SNN.L Share News (SNN)

(Alliance News) - London shares opened slightly higher on Monday, with blockbuster merger and acquisition activity helping investors quickly gear up for a busy week for company earnings and monetary policy decisions.The FTSE 100 was up 17.87 points, or 0.2% at 7,566.93. The FTSE 250 was up 6.59 points at 19,864.53. The AIM All-Share was up 1.31 points, or 0.1%, at 929.25.The Cboe UK 100 index was up 0.2% at 12,822.39. The Cboe UK 250 was flat at 17,717.89, and the Cboe UK Small Companies was flat at 11,078.12.In European equities, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.3% and the DAX 30 in Frankfurt was flat. On the London Stock Exchange, Just Eat was the standout blue-chip performer, up 23% at 780.80 pence after the online takeaway platform confirmed a preliminary agreement for a possible all-share merger with Dutch rival Takeaway.com.Under the possible deal, Just Eat shareholders would get 0.09744 of a Takeaway.com share for each Just Eat share held, which values Just Eat at 731p per share.This is a 15% premium to FTSE 100 Just Eat's closing price on Friday last week in London.Just Eat shareholders would own 52.2% of the combined business, with the shareholders of Takeaway.com owning the rest. It would be led by Takeaway.com Chief Executive Jitse Groen, with Just Eat Chief Financial Officer Paul Harrison and Just Eat Chair Mike Evans taking up the same roles.The deal, the two said, would create one of the world's largest online food delivery programmes, with a combined 360 million orders worth EUR7.3 billion in 2018.The combined group would be domiciled in Amsterdam but would retain its premium listing in London. London Stock Exchange Group was up 11%, after Thomson Reuters Corp on Monday confirmed talks to sell financial markets data provider Refinitiv Holdings to the stock exchange operator for a total enterprise value of USD27 billion.The Canadian media and information company said it and funds managed by US private equity Blackstone Group Inc are in talks to sell Refinitiv to the parent company of London Stock Exchange in a all-stock deal. Refinitiv is currently 55% owned by funds managed by Blackstone and 45% by Thomson Reuters.If the deal with London Stock Exchange Group goes through, Thomson Reuters expects to own 15% stake in the stock market operator.London Stock Exchange Group had confirmed talks to buy Refinitiv on Saturday, in response to a report that first appeared in the Financial Times late Friday and was picked up by other UK mediaCentrica was up 2.2% after HSBC raised the British Gas parent company to Hold from Reduce.At the other end of the large cap index, Informa was the worst performer, down 1.0% after Citigroup downgraded the events and publishing company to Neutral from Buy. In the FTSE 250, QinetiQ was up 4.2% after Berenberg raised the defence outsourcer to Buy from Hold.At the other end of the midcaps, Sanne Group was the worst performer, down 33% after the company warned that it sees weakened operating margins hitting its full year results, despite enjoying record levels of new business wins from both new and existing clients.The provider of trust and fund administration services said its underlying operating margin in the first half is expected to come in at 26%, below previous expectations for the current year. Sanne said margin performance in the first half was affected by a "lack of delivery of operating efficiencies in the central operations teams" and "some elevated overhead spend". Sanne added that while it continues to see good levels of revenue growth, the items hurting the underlying operating margin in the first half are "unlikely to be fully compensated for in the second half". As such, the company expects to report at full year underlying operating profit margin in the region of 28% to 30%, which is below previous expectations.Sanne is slated to report interim results, for the six months ended June 30, on September 10.In addition, JPMorgan downgraded Sanne to Neutral from Overweight. The Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed down 0.2% on Monday. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed down 0.1%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong is down 1.5%.Asian equity markets were lower, with investors cautious ahead of US-China talks in Shanghai this week and amid more civil unrest in Hong Kong.Two-day discussions begin on Tuesday with a Washington delegation led by White House Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.Ahead this week, the Bank of Japan and the Bank of England will make their own rate decisions, on Tuesday and Thursday respectively.The pound was quoted at USD1.2363 early Monday, lower than quoted at USD1.2377 late Friday, amid no-deal Brexit fears. Preparations for a no-deal Brexit are being stepped up by the government as Boris Johnson prepares to make his first visit to Scotland as prime minister.On Sunday, Johnson set up a network of top-level committees to try to ensure Brexit takes place by the deadline of October 31.The move came before Johnson makes his first official visit north of the border since becoming prime minister to announce a GBP300 million funding pot for communities in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.Speaking before his visit to a military base, Johnson called for a renewal of "the ties that bind our UK".Johnson faces a tense encounter with Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson on Monday, however, after she announced she would oppose a no-deal exit from the EU.On the earnings front this week, there are a host of household names reporting interim results in London, with oil major BP and British Gas parent Centrica on Tuesday, lender Lloyds Banking and insurer Direct Line on Wednesday, oil major Royal Dutch Shell on Thursday, and tobacco firm British American Tobacco also on Thursday. The week culminates with state-backed lender Royal Bank of Scotland on Friday.