Diageo shares surge amid Guinness sale rumour January 24, 2025 Diageo’s shares spiked to the top of the FTSE 100 today amid a rumour the company is looking to spin off or sell its most famous brand, Guinness, for up to £8bn. The transaction was first reported in a piece by Bloomberg, which said Diageo may be looking to review its portfolio to kickstart growth. [...]
City broker slashes price target for Primark-owner Associated British Foods January 24, 2025 Analysts at Panmure Liberum downgraded their rating for Primark-owner Associated British Foods from ‘Buy’ to ‘Hold’ after Primark underperformed over the festive quarter. Panmure downgraded its target price for ABF to 1900p from 2800p. Its share price currently sits at 1,892.50p after falling five per cent in the last five days. Associated British Foods reduced [...]
Firms finding it ‘almost impossible’ to survive after Labour tax hikes January 24, 2025 Less than three months after the Budget, critical financial distress for UK businesses climbs by 50 per cent, with the construction sector leading the table
The Works: Arts and crafts retailer slashes losses as new strategy unveiled January 24, 2025 High street arts and crafts retailer The Works reported a significant improvement in profitability for the first half of its financial year, as it unveiled a new strategy. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) showed a market improvement, with losses narrowing from £8.5m to £2.8m since the same period last year. Adjusted [...]
CMA begins redundancy programme after overshooting budget January 23, 2025 The competition watchdog is planning to slash its head count by around ten per cent after overshooting its budget last year, piling fresh pressure on the body following the sudden exit of its chair this week. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which has faced public anger from the Prime minister and Chancellor over its [...]
Sainsbury’s to axe 3,000 jobs and close all in-store cafes January 23, 2025 Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s has confirmed plans to axe more than 3,000 roles as it prepares to close all its remaining in-store cafes. The major overhaul will cut two per cent of its current workforce, which stands at 148,000. The move will also make around 20 per cent of senior management roles at Sainsbury’s redundant. The [...]
Weak UK sales pull Primark down despite international growth January 23, 2025 Lower sales in the UK and Ireland pulled Primark’s performance down in the last quarter of 2024 despite double-digit growth in countries like Spain, Portugal and the US. Primark’s parent company ABF Foods told markets this morning that sales in the UK and Ireland, which account for approximately 45 per cent of its market, declined [...]
‘It’s a clear message’: Reeves’ CMA scalp fires warning to regulators January 23, 2025 The government has sent a “clear message” to UK regulators by ousting the chair of competition watchdog, in what lawyers described as the “most overtly political” regulatory intervention of recent years. Marcus Bokkerink, who joined the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in 2022, was forced out of his role due to a “different approach” on [...]
Is your Netflix subscription price about to rise? January 22, 2025 Netflix is to increase its prices in several countries after reportedly gaining nearly 19 million subscribers during its last quarter. The streaming giant confirmed price hikes in the US, Canada, Argentina and Portugal. On whether price rises could soon be made in the UK, a Netflix spokesperson said there is “nothing to share as of [...]
Netflix to hike prices as live sport aids surge in subscriber numbers January 22, 2025 Netflix boasted 19m extra subscribers in their fourth quarter results for 2024, partly due to their rise in live sports offering, as the streaming giant passed 300m paid subscribers. The platform added live sport to its slate in 2024, showing boxing, NFL and WWE. It also won the media rights to the next two Fifa [...]