Having finally concluded a four-month search for a new chief executive earlier this month, a first-quarter trading update from bourses operator London Stock Exchange PLC (LON:LSE) will probably contain few surprises.
David Schwimmer, who will join the group in August from Goldman Sachs, will take the reins from David Warren, the LSE’s chief financial officer and interim CEO, bringing to an end the soap opera/farce surrounding the early departure of LSE’s well-liked former boss Xavier Rolet.
Given the new appointment, Deutsche Bank believes a strategy update for the FTSE 100-listed firm is unlikely until the fourth-quarter of this year.
In a preview of the first-quarter update, the German bank’s analysts forecast LSE’s income to be flat quarter-on-quarter but up 13% year-on-year a characterised by a return of volatility, currency headwinds, and a mixed index performance.
Deutsche Bank expects quarterly growth to be driven by LSE’s clearing business, LCH, which it sees reporting 4% quarter-on-quarter revenue growth.
However, the group’s technology services revenues should be down significantly due to the sale of non-core assets, the bank added.
Assets under review at St James’ Place
Wealth manager St James’ Place Capital PLC (LON:SJT) will also be in focus on Tuesday, with its latest quarterly performance report due.
Analysts at Numis Securities expect the blue chip firm to report assets under management (AuM) totalling £89.5bn at the end of the first quarter, with a quarterly net outflow of £2.4bn.
In a preview, they noted that St James’ management continues to target gross flow growth of 15-20% per annum, which should translate into 10-15% pa net organic growth - assuming 95% retention.
The analysts also predict 15-20% pa growth in total AuM and 15-20% cash profit/dividend growth -assuming no operational gearing.
Significant events expected on Tuesday April 24:
Trading update: Anglo American PLC (LON:AAL), London Stock Exchange PLC (LON:LSE), St James’s Place PLC (LON:STJ)
Interims: AB Dynamics plc (LON:ABDF), Proactis Holdings Plc (LON:PHD)
Finals: Circassia Pharmaceuticals PLC (LON:CIR), CityFibre Infrastructure Holdings PLC (LON:CITY), Inspiration Healthcare Group PLC (LON:IHC), Osirium Technologies PLC (LON:OSI), Proteome Sciences plc (LON:PRM), Sportech plc (LON:SPO), Sumo Group PLC (LON:SUMO)
Economic data: UK public sector finances; CBI industrial trends survey; US new home sales; US consumer confidence