) shares started trading on London's main market on Thursday after the fund services group raised US$6.47mln (£5.2mln) in its initial public offer.
The UK business, which is part of the Hong Kong-headquartered Amicorp Group, raised funds via a placing of 6,468,000 new shares at US$1 apiece, with 9,702,000 existing ordinary shares also sold by existing holders.
AdvancedAdvT Ltd (LSE:ADVT), the investment vehicle tech entrepreneur Vin Murria used to launch an unsuccessful bid for M&C Saatchi, has struck a £33mln deal with Capita.
It is buying five software businesses deemed non-core by the outsourcing giant.
Crypto ads will need to carry a clear risk warning under new rules imposed by the UK financial watchdog.
Firms have been told by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) that they must warn customers not to expect protection if their investment goes wrong in adverts from 8 October this year.
Pantheon Resources PLC (AIM:PANR, OTCQX:PTHRF) said it has appointed David Hobbs as its executive chairman after Phillip Gobe decided to retire.
Gobe has been the Alaska oil group’s chairman since October 2017, a period that has seen Pantheon develop from holding a non-operating working interest owner in Texas to an operating company with 100% working interest in potentially over 2bn barrels of contingent resources on the North Slope of Alaska.
The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA) has been accused of stealing information and building flawed components for a NASA rocket in a Seattle federal court.
Colorado-based Wilson Aerospace accused Boeing on Wednesday of continuing to use its intellectual property after the two worked together between 2014 and 2016.
Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) is reportedly looking to generate more revenue from its Prime Video streaming service by offering a cheaper subscription supported by advertising, similar to the plans launched by Netflix and Disney last year.
Building on some of its existing shows already being supported by product placement, the tech giant is in the early stages of working on the new tier, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Wizz Air Holdings PLC (AIM:WIZZ) said it expects to return to the black in the current year following strong trading in the first quarter.
The forecast accompanied results for the 12 months to 31 March 2023, which saw the European airline achieve record revenues, although “fuel price increases and structural capacity issues” remained features throughout the year.
Galliford Try Holdings PLC (LSE:GFRD) said it will pay shareholders a 12p per share special dividend and invest in its growth strategy after agreeing a settlement with a major infrastructure fund.
In settling the long-standing dispute over three contracts, the construction group will receive a cash payment of £26mln and make a non-cash write-off of £3mln in the current financial year.
The Daily and Sunday Telegraph newspapers and The Spectator magazine have been put up for sale after receivers for their holding company were appointed by Lloyds Bank yesterday.
Lloyds Bank had threatened to pull the plug on the newspaper group over the weekend over a debt owed by the Barclay family, its owners.
M&G PLC (LSE:MNG) has reported progress on delivering its targets in the first quarter (Q1) although its financial performance was broadly flat.
In the Q1 results statement, Andrea Rossi, the FTSE 100-listed firm's group chief executive officer, said: “At Full-Year Results we identified three priorities for the Group: maintain financial strength through capital discipline, simplify the business, and deliver profitable growth focusing on Asset Management and Wealth.
Arrow Exploration Corp (TSX-V:AXL, AIM:AXL, OTC:CSTPF) told investors it now intends to put the newly drilled Carrizales Norte-1 (CN-1) well straight into production, via the C7 and C7A reservoir zones.
It comes after a further "very successful" test of the Ubaque pay zone, which yielded some 1,100 barrels of oil per day (bopd), and results from the Gacheta zones, which were present but not productive in this location.
Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies Holdings PLC (LSE:OCTP, OTCQB:OCTHF) has appointed Dr Tim Corn as the new chief medical officer (CMO), effective immediately.
He brings a wealth of industry experience garnered in roles at Jazz Pharmaceuticals, EUSA Pharma and Zeneus Pharma.
Sovereign Metals Limited (ASX:SVM, OTC:SVMLF, AIM:SVML) has reported "superior" outcomes in downstream testing on graphite from its Kasiya Project in Malawi, showing suitability for use in lithium batteries and further solidifying the project’s prospects.
Billed as one of the world's lowest-cost and lowest global warming potential sources of natural graphite, the Kasiya Project is home to one of the largest flake graphite deposits globally, alongside a significant natural rutile deposit.
GameStop Corp (NYSE:GME) reported a mixed bag of 1Q earnings, just hours after news broke it had fired its CEO Matt Furlong.
First the earnings: in its first quarter of 2023, the video game retailer reported a net loss of $50.5 million or $0.17 per share versus $0.12 expected, but missed on revenue with sales of $1.23 billion versus analyst estimates of $1.36 billion.
Shares in discoverIE Group PLC, a designer and supplier of customised electronics to industry, were up 7% in the wake of its prelims with broker finnCap suggesting there may be further for the stock to go.
While discoverIE's shares are currently trading at 854p finnCap values them at 1,100p.
DC Comics, owned by Warner Bros Discovery Inc (NASDAQ:WBD), has maintained the trademark rights to Batman’s logo following a dispute with an Italian clothing retailer.
Commerciale Italiana wanted to freedom to use the caped crusader’s logo, which was registered with the European Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) over 20 years ago, for clothing and carnival items.
Marks and Spencer’s “transformation efforts are beginning to deliver structural improvements” according to UBS.
The broker hiked the target price to 200p from 120p, although it remained neutral on the stock.
Noble Helium, an Aussie-listed junior, has raised A$13.5mln (£7.25mln) for its next exploration well at Rukwa in Tanzania, underlining the growing interest in the area as a potential source of the gas.
Money raised will fund a first helium exploration well at North Rukwa and also for long lead items on a second well planned at the site.
Investors are switching sustainability for profitability as ESG funds saw record-breaking outflows last month.
Some £304mln moved from ESG funds in May, only the second time in five years that investors were net sellers, data from Calastone, found.