LONDON MARKET OPEN: Stocks up; LSEG's Refinitiv integration speeds up

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Thursday on a busy day of corporate earnings, as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine remained intense.

The FTSE 100 index was up 13.71 points, or 0.2%, at 7,443.27 early Thursday. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was up 56.84 points, or 0.3%, at 20,832.66. The AIM All-Share index was down 3.57 points, or 0.4%, at 1,024.12.

The Cboe UK 100 index was up 0.1% at 740.54. The Cboe 250 was up 0.1% at 18,425.49, and the Cboe Small Companies up 0.3% at 14,797.88.

In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was 0.4% higher.

In the FTSE 100, London Stock Exchange was the best performer, up 9.5%, as the stock exchange operator hailed its Refinitiv acquisition after a series of cost setbacks following the high-profile purchase, which was completed at the start of last year.

For 2021, LSEG generated total income of GBP6.81 billion, up from a pro-forma GBP6.77 billion in 2020. Gross profit rose to GBP6.24 billion from GBP6.16 billion on the same basis. Adjusted pretax profit was GBP2.30 billion, up 27% from GBP1.81 billion. Statutory pretax profit was GBP987 million, up from GBP492 million.

LSEG said cost synergies following the Refinitiv acquisition were running ahead of target, with GBP151 million in annual run-rate achieved in 2021. It has identified an additional GBP50 million in cost synergies, raising its five-year target to at least GBP400 million.

Taylor Wimpey was up 2.0% after the housebuilder said it delivered a strong 2021 performance with results in line with its expectations.

For 2021, it posted pretax profit GBP679.6 million, up from GBP264.4 million in 2020 on revenue of GBP4.28 billion, up from GBP2.79 billion.

Further, 2021 saw a 47% increase in UK completions including joint ventures to 14,087, up from 9,609 in 2020, driven by good build performance and strong demand.

Taylor Wimpey declared a final dividend of 4.44 pence for 8.58p total, up from 4.14p in 2020. It also plans GBP150 million share buyback in 2022 to return excess cash.

At the other end of the large-caps, Polymetal International was the worst performer, down 25%. The Russian gold miner, alongside Russian steelmaker Evraz, was demoted from the FTSE 100 as part of the latest index review changes, FTSE Russell said late Wednesday. Evraz was down 2.7%.

ITV was down 14% despite the broadcaster reporting strong annual results and reinstating its dividend.

For 2021, ITV posted pretax profit of GBP480 million, up from GBP325 million in 2020, on revenue of GBP1.76 billion, up from GBP1.38 billion.

The London-based content producer proposed a final dividend of 3.3 pence for 2021, based on two-thirds of a notional full-year dividend of 5.0p. ITV intends to pay an annual dividend of at least 5.0p for 2022 which it expects to grow over time.

ITV set out an "ambitious" target to double digital revenue to at least GBP750 million, driven by a doubling of streaming viewing, monthly active users and subscribers by 2026.

Further, ITV set out an acceleration in its strategy to "supercharge" its streaming business.

ITV outlined digital-first content investment of GBP20 million in 2022 and GBP160 million in 2023 for ITVX subscription-funded streaming service. Total content investment will be around GBP1.23 billion in 2022, increasing to around GBP1.35 billion in 2023 and remain at broadly that level going forward. This includes BritBox UK content previously guided, and the following incremental investment, it added.

"Leading up to these results, the market had reacted with some cynicism to ITV's lofty ambitions and the share price reaction today reflects a mauling by the bears, with a concentration on the investment spend needed and the strength of the competition rather than improving prospects," explained interactive investor's Richard Hunter.

In Asia on Thursday, the Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed up 0.7%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was ended down 0.1%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong gained 0.6%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.5%.

The pound was quoted at USD1.3393 early Thursday, up from USD1.3363 at the London equities close Wednesday.

The euro was priced at USD1.1097, down from USD1.1130. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY115.75, higher against JPY115.60.

Brent oil was quoted at USD118.37 on Thursday morning, sharply higher from USD109.94 late Wednesday. The North Sea benchmark hit an intraday high of USD119.84 - its highest level since 2012.

Gold stood at USD1,931.34 an ounce, firm from USD1,923.31 late Wednesday.

Thursday's economic calendar has a raft of services PMIs including the UK at 0930 GMT and the US at 1445 GMT. Eurozone unemployment data are reported at 1000 GMT.

By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com

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