London pre-open: Stocks to dip amid slew of corporate news; Nvidia in focus

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set to dip at the open on Thursday following strong gains in the previous session, as investors mulled the latest results from US chip giant Nvidia and a slew of UK corporate releases.

The FTSE 100 was called to open around 20 points lower.

Nvidia reported solid first-quarter earnings after the US close on Wednesday, but shares declined afterhours.

Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, said: "The beat goes on at Nvidia. For the 14th straight quarter - if I'm not mistaken - the company crushed expectations again. Revenue came in above $81bn, up 20% from the previous quarter and an impressive 85% from a year ago. Gross margins held near a stunning 75%, right in line with expectations, and the company also announced $80bn in stock buybacks.

"Yet somehow, it still wasn't enough. The stock swung 2-3% in both directions in after-hours trading before settling around 1% lower.

"Some blamed the May-to-July outlook for not being strong enough. Others pointed to confusion around Nvidia's new reporting structure. But honestly, this looked more like simple profit-taking after an enormous rally than lack of conviction."

Meanwhile, developments between the US and Iran remained in focus after Trump told reporters on Wednesday that the US was in the "final stages" of talks with Tehran, while also threatening once again to attack if a deal is not reached.

In corporate news, telecoms giant BT Group reported flat adjusted earnings as service revenue fell 1% on the back of lower business and consumer voice volumes.

Core earnings for the year to March were £8.2bn. Adjusted UK service revenue was £15.4bn, with the decline offset by CPI-linked price increases and an improved broadband fibre-to-the-premises mix from its Openreach unit.

The company expects 2026/27 adjusted UK service revenue of £15.1-£15.4bn and adjusted earnings of £8.2-8.3bn.

Budget airline easyJet reported a widening of its first-half losses, in line with the guidance given in April, as it said its performance so far in the second half has been hit by higher fuel costs due to the Middle East conflict, and lower forward visibility.

In the six months to the end of March, the headline pre-tax loss widened to £552m from £394m in the same period a year earlier, in line with guidance for a loss of £540m to £560m.

Commercial real estate investment trust LondonMetric Property reported a double-digit increase in rental income during the fiscal year ended 31 March, helped by last year's acquisition of Urban Logistics REIT, though statutory profits dropped.

The company, which invests across the logistics, convenience, entertainment/leisure and healthcare sectors, said net rental income rose 16.6% to £455.3m, with underlying earnings up 13.9% at £305.3m.

However, reported profit was down 15% at £295.7m, mainly due to the costs of corporate acquisitions and debt repayments, along with lower property revaluation gains.

Smiths Group cut full-year guidance as the conflict in the Middle East weighed on trading.

The 175-year-old firm had previously forecast organic revenue growth of between 3% and 4% in the current year, excluding any impact from the war. However, updating on third-quarter trading, the company confirmed that on the assumption disruption in the Middle East continues, annual revenue growth would now be curtailed to around 2%.