The UK’s latest unicorn: Sophos prices its $1bn IPO June 26, 2015 Shares in Sophos, one of the UK's few tech "unicorns", launched its IPO today, valuing it at £1.01bn. Read more: The hunt for London's unicorn tech startups Shares in the cyber security giant began conditional trading at 225p each this morning, raising $125m (£79.3m), with an over-allotment option that could net it another £52.8m. The [...]
Co-operative appoints two new non-exec directors in governance shake-up June 26, 2015 The Co-operative Group has appointed two new non-executive directors to its board, following changes made last year to the company's governance nominations. Read more: Co-operative Group returns to profit amid turnaround plan Stevie Spring is joining the group from ITG Group and Children in Need, while Peter Plumb is coming from Moneysupermarket.com. In [...]
Tesco’s share price soars after reporting smallest decline in more than a year June 26, 2015 Tesco's share price climbed 3.6 per cent this morning as investors digested what appear to be the first signs of a turnaround under new chief executive Dave Lewis. The troubled supermarket has reported its smallest declines in more than a year, while volumes are up. The figures Tesco has stemmed its declines – group [...]
Regulators list problems with Poundland’s £55m 99p Stores merger June 25, 2015 Britain’s competition watchdog unveiled a list of issues it is exploring around Poundland’s £55m merger with 99p Stores after the discount chain agreed to push ahead with an in-depth probe last month. Poundland, which floated on the stock market last year, announced in February that it was going to buy 99p Stores. However, the Competition [...]
Wood Group is ahead of target on savings plan as it warns on finances June 25, 2015 Oil and gas services company Wood Group said yesterday that its financial performance in the first half of 2015 will be down on the same period in 2014, as a result of the “challenging” conditions in the market. The firm said in a trading update that it is making savings “significantly in excess of [...]
Equities down over Greece – New York Report June 25, 2015 AUS Supreme Court ruling upholding tax subsidies boosted US hospital stocks to record highs yesterday, while global equity markets edged lower on lingering worries over Greece. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 75.71 points, or 0.42 per cent, to 17,890.36, the S&P 500 lost 6.27 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 2,102.31 and the Nasdaq [...]
Uber protests France: Taxi drivers block roads and burn tyres in Paris June 25, 2015 French taxi drivers have blocked roads to airports and stations in Paris with cars and burning tyres as part of huge protests against Uber. Read more: Boris Johnson says Uber drivers must pass black cab style Knowledge test The protest force is made up of thousands of drivers, as conflict between taxi drivers and the taxi [...]
London Stock Exchange Group buoyed by rise in volumes – but Aim still suffering June 25, 2015 Things were looking up for London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) in the five months to the end of May – although volumes were less encouraging on its junior market. The figures New issues on LSEG's main markets were up 29 per cent in the period, while average daily UK equity value traded was up eight per [...]
Debenhams share price edges up after reporting better than expected results June 25, 2015 Struggling department store Debenhams has had a better-than-expected quarter, but with the share price up just a notch it seems investors are still unsure. The figures Debenhams' like-for-likes were flat for the 15 weeks to 13th June, and up 0.9 per cent for the 41 weeks – ahead of analyst expectations of a decline [...]
Standard Chartered chief executive Bill Winters is shifting power abroad June 25, 2015 Standard Chartered's new chief executive Bill Winters is planning a structural shake-up of the bank, which includes handing over power to the bank's regional zones. Read more: Standard Chartered share price rises following appointment of Bill Winters as chief executive The London-listed bank operates in over 70 countries, but has some key regional hubs, [...]