Glaxosmithkline Share News (GSK)

LONDON (Alliance News) - The following is a summary of top news stories Monday.
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COMPANIES
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Intertek Group reported lower profits for 2014, as the strength of the pound and weakness in its oil and gas business that's expected to continue into this year offset growth in its consumer products business. The quality and safety testing company reported a pretax profit of GBP252.2 million for 2014, down from GBP281.8 million in 2013, as revenue fell to GBP2.09 billion, from GBP2.18 billion.
Despite the profit drop, Intertek raised its full-year dividend to 49.1 pence, up from 46.0p in 2013. Analysts said the results missed forecasts, but they were more encouraged by the outlook.
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British Land said it has bought the Surrey Quays Leisure Park in Canada Water for GBP135 million, completing its strategy of snapping up assets in the area as part of a regeneration plan. The property developer has now spent GBP250 million on property in Canada Water over the last five years, and is adding the leisure park to the Surrey Quays Shopping Centre and Harmsworth Quays, the former Daily Mail General Trust printing works, it already owns. The land it owns covers nearly 50 acres.
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Marks and Spencer Group outlined its investment plans for Asia this year, including modernising its stores in Hong Kong, and entering key cities in China including Beijing and Guangzhou. The British retailer opened its first store in China in 2008 and its first Hong Kong store at the Ocean Centre shopping mall in May 1988. Now, M&S has 18 wholly-owned stores in Hong Kong. The group said that it plans to enter Beijing and Guangzhou this year and will continue to invest in its existing store portfolio, including the complete modernisation of its flagship store on West Nanjing Road in Shanghai during the autumn.
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GlaxoSmithKline said it will set out its 2015 earnings guidance and longer-term prospects when it reports its first quarter results on May 6, after it completed its three-part deal with Novartis and reiterated that it will return GBP4 billion of the proceeds from the deal to shareholders.
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Building products supplier Wolseley said it has struck a deal to buy a substantial stake in UK-based online bathroom retailer BathEmpire.com. Wolseley did not provide any financial details on the deal, but said it has the option to acquire the remainder of the company. For the year to the end of December 2014, BathEmpire.com generated GBP26 million in revenue.
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HellermannTyton Group said its pretax profit more than doubled in 2014 due to revenue growth that was particularly driven by automotive demand and a sharp drop in finance costs, and said 2015 had got off to a strong start. The maker of ties, insulation and protection systems for cables reported a pretax profit of EUR72.2 million for 2014, up from EUR35.1 million in 2013, as revenue grew to EUR596.9 million, from EUR538.0 million, and finance costs dropped sharply. HellermannTyton said it would pay a final dividend of 5.63 euro cents for 2014, up from 5.23 cents in 2013, bringing its total dividend to 8.45 cents, up from 6.55 cents.
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Oxford Instruments said it has agreed with its bank lenders to increase its revolving credit facility and extend its term for nearly two years, also increasing the net debt to earnings ratio covenant on the facility for a year. The maker of tools and systems for industry and research said it has agreed with the unnamed banks to increase its existing GBP100 million revolving credit facility by about GBP25 million and extend the tenor to February 2020 from the current maturity date of December 2018.
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Keller Group reported a fall in pretax profit in 2014 on the back of a charge taken for a contract dispute, though its adjusted pretax profit and revenue both increased in the year despite being held back by the strength of sterling. Keller said its pretax profit for the year was down to GBP28.2 million from GBP52 million in 2013, primarily due to a GBP56.9 million charge taken on a historical contract in the UK. Excluding exceptional items, its pretax profit for the year rose to GBP85.1 million from GBP74.1 million, although it said it would have been up 24% if exchange rates had remained constant through the year.
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Alent reported a fall in 2014 pretax profit on the back of lower revenue and a doubling of its one-off costs, but shares in the group rose after as its underlying profit came in ahead of 2013. Alent, which supplies surface treatment plating chemicals and electronics assembly materials, said its underlying operating profit, excluding exceptional costs, rose to GBP91.5 million from GBP88 million in 2013. Including the exceptional costs, which totalled GBP20.6 million in 2014 against half that in 2013, pretax profit fell to GBP73.4 million from GBP77.7 million. Alent said it would hike its total dividend for the year to 9 pence per share from 8.6 pence, with its final dividend at 6 pence per share.
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Hiscox reported a 6% fall in pretax profit in 2014 as challenging market conditions persisted for specialty insurers due to pricing pressure, abundant capital in reinsurance and a tough environment for investment returns. The Lloyd's of London insurer said it made a GBP231.1 million pretax profit in 2014, compared with GBP244.5 million in the prior year. The group increased its dividend to 22.5 pence per share from 21.0 pence, while also raising its special distribution to 45.0 pence from 36.0 pence.
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Amlin reported a drop in pretax profit in 2014 amid pressure on investment returns and a lower underwriting result. Nevertheless, Amlin said it would increase its ordinary dividend for the year by 3.8% to 27.0 pence per share, while also moving to declare a special dividend of 15.0 pence per share, citing confidence in its capital position. Amlin said it made a GBP258.7 million pretax profit in 2014, compared with GBP325.7 million in 2013.
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Ultra Electronics Holdings posted a massive fall in pretax profit for 2014, hit by the early termination of a contract in Oman, though the group said that excluding the impact of the Oman contract, its results were broadly in line with its expectations. The company's statutory pretax profit fell to GBP21.5 million from GBP49.3 million in 2013. Excluding the termination of its Oman Airport IT contract, pretax profit rose to GBP68.4 million from GBP45.1 million. Ultra said it will pay a final dividend of 31.1 pence per share, against 29.5 pence a year earlier, and said its total dividend for the year would rise 5.0% to 44.3 pence from 42.2 pence in 2013.
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Senior reported a fall in pretax profit in 2014 despite a rise in revenue, dragged back by the strength of sterling against the euro and the dollar over the year. The manufacturing and engineering company said its pretax profit for the year was GBP80.6 million, down from GBP83.8 million in 2013, although profit would have risen 2% if exchange rates had remained the same. Revenue rose to GBP820.8 million, from GBP775.1 million in 2013, but operating profit fell to GBP89.6 million from GBP93.3 million due to acquisition costs and a weaker operating margin of 13.6% against 13.9% a year earlier.
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MARKETS
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UK indices trade flat to higher with the FTSE 100 reaching a new intraday record high of 6,974.26, nearing the 7,000 mark. The FTSE 250 is trading up, also reaching a new record high of 17,335.01.
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FTSE 100: up 0.3% at 6,968.35
FTSE 250: up 0.3% at 17,319.06
AIM ALL-SHARE: flat at 714.53
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The pound is down against the dollar despite data showing that British manufacturing activity was the strongest in seven months during February.
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GBP-USD: down at USD1.5414
EUR-USD: up at USD1.1218

