(Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers within the main London indices on Friday.
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FTSE 100 - WINNERS
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Burberry, up 2.4%. The company reported that it was performing well prior to the onset of Covid-19, which resulted in store closures and annual profit dropping as it took impairments. The luxury fashion house delivered revenue of GBP2.63 billion in the 52 weeks ended March 28 compared to GBP2.72 billion the year prior. Pretax profit dropped to GBP168.5 million from GBP440.6 million year-on-year. Burberry highlighted that it had seen "strong" momentum in brand, product and sales before the Covid-19 outbreak, ahead of its previous expectations. Comparable sales grew by 4% in the first nine months of its financial year, but dropped by 27% in the final quarter, with around 60% of retail stores closed at end of March. The outbreak of Covid-19 towards the end of the period hurt profitability and cash generation, it said, and it skipped paying a final dividend as a result.
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Hikma, up 1.7%. The generic pharmaceutical company said its US subsidiary has received approval from the US Food & Drug Administration for its Icosapent ethyl capsules, the generic equivalent to Vascepa. Brian Hoffmann, president of Generics, said: "The approval for our generic version of Vascepa is an important milestone towards bringing this product to market. This approval demonstrates the strength of our regulatory capabilities and our commitment to provide patients and healthcare providers in the US with the high-quality medicines they need."
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FTSE 100 - LOSERS
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easyJet, down 3.3%. The budget airline's founder & largest shareholder Stelios Haji-Ioannou - holding a 34% stake - submitted questions for Friday's sure-to-be-tense general meeting. These questions are directed at each and every one of the directors individually, Haji-Ioannou's easyGroup said. He asked how many easyJet shares does Airbus control, directly or indirectly. He also asked about links between easyJet directors and three Swiss lawyers and whether easyJet is a "going concern". On Tuesday last week, Haji-Ioannou said he is willing to offer GBP5.0 million to anyone with information that could stop the carrier's GBP4.5 billion aircraft order from manufacturer Airbus. It was the latest bizarre twist in a battle that has seen Haji-Ioannou routinely lambaste easyJet's top team, including Chair John Barton, Chief Executive Officer Johan Lundgren, and Chief Financial Officer Andrew Findlay. He is seeking to have them ousted. easyJet will hold a general meeting later on Friday - instigated by Haji-Ioannou - at which shareholders will vote on the future of 4 out of its 11 directors.
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United Utilities, down 3.3%. In the year ended March 31, the water and wastewater services provider recorded pretax profit of GBP303.2 million, down 30% from the GBP436.2 million seen the year before. The utility said it took a GBP56 million hit from Covid-19. Of this, GBP32 million represents its share of Covid-19 related losses at Water Plus and a further GBP5 million of expected credit losses in relation to loans to Water Plus. The remaining GBP19 million of Covid-19 related charges principally relate to an increased bad debt charge recognising the higher risk of future non-payment of household customer bills, United Utilities said. The company's total operating expenses grew 4.2% to GBP1.23 billion and investment expenses jumped 41% to GBP289.0 million. More positively, United Utilities reported revenue growth to GBP1.86 billion in the year to the end of March from GBP1.82 billion. The company lifted its dividend for the year to 42.60p from 41.28p paid a year earlier. United Utilities noted that intends to review its dividend policy going forward, after a clearer picture of the post-Covid-19 economic environment emerges.
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FTSE 250 - WINNERS
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Future, up 3.7%. The magazine publisher said it had an "exceptionally strong" first half as profit increased more than three-fold. For the six months to March 31, revenue jumped by a third to GBP144.3 million and pretax profit more than tripled to GBP27.1 million. Organic revenue growth totalled 11%. Covid-19 impacted the end of the period, the firm said, driving an acceleration of online audience growth which helped to offset a significant slowdown in news stand trade as travel stores shut and the cancellation of three large events in March. Online users were up 26% in the half to 253 million year-on-year, with Covid-19 lockdowns resulting in the firm achieving a record 329 million online users in March alone. Both Future's UK and US operations performed well, with UK revenue up 11% and US sales up 53%.
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IP Group, up 3.5%. The investment company's portfolio firm Oxford Nanopore Technologies is in advanced development of a new Covid-19 detection test. IP Group holds a 16% stake in Oxford Nanopore Technologies,which is an Oxford University spin-out focused on nanopore-based electronic molecular analysis systems. The intellectual property commercialisation company said the new LamPORE assay is designed to be rapid-low-cost and scalable, allowing it to cater to either very small samples or a larger number of samples. IP Group highlighted that the test is the first to be developed by Oxford Nanopore intended for use in diagnostic applications, adding that it is currently working to secure relevant approvals.
