LONDON MARKET OPEN: FTSE 100 underperforms on ex-dividend stocks

(Alliance News) - London's FTSE 100 made a tepid start to Thursday, as a host of its constituents go ex-dividend and as traders mull over the latest set of US Federal Reserve meeting minutes.

abrdn fell 4.7%, Anglo American lost 3.8% and Aviva was down 2.8%. The trio were among the stocks to go ex-dividend on Thursday, meaning shareholders no longer qualify for the latest payouts.

The FTSE 100 was down 10.31 points, or 0.1%, at 7,505.44. The FTSE 250 index was up 16.40 points, or 0.1%, at 20,043.44. The AIM All-Share index was down 2.61 points, or 0.3%, at 924.06.

The Cboe UK 100 index was down 0.1% at 750.20. The Cboe 250 was up 0.1% at 17,364.17. The Cboe Small Companies was down 0.2% at 14,391.57.

Blue-chip equities in Europe outperformed London's FTSE 100. In Paris, the CAC 40 was up 0.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.4%.

In Tokyo on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 ended down 1.0%, while in Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 closed 0.2% lower. In China, the Shanghai Composite ended down 0.5%, while the Hang Seng Index was 1.1% lower in late trade.

"The release of the Federal Reserve minutes was met with a collective shrug of the shoulders, as investors were deprived of any new news," Interactive Investor analyst Richard Hunter commented.

"The muted end to the US trading session and a lacklustre performance across Asian markets left the FTSE 100 with little inspiration, with the index opening fractionally lower."

The sterling was quoted at USD1.2013 early Thursday, down from USD1.2040 at the London equities close on Wednesday. The euro stood at USD1.0150, down a touch from USD1.0155. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY135.20, down from JPY135.44.

The economic events calendar on Thursday has eurozone inflation readings at 1000 BST and the latest US jobless claims numbers at 1330 BST.

In London, Helios Towers climbed 3.1%, among the best mid-cap performers.

The Africa-focused mobile phone tower developer reported revenue of USD265.4 million for the half-year to June 30, up 25% from GBP212.4 million. However, its pretax loss ballooned to USD122.2 million from USD43.6 million.

Finance costs surged to USD104.7 million from USD64.5 million.

Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose 19% to USD136.1 million from USD114.2 million a year earlier.

Tenancies grew 20% year-on-year to 20,549. A tenant is a mobile network operator that leases space on a tower.

Looking ahead, it backed guidance of 1,200 to 1,700 organic tenancy additions for the full year. It still expects an adjusted Ebitda margin between 51% and 53% in 2022, down from 53.6% in 2021. The first half adjusted Ebitda margin fell to 51% from 54% a year prior.

AO World shares shot up 9.3%. It said its new financial year is going as planned, but posted a loss for the one just ended.

Revenue in the year to March 31 fell 6.3% to GBP1.56 billion from GBP1.66 billion. AO swung to a pretax loss of GBP37.2 million from a GBP20.2 million profit.

The online electricals retailer's adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation amounted to GBP8.5 million, down sharply from GBP64.4 million the year before, which the firm blamed on increased staff costs as well as higher marketing and logistics expenses.

"The new financial year marks a period of realignment for the business as we execute a strategic pivot to focus on cash and profit generation," AO said.

For the 2023 financial year, which so far is tracking to plan, it expects revenue between GBP1 billion and GBP1.25 billion. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation are expected around GBP20 million to GBP30 million - which would be up significantly on the 2022 financial year.

Made.com slumped 8.3%. The sofa seller said it is "considering all options" to bolster its balance sheet.

Made.com said on Thursday: "Made confirms that these options include a potential equity capital raise. Made continues to consider its options and a further announcement will be made if and when appropriate."

Late Wednesday, Sky News reported the sofa seller has hired PricewaterhouseCoopers to help with repairing its balance sheet, including plans for a share sale to raise around GBP50 million.

It now has a market value of GBP35.8 million.

According to Sky News sources, the furniture retailer is advancing plans to raise funds a month after announcing that it was exploring ways to bolster its financial position.

Sky News reported that the launch of a cash call is expected to take the form of a placing which would require shareholder approval.

Made shares debuted in June last year at 200 pence each, valuing it around GBP775 million on admission.

Made shares are trading at 9.29p early Thursday, down more than 95% from its IPO price.

Amid another poorly received retail market update, Angling Direct dropped 20%. The specialist fishing tackle retailer warned annual revenue will fall short of market expectations.

For the first half ended July 31, it expects to report revenue of GBP38.9 million, up 1.3% year-on-year from GBP38.4 million.

Angling said it has faced an "inevitable impact" from cost of living pressures, falling consumer confidence and inflation. It has also felt the heat from recent hot weather.

"More recently, adverse fishing conditions caused by the heatwave and its resulting effect on river levels and fish health has also impacted trading in the usually busy month of August. In addition, the same factors have impacted sales growth and profitability to a similar extent in Europe as the company continues to invest in the early stages of its European rollout," Angling said.

It now expects revenue "marginally below current market expectations" for financial 2023. Its pre-IFRS 16 Ebitda will be "materially behind current market expectations" and land in the region of GBP3.0 million and GBP3.4 million.

Immotion shares rose 7.9%. The virtual reality entertainment company said revenue in its core business almost doubled in the first-half, rising to GBP4.4 million from GBP2.3 million a year earlier.

The Location Based Entertainment arm also enjoyed a record month, with July revenue amounting to GBP1.3 million.

For the first seven months of the year, revenue at the business stood at GBP5.7 million, up 78% annually.

"The summer trading period is looking very encouraging," Chief Executive Martin Higginson commented.

Gold rose to USD1,762.24 an ounce early Thursday, from USD1,753.55 late Wednesday. Brent oil was quoted at USD93.17 a barrel, down slightly from USD93.38.

By Eric Cunha; ericcunha@alliancenews.com

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