WH Smith nears sale of high street chain as revenue rises June 4, 2025 WH Smith has confirmed it remains on track to sell its high street division to the owner of Hobbycraft by the end of the month. In March, the FTSE 250 company announced it had agreed to offload the arm to private equity firm Modella in a deal which valued it at £76m. When complete, the [...]
B&M: Revenue ticks up as new stores outperform June 4, 2025 Discount retailer B&M has reported a bump in its full-year earnings after progress in France and a better-than-anticipated performance at its new stores. The London-listed Luxembourg-headquartered company reported revenue of £5.57bn in the 52 weeks ended March 29, up 3.7 per cent year on year. It said the higher revenue was “primarily driven” by the contribution [...]
MJ Gleeson: Shares plummet after profit warning as property market struggles June 3, 2025 Housebuilder MJ Gleeson has warned of a 15-20 per cent hit to its profit this year due to a slow housing market recovery and the collapse of a land sale in Yorkshire. The company told markets this morning that the pace of housing market recovery in the UK has “not been sufficient” to offset the [...]
British American Tobacco ups guidance on US return to growth June 3, 2025 Pall Mall and Lucky Strike owner British American Tobacco (BAT) has said its American business has returned to growth, driven by smokeless products. In a trading update, the company said its combustible products – cigarettes and cigars – are expected to return to growth in the first half of the year, while its nicotine pouches Velo [...]
Ghost Ship producer Adnams slashes losses May 29, 2025 Ghost Ship producer Adnams has halved its operating loss amid a commercial turnaround plan, although retail sales continue to suffer. The Suffolk-based company, which makes cask ale, bottled beers and spirits, said that sales increased three per cent to £68.1m in the 12 months ended December 31. Its operating loss shrank by more than half, [...]
Greggs gains momentum after lacklustre start to the year May 20, 2025 Greggs has reported an uptick in sales boosted by its expanded food and drink offering. Its share price rose six per cent as investors cheered the return to strong trading. The FTSE 250 company reported a 2.9 per cent increase in sales in the 20 weeks to May 17, an improvement from 1.7 per cent [...]
Premier Foods: Mr Kipling maker ups dividend on strong growth May 15, 2025 Revenue at Premier Foods jumped last year, driven by growth in branded goods and international sales. The Mr Kipling owner told markets this morning that adjusted profit before tax rose 8.8 per cent to £169.3m in the year ended March 29. Profit after tax rose 11 per cent, with basic earnings per share up 10 [...]
Burberry plans to cut a fifth of workforce in cost-cutting drive May 14, 2025 Burberry has told investors it plans to cut nearly a fifth of staff in the next two years as it looks for cost savings to aid its significant turnaround plan. The British luxury giant plans to shed 1,700 jobs by 2027, nearly 20 per cent of its 9,300-strong workforce. It said the savings in “people-related [...]
Marston’s: Pub chain swings back into the black May 13, 2025 British pub chain Marstons has reported a significant uptick in profit amid higher demand and cost savings. The hospitality giant told markets this morning that underlying profit before tax increased to £19m in the first half of the year, up from a loss of £0.2m last year. Operating profit increased by 20.1 per cent to [...]
On The Beach: Demand for city breaks boosts travel group May 13, 2025 On The Beach has reported a double-digit profit increase in another market-outperforming trading update. The online package holiday specialists told markets this morning that adjusted revenue grew 12 per cent year on year in the first half of 2025. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 19 per cent year on year. [...]