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(Alliance News) - Just Eat Takeaway.com on Wednesday reported a surge in order growth as customers flocked to its food ordering platform after lockdown restrictions closed restaurants and pubs.
For the fourth quarter, total orders were 179.8 million, up 57% from 114.9 million orders in the fourth quarter of 2019.
For the full year 2020, Just Eat expects revenue growth of more than 50%, with adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation margin of 10%.
The company said the profit margin reflects significant investment in its Delivery offering in the fourth quarter of 2020. It said it will continue to invest heavily and prioritise market share over adjusted EBITDA.
Just Eat also offers its Marketplace service, for which restaurants do their own deliveries.
"The fourth quarter of 2020 marks our third consecutive quarter of order growth acceleration. Our investment programme is very successful and has led to significant market share gains in most of our countries. The progress in the UK is particularly exciting; order growth of 58% and we have increased our Delivery Orders nearly five-fold in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared with the same period in 2019," said Chief Executive Officer Jitse Groen.
Just Eat said its acquisition of peer Grubhub in the US should be completed during the first half of this year. Due to that acquisition, it said it is reviewing the listing venues for its shares. As a result, it said it will delay its planned delisting from Euronext Amsterdam and will remain listed in both London and Amsterdam.
It also noted that it must list its shares in the US, since its USD7.3 billion purchase of Grubhub uses shares rather than cash.
Dutch firm Takeaway.com NV bought the UK's Just Eat PLC to form Just Eat Takeaway early last year.
Just Eat Takeaway shares were down 5.3% early Wednesday, though they are up 17% over the past 12 months.
Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: marginally higher at 6,755.23
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Hang Seng: down 0.1% at 28,247.03
Nikkei 225: closed up 1.0% at 28,456.59
DJIA: closed up 60.00 points, or 0.2%, at 31,068.69
S&P 500: closed up 1.58 points at 3,801.19
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GBP: up at USD1.3697 (USD1.3621)
EUR: up at USD1.2219 (USD1.2157)
Gold: up at USD1,860.97 per ounce (USD1,844.07)
Oil (Brent): up at USD57.01 a barrel (USD56.61)
(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Wednesday's Key Economic Events still to come
0830 GMT UK Halifax House Price Index
1100 CET EU industrial production
0700 EST US MBA weekly mortgage applications survey
0830 EST US consumer price index
1030 EST US EIA weekly petroleum status report
1400 EST US Beige Book
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UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and health chiefs will be questioned on the rollout of the coronavirus vaccine after warnings to abide by lockdown restrictions were stepped up to ease pressure on the NHS. Johnson will be grilled by senior MPs on the liaison committee after facing Labour leader Keir Starmer during PMQs on Wednesday. Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi and health bosses crucial to the jabs programme will also be questioned by the Commons science & technology committee. With rolling out the vaccines key to easing lockdowns, the latest National Health Service figures showed 2,431,648 in the UK have received a first dose. But the health service was under extraordinary pressure with the number of Covid-19 patients in hospital in England at a record 32,202 as of 8am on Tuesday – up 22% on a week ago, and 82% since Christmas Day. Latest figures showed that as of Tuesday, a further 1,243 people in the UK had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19, with a further 45,533 cases being confirmed by labs.
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London Councils and Mayor Sadiq Khan have implored Johnson to immediately implement tougher coronavirus measures – including closing places of worship – or risk putting an "unsustainable strain" on the NHS and public services. After a major incident was declared in the capital last Friday due to rising Covid-19 cases, Khan and London Councils Chair Georgia Gould have written to the UK prime minister calling for measures similar to those in place last March and April. Aside from the closure of places of worship, they have called for Johnson to make mask-wearing mandatory outside the home – including in supermarket queues, on high streets and in other possibly crowded outdoor settings.
