Ascent Resources Share News (AST)

LONDON (Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers within the main London indices on Tuesday.----------FTSE 100 - WINNERS----------Ocado Group, 7.2%. The online grocer said it has signed service and operational terms with US supermarket group The Kroger Co. Following the announcement of the partnership in May, Kroger will order 20 Customer Fulfilment Centres over the first three years of the agreement, with three centre to be ordered before the end of 2018. Ocado for its part will install and maintain the mechanical handling equipment needed in the centre to maintain an agreed level of throughput. Ocado said it expects the earnings impact of the agreement to be neutral in its current financial year. Ocado will finance Kroger's customer fulfillment centres in a similar basis to previous deals, up to the point when the final funding structure has been finalised. This is not expected to involve more than the first three centres. ----------BP, up 4.5%. The oil major said higher oil prices and a positive operating performance led to a doubling in the company's quarterly profit. For the three months to September, BP's replacement cost profit was USD3.09 billion, more than double the USD1.38 billion it posted the same period a year prior. Compared to the second quarter of 2018, the figure was 73% higher. On an underlying basis, BP's replacement cost profit was USD3.84 billion, up from USD1.87 billion year-on-year and USD2.82 billion in the second quarter. The USD3.84 billion underlying replacement cost profit figure was its best result in over five years, BP said. Looking ahead, BP expects fourth-quarter production to rise on the third quarter, due to the acquisition of BHP Billiton's shale assets. "BP now feels able to fund the BHP deal out of existing cash rather than issuing new shares. That's very good news for investors and a serious vote of confidence by management," said Hargreaves Lansdown's Nicholas Hyett. ----------Antofagasta, up 1.8%. UBS raised the Chilean copper miner to Neutral from Sell. ----------FTSE 100 - LOSERS----------Reckitt Benckiser, down 4.8%. The household goods maker reported a drop in third quarter revenue due to manufacturing disruption in Europe. In the three months to September 30, the consumer goods company posted total net revenue of GBP3.12 billion, down from GBP3.21 billion recorded the year before. Year-to-date, however, revenue was up at GBP9.26 billion from GBP8.22 billion with strong performances from North America and developing markets. Reckitt said while the disruption at its at its European Infant Formula & Child Nutrition manufacturing plant was temporary and resolved within the quarter, it is likely to have some residual impact on the final quarter of the year. Reckitt Chief Executive Officer Rakesh Kapoor said the disruption occurred "during a period of unusually high market growth" and before the opening of new Australian facilities.----------FTSE 250 - WINNERS----------WH Smith, up 4.3%. The books, stationery and magazines retailer bought US-based travel retailer InMotion Entertainment Group for USD198 million as part of the company's strategy to expand its international travel division. The deal is predicted to be earnings per share accretive in first full financial year after completion, which is expected by the end of 2018. WH Smith also reported a 1% rise in group like-for-like revenue and 5% in total revenue for the first eight weeks of new financial year. The Travel unit, which now generates two thirds of annual operating profit, recorded a 4% rise in same store sales and a 10% jump in total revenue. Same store sales and total revenue for the High Street unit fell by 2% and 1% respectively in the eight-week period.----------IG Group, up 4.0%. The online spreadbetting company appointed Non-Executive Director June Felix as chief executive officer with immediate effect. Felix was selected for the role through a succession planning process involving external and internal candidates. Felix's appointment follows the departure of Peter Hetherington in late September, though at that time IG said he would remain with IG until the end of the financial year to help with the handover. Felix - a non-executive at IG since September 2015 - was previously at payment technology provider Verifone Holdings, where she was president of the Europe division for four years since 2014. Prior to that she was the managing director of Global Enterprise Payments at investment bank Citigroup for four years from 2010 to 2014.----------Travis Perkins, up 3.5%. Barclays upgraded the builders' merchant to Equal Weight from Underweight. ----------FTSE 250 - LOSERS----------Hunting, down 4.5%. The oilfield services firm said following steady revenue in the third quarter of 2018, it is confident in trading for the full year to remain in line with management and market expectations. In North America, revenue has remained steady thanks to continued activity in the onshore shale basins and sustained demand for Hunting's perforating products and accessories. However, although the US onshore market remains robust, geopolitical tensions and lower confidence in commodity prices has slowed US offshore and international markets, the company warned. ----------Drax Group, down 2.9%. Jefferies downgraded the power company to Hold from Buy. ----------OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM - WINNERS----------Widecells, up 25%. The stem cell services and insurance for stem cell treatment provider announced further board restructuring and cost cutting measures. Widecells said Alan Greenberg has resigned as a director and chief business development officer & senior vice president of Wideacademy as part of the restructuring, The company has also closed Wideacademy's London office and has brought the division into the Manchester head office, thereby resulting savings of GBP400,000 per annum. At the end of last month, shares in WideCells more than halved in one day after its interim loss expanded amid what it called "very difficult time" for the company. ----------OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM - LOSERS----------Rainbow Rare Earths, down 37%. The miner reported an increase in exports for its first quarter, but also warned it will not reach its output target as soon as hoped. Rainbow, which owns the Gakara rare earth mine in Burundi, exported 350 tonnes of concentrate in the three months to September from Gakara, up from 275 tonnes in the fourth quarter of its previous year. Concentrate sold, the firm said, was flat at 350 tonnes, while the grade of rare earth oxide per tonne of concentrate jumped to 59% from 55%. Rare earth prices fell 3.6% over the period to USD2,147 per tonne, but Rainbow managed to reduce its transport costs due to efficiency work. However, Rainbow did say its target of 400 tonnes of concentrate per month may not be attained as soon as it had hoped, partly due to uncertainty over concentrate yields at its soon-to-produce Murambi asset. It now expects to reach the target in 2019. ----------Ascent Resources, down 28%. The gas explorer said it is to take the government of Slovenia to court in the EU over its failure to grant permits. Ascent has been seeking an integrated pollution prevention & control permit for its Petisovci project for five years. Since August, it continued, it has received "repeated" private assurances from senior government officials, especially at the Environment Agency, that it would be getting permitting soon. However, at the weekend Ascent said local press said the new Environment minister would be conducted fresh enquiries into permitting. The company has reached "the end of the line", however, and said legal action in Slovenia would be a waste of time and money. As a result, it is to go directly to the EU. ----------