GOLD: up at USD1216.82 per ounce
OIL (Brent): down at USD61.82 a barrel

(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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British manufacturing activity was the strongest in seven months during February with growth in output and new orders strengthening further, creating more jobs, results of a survey by Markit Economics showed. The seasonally adjusted Markit/CIPS Purchasing Manager's Index for the manufacturing sector climbed to 54.1 in February. Economists had forecast a score of 53.3. January's reading was revised up to 53.1 from 53. A PMI reading above 50 suggests expansion in the manufacturing sector. The index has now remained above the 50 mark for two years, the report said.
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UK mortgage approvals increased to a four-month high in January, data from the Bank of England showed. The number of approved housing loans increased to 60,786 in January from 60,349 in the prior month. This was the highest since September but below the expected level of 61,000. Total lending to individuals increased GBP 2.4 billion versus last month's GBP 2.1 billion increase. Within total lending, lending secured on dwellings grew again by GBP 1.6 billion. Economists had forecast secured lending to rise by GBP 1.7 billion. Consumer credit increased by GBP 0.8 billion from December, faster than a GBP 0.5 billion rise seen a month ago. It was forecast to grow by GBP 1 billion.
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UK house prices grew at the slowest pace in seventeen months in February, survey figures from the Nationwide Building Society showed. The annual house price inflation eased to 5.7% from 6.8% in the prior month. This was less than the 6.2% increase expected by economists and the slowest pace since September 2013. Annual house price inflation eased for the sixth successive month. The house price index fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.1% month-over-month in February, partially reversing January's 0.3% growth. Economists expected house prices to rise at the stable rate of 0.3%.
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The euro area jobless rate declined to the lowest since April 2012, data from Eurostat showed. The unemployment rate dropped marginally to 11.2% in January from revised 11.3% in December. It was forecast to remain at December's originally estimated rate of 11.4%. This was the lowest rate recorded since April 2012.
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Eurozone manufacturing sector growth remained stable in February, final data from Markit Economics showed. The final Purchasing Managers' Index came in at seasonally adjusted 51, unchanged from January's six-month high. The reading was below the flash score of 51.1. "Coming months will hopefully see all countries' manufacturing sectors pick up speed, as business and consumer confidence is buoyed by ECB stimulus," said Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit.
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Chinese policymakers are likely to show willingness to further boost economic growth, after recent economic indicators signaled moderation in activity, at the annual legislative session starting this week. The People's Bank of China reduced its benchmark rate by a quarter point in a surprise move on Saturday. The central bank lowered its one-year loan rate to 5.35% from 5.6% and the one-year deposit rate to 2.50% from 2.75%, effective Sunday. The central bank raised the deposit-rate ceiling to 1.3 times from 1.2. The bank aims to bring down financing costs for borrowers.
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Russia-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine claimed to have withdrawn all heavy weaponry from the front lines in the districts they control, thereby fulfilling a key condition of a peace deal hammered out in Minsk last month. Eduard Basurin, a spokesman for the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic said that as the last step separatist militias withdrew six "Grad" howitzers. The separatists in the neighbouring "Luhansk People's Republic" also said that they finished withdrawal, Interfax reported. The OSCE, which monitors the withdrawal on both sides, did not confirm the move on Sunday. Alexander Hug, deputy head of the 450-strong OSCE mission in Ukraine, reiterated that while both sides were moving weapons, it was unclear if they were withdrawing.
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Tens of thousands of people marched through central Moscow to mourn opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was killed in a drive-by shooting. The crowd lined the Bolshoi Moskvoretsky bridge near the Kremlin, where the veteran politician was hit by four bullets fired by an unknown gunman late Friday. They clutched flowers and waved Russian flags draped in black ribbons to honour Nemtsov. Organizers, among them Nemtsov, had originally planned to protest the policies of President Vladimir Putin on Sunday. They had agreed to move the event to a Moscow suburb after the city government did not allow it to be held in the centre. After Nemtsov's killing, however, authorities granted permission for the march to be relocated to the centre.
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