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FTSE 250 - LOSERS
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Spectris, down 5.6%. The precision instrumentation and controls company reported a slump in sales for the first four months of 2020 due to Covid-19, though noted demand from China has started to rebound. For the four months to April 30, like-for-like sales were down 12%. The fall was led by Asia, seeing a 20% slump, while sales were down 13% in Europe and 6% in North America - though the company said Chinese sales rebounded strongly in April as pent up demand translated to revenue. Disposals reduced sales by 9%, the company said, partly offset by a 1% boost from currency movements, resulting in a 20% fall in reported sales. After a 9% decline in the first quarter, April's performance was in line with revised expectations with like-for-like sales sinking 21%. From an end market perspective, like-for-like sales in the period were down more sharply in metals, minerals and mining, where investments are being put on hold, and in academic research, as universities and research institutes closed their doors. Visibility for the future remains low, the company said, reinforcing its decision to withdraw its 2020 guidance in April.
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OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM - WINNERS
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OPG Power Ventures, up 16%. The developer and operator of power generation plants in India reported stable performance in its most recently ended financial year, despite the Covid-19 pandemic. OPG said total generation for the year to the end of March was broadly flat on the year before. Plant load factor was consistent with the prior year's 75%. OPG said it implemented various cost reduction, efficiency improvement and liquidity improvement measures to ensure sustainable operations during the Covid-19 lockdown. "These initiatives have improved the liquidity position of the company which together with support from our lending banks put the group in a stronger position to manage the difficult market conditions," said Executive Chair Arvind Gupta. The company highlighted that the imposition of lockdown to control the Covid-19 outbreak has hurt electricity demand in India.
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Synectics, up 7.2%. The security and surveillance systems provider said it has secured two new multi-year contracts with existing long-term customers. Synectics' Systems division has been awarded a new five-year multi-million dollar support contract by a major casino operator for its flagship resort in Asia. Under the contract Synectics will continue to provide support and development of its Synergy 3 software platform. Meanwhile, Synectics' IMS division has been awarded a new three-year framework agreement by Stagecoach, the FTSE 250 bus and coach operator. The contract covers the delivery of safety critical on-vehicle surveillance systems and maintenance support for their fleet of over 8,000 vehicles. Looking ahead, Synectics said, despite inevitable delays to many projects, it continues to deliver services and support to its customers, utilising a growing range of remote capabilities. The company also continues to maintain a solid net cash position, it said, and is proceeding as normal with its planned investment in the development of upcoming software capabilities.
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Proactis Holdings, up 6.7%. The spend management software firm said it has signed new contracts with a total value of GBP11.3 million cumulatively in the year to date, which equals the equivalent performance for the whole of the prior financial year. Proactis explained that this improved new business performance has been driven by its refreshed go-to-market strategy and, in tandem with improved retention performance, annual recurring revenue from its buyer subscription business has returned to organic growth for the year to date. Looking ahead, the company said it continues to carefully monitor the developments with respect to the Covid-19 outbreak and is not immune from its impact, particularly with regard to its supplier-paid business and its implementation services.
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OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM - LOSERS
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Prospex Oil & Gas, down 14%. The investment company reported a swing to a pretax loss of GBP1.3 million in 2019 from GBP779,904 in profit reported the year earlier, as it recorded a loss of GBP473,925 on revaluation of investments against a GBP1.7 million profit in 2018. Prospex did not generate any revenue in either year as it is advancing a portfolio of late stage, onshore European gas projects. Onshore Italy, the company said first production at Selva gas field, at an initial rate of up to 150,000 standard cubic meters per day, is expected early in 2021. Onshore Romania, Prospex noted the enlargement of the Suceava exploration concession to 984 square kilometres. Onshore Spain, the company said it is working towards a decision to drill and increased its stake in the Tesorillo gas project to 49.9% from current 15%. At El Romeral, also onshore Spain, Prospex said power plant is currently constrained to operating at 22% capacity. "What gives us considerable confidence is that we now have a clear path to build a highly cash flow generative platform with which to capitalise on these opportunities," said Managing Director Edward Dawson.
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DP Poland, down 7.8%. The pizza delivery franchiser reported a strong 2019, but warned that the economic outlook remains uncertain. For 2019, DP Poland reported revenue of GBP14.0 million compared to GBP12.4 million the year prior, resulting in a narrowed pretax loss of GBP3.5 million from GBP3.8 million. DP Poland said store numbers in 2019 increased from 63 to 69 stores, satisfying the Domino's Pizza master franchise agreement requirement. System sales were up 13%, like-for-like system sales up 3%, and delivery sales ordered online up 6%. Despite that, the company said coronavirus crisis presents its industry with some major obstacles. So far DP Poland said it has seen relatively little impact as, under Polish government guidance, the company has been able to keep all of its stores open and sales have held up robustly. "We continue to create new initiatives and seek to adapt to the 'new world'. Meanwhile, one consequence of the crisis has been to bring about some reduction in our food and labour costs," said Chief Executive Iwona Olbrys.
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By Evelina Grecenko; evelinagrecenko@alliancenews.com
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