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A Chinese province of more than 37 million declared an "emergency state" on Wednesday to snuff out a handful of Covid-19 cases, as the country moved decisively to contain infections. China had largely brought the coronavirus under control since its emergence in Wuhan late in 2019. But recent weeks have seen smatterings of cases, prompting localised lockdowns, immediate travel restrictions and widespread testing of tens of millions of people. More than 20 million are now under some form of lockdown in the country's northern regions. On Wednesday, the government of northeasten Heilongjiang – with a population of 37.5 million people – declared an "emergency state", telling residents not to leave the province unless absolutely necessary, and to cancel conferences and gatherings. That was in response to finding 28 Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, including 12 which were asymptomatic.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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CREDIT SUISSE RAISES IMI PLC TO 'OUTPERFORM' ('NEUTRAL') - TARGET 1,450 (1,160) PENCE
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JPMORGAN CUTS VESUVIUS TO 'NEUTRAL' ('OVERWEIGHT') - TARGET 591 (575) PENCE
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RBC CUTS JOHNSON SERVICE GROUP TO 'SECTOR PERFORM' ('OUTPERFORM') - TARGET 140 (120) PENCE
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Housebuilder Persimmon said it produced a robust performance for the year, against the backdrop of the "unprecedented challenges" of 2020. New home completions for 2020 were 13,575, down from 15,855 in 2019, while the average selling price was GBP230,500, up from GBP215,709. The company generated total revenue of GBP3.33 billion, down from GBP3.65 billion. Persimmon noted that dividends paid in 2020 were down 53% to 110 pence from 235p in 2019. Persimmon said the robust performance in the second half of the year, delivering 8,675 new home legal completions, mitigated some of the damage of delays caused by the initial Covid-19 lockdown period in the first half. "Recent events have served to further demonstrate the continuing near term uncertainties arising from the Covid-19 pandemic. However, we believe that the longer term fundamentals of the UK housing market remain resilient and I am confident Persimmon will continue to deliver superior long term value for all of its stakeholders," CEO Dean Finch said.
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Supermarket giant Wm Morrison Supermarkets announced a new pay deal which it says will guarantee at least GBP10 an hour for all staff. The retailer, which employs around 120,000 people across the UK, said it will be the first UK supermarket group to secure workers a GBP10 minimum rate when the pay deal starts in April. The new payment policy will result in a "significant" pay increase for nearly 96,000 staff members, Morrisons said. Most workers who move up to the new minimum hourly rate, which is subject to a ballot vote on January 27, will receive a 9% rise in their pay. Currently, Morrisons has a minimum hourly pay rate of GBP9.20 per hour.
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COMPANIES - MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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ASOS said revenue growth in the period to December 31 surpassed the online fashion retailer's expectations, and it forecasts financial 2021 pretax profit to be at top end of current market expectations. ASOS said UK retail sales up 36% in the four months to December 31, while EU sales were up 18%. US retail sales were up 13%, or 17% at constant currency. Total group revenue was GBP1.36 billion, up 23% from GBP1.11 billion in 2019, or up 24% at constant currency. ASOS said that with virus-related restrictions likely to be in place for the balance of the first half, it expect a net Covid-19 profit benefit of at least GBP40 million in the first half. "Looking forward, given the uncertainty associated with the virus and the impact on customers' lives, our cautious outlook for the second half of the year remains unchanged. However, the strength of our performance gives us confidence in our continued progress towards capturing the global opportunity ahead," said CEO Nick Beighton.
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COMPANIES - OTHER
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John Lewis Partnership on Tuesday said it has temporarily suspended click-and-collect services at its department store chain and made face covering compulsory at its Waitrose grocery arm. The company also will halt its in-home offering, which provides installation services, unless they are "essential" to a customer's well-being.
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Wednesday's Shareholder Meetings
AB Dynamics PLC - AGM
Real Good Food PLC - AGM
Octagonal PLC - AGM
Tasty PLC - GM
Majedie Investments PLC - AGM
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com
Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
