Neil Woodford fund breaches rules after Guernsey delistings July 31, 2019 Embattled fund manager Neil Woodford has breached fund restrictions after two of his major investments delisted from the Guernsey stock exchange. Woodford has been battling to reduce his Equity Income fund’s investment in illiquid securities after it was suspended following a spike in investor redemption requests. Read more: Neil Woodford’s flagship fund to stay frozen [...]
Taylor Wimpey profits drop due to higher costs July 31, 2019 Shares in house builder Taylor Wimpey fell more than six per cent this morning as the company reported a drop in profits due to higher costs. The figures Profit before tax and exceptional items fell 9.4 per cent in the first half of the year to £299.8m from £331m in 2018. Read more: Taylor Wimpey [...]
Just Eat profits plunge 98 per cent on delivery investment July 31, 2019 Just Eat saw profits plummet in the first half of this year due to investment in its delivery platform, however revenue was up as more customers signed up to the takeaway app. The figures Profit before tax plunged 98 per cent from £48.1m to £800,000. Revenue was up 30 per per cent from £358.3m to [...]
Next leads FTSE 100 as it ups profit forecast after sales boost July 31, 2019 High street retailer Next announced this morning it expects to make more profit this year than previously forecast after a boost in full price sales. Shares in the company rose more than seven per cent this morning as it increased its full year profit guidance by £10m to £725m, a boost of 0.3 per cent [...]
Travis Perkins confirms Wickes demerger plans July 31, 2019 Travis Perkins has confirmed that it is planning to spin-off DIY retailer Wickes as the builders merchant revealed it made a profit in its half-year results. Read more: Travis Perkins accelerates plans to sell Wickes The figures Like-for-like revenue grew eight per cent to £2.7bn. Operating profit was £64m in the six months to 30 [...]
Government urged to act to secure ‘home ownership dream’ July 31, 2019 The government has been urged to act to help first-time buyers as new forecasts revealed that by 2026 just a quarter of people aged between 25 and 34 will own their own home. A report by Santander found that home ownership within that age bracket will have dropped from 55 per cent 20 years ago, [...]
Shop prices fall as retailers tempt customers with discounts July 31, 2019 Shop prices fell this month as retailers attempted to attract reluctant customers with heavy discounting. Prices deflated by 0.1 per cent in July, driven by a 1.2 per cent drop in the price of non-food items such as electricals and clothing and footwear. Read more: Shop price inflation gathers pace in May The fall in [...]
Embattled asset manager Gam appoints Blackrock director as CEO July 30, 2019 Troubled Swiss asset management firm Gam has appointed Blackrock director Peter Sanderson as its new chief executive. Sanderson has served as head of financial services consulting for Europe, the Middle East and Africa since 2012. Read more: Activist investor pressures scandal-hit Gam over compensation Interim chief executive David Jacob, who took on the role after [...]
Number of UK firms in ‘significant distress’ rises July 30, 2019 The number of UK businesses facing “significant distress” has increased as consumer spending slumps due to ongoing uncertainty. In total, 14 per cent of all UK businesses – 484,000 – said they were experiencing significant distress at the end of June, with the leisure and retail industries hit the hardest. Read more: Consumer spending to [...]
Cafe Coffee Day founder VG Siddhartha goes missing July 30, 2019 The founder of Indian Starbucks rival Cafe Coffee Day has gone missing after reportedly facing pressure from activist shareholders. Local media outlets reported that VG Siddhartha was on his way to the port city of Mangaluru when he asked his driver to wait for him on a bridge and never returned. Shares in coffee day [...]
