UDG.L Share News (UDG)

LONDON (Alliance News) - The following stocks are the leading risers and fallers within the main London indices on Tuesday.----------FTSE 100 - WINNERS----------Fresnillo, up 1.5%. The Mexican gold miner said it expects to meet its production guidance for 2019, despite first quarter production falling just short of expectations. First quarter production, as expected, was below the comparative year ago period, but still came in "slightly weaker than anticipated," Chair Alberto Bailleres said in his annual general meeting statement. In April, the company announced it had produced 13.1 million ounces of silver in first quarter ended March 31, 15% below the first quarter of 2018. This was attributed to a lower ore grade and throughput at the Fresnillo project. Gold production in the first quarter of 2019 was down 8.8% year-on-year at 211,100 ounces. Nonetheless, the company expects to achieve its 2019 guidance for 58 million to 51 million ounces of silver and 910,000 and 930,000 ounces of gold as it realises the benefit from its operational investments.----------FTSE 250 - WINNERS----------Galliford Try, up 9.0%. The construction and housebuilding company said it expects to achieve an annual result for the group as a whole in line with analysts forecast, as trading since the beginning of 2019 has progressed well. Current market expectations see the company delivering a pretax profit of between GBP112.7 million and GBP123.3 million for the year ending June 30. Galliford Try said it would shed 350 of its workers as it seeks to make the business more profitable. At the beginning of April, the company launched a review of its Construction business. In the current year, financial 2019, Construction's profitability will be hurt by the review, with a write down of GBP40 million in respect of restructuring costs and legacy and current projects. Furthermore, the restructured business's target annual revenue will reduce to GBP1.3 billion, the company said. However, this will generate annualised cost savings of up to GBP15 million from 2021, accelerating progress on operating margin improvements. "In one of those horrible market truths, news that up to 350 people would lose their jobs at Galliford Try as part of its strategic review caused the stock to surge, lifting it to a 5-week high," sad Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell. ----------UDG Healthcare, up 7.8%. The healthcare services provider said it has made two acquisitions, Putnam Associates and Incisive Health, for up to just over USD100 million as well as strong interim earnings. UDG said its pretax profit was USD30.3 million for the six months ended March 31, many times its USD1.7 million profit the year before. This was largely a result of a USD57.6 million impairment of goodwill in relation to Aquilant the year before, which took other operating expenses to USD75.5 million. Aquilant was divested in August 2018 and other operating expenses for the first half of 2019 were much lower at USD34.4 million. The company raised its interim dividend by 4.9% to 4.46 cents per share from 4.25 cents.----------Electrocomponents, up 4.6%. The electrical parts supplier boosted its dividend after annual profit improved, though revenue growth has slowed since the start of the new year. For the financial year that ended in March, pretax profit widened 16% to GBP195.2 million from the GBP168.6 million the year prior. This was after revenue rose 9.9% to GBP1.88 billion from GBP1.71 billion the year before, up 8.5% on a like-for-like basis. Electrocomponents proposed a 9.5 pence per share final dividend, up 19% from 8.0p the year prior. For the full year, the dividend rose 12% to 14.80p from 13.25p the year before. ----------Homeserve, up 3.7%. The home emergency cover provider reported a double-digit increase in profit driven by improved revenue which exceeded the billion pound mark. For the year ended March 31, the firm posted pretax profit of GBP139.5 million, up 13% from GBP123.3 million a year ago. This was achieved on the back of revenue rising 12% year-on-year to GBP1.00 billion from GBP899.7 million. In the UK adjusted operating profit increased 8% to GBP66.0 million, with income per customer up 15% as the business continued its focus on delivering additional products to customers, Homeserve explained. Meanwhile, North America, the firm's largest business, delivered a 37% increase in adjusted operating profit to USD88.1 million. Homeserve upped its total dividend by 12% to 21.4 pence per share from 19.1p paid to shareholders a year ago. This was after proposing a 16.2p final dividend for the year.----------FTSE 250 - LOSERS----------Entertainment One, down 5.6%. The film and TV content producer reported a drop in annual earnings. For the year ended March, pretax profit plummeted 43% to GBP36.8 million from GBP64.9 million the year prior. This was after revenue fell 8.6% to GBP941.2 million from GBP1.03 billion the year before. Profit performance was held back by a rise in one-off charges to GBP68.0 million from GBP7.1 million the year prior, primarily related to impairments of its Home Entertainment unit. This was partially offset by gross profit rising 9.0% to GBP323.8 million from GBP297.2 million the year prior after cost of sales fell faster than revenue. The Peppa Pig-owner proposed a 1.5 pence per share full year dividend, up 7.1% from 1.4p the year prior. ----------OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM - WINNERS----------First Derivatives, up 3.9%. The trading software developer boosted its dividend after profit and revenue both surged. For the year ended February, pretax profit widened 38% to GBP16.7 million from GBP12.1 million the year prior. This was after revenue rose 17% to GBP130.9 million from GBP111.9 million the year before. First Derivatives proposed a 19.3 pence per share final dividend, up 14% from 17.0p the year prior. For the full year, the dividend rose 13% to 27.0p from 24.0p the year before. ----------OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM - LOSERS----------Topps Tiles, down 3.8%. The bathroom, kitchen, floor, wall, and mosaic tiles retailer described its interim performance as "resilient", with second-half operations starting solidly. On a statutory basis, revenue fell 0.2% year-on-year for the 26 weeks to March 30 to GBP110.3 million, with pretax profit slipping 19% to GBP5.2 million. Topps Tiles' adjusted revenue climbed 0.5% to GBP109.0 million, with like-for-like revenue growth 0.2% compared to 0.6% a year before. Adjusted pretax profit rose 11% to GBP8.0 million. As of March 30, the company's net debt was GBP18.0 million, reduced from GBP25.1 million a year before. Topps Tiles has held the interim dividend flat at 1.1 pence a share. ----------