Marks & Spencer pension scheme transfers £1.4bn to two insurers May 23, 2019 Troubled retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) has transferred £1.4bn in pension scheme liabilities to two insurance companies, bringing the total insurance coverage to two thirds. Phoenix Group has insured £460m of liabilities, covering 5,000 pensioners, while Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC) has insured £900m of the £10bn pension scheme. Read more: M&S braced for fresh decline [...]
B&M to open 50 UK stores this year despite retail doom and gloom May 23, 2019 Discount retailer B&M said today it plans to open 50 shops this year, despite the wider gloom in the UK retail sector. B&M grew revenue 17 per cent to £3.4bn and profit before tax 8.7 per cent to £249.4m in the 52 weeks to 30 March. The company said it opened 44 new stores in the financial [...]
Hedge funds ramp up bets against Jupiter Fund Management May 22, 2019 Hedge funds have increased their bets against Jupiter Fund Management making it one of the most shorted UK companies. The asset manager’s shorted stock has increased to 10.55 per cent, more than that of struggling firms such as AA and Marks & Spencer, from 7.37 per cent at the beginning of April. Read more: Jupiter assets [...]
Four key things we learned from Marks & Spencer’s results May 22, 2019 There were not expectations of a strong set of results from Marks & Spencer today. The profit drop was expected and profit before tax of £532m was actually in the higher end of the forecast range. However, a share price decline of four per cent shows that these were still a disappointing set of results for investors. [...]
Marks & Spencer shares fall as profits decimated amid restructuring efforts May 22, 2019 Profit before tax at retailer Marks & Spencer fell nearly ten per cent in the last financial year, it said today as it announced plans to close 85 stores. The figures M&S said profit before tax for the year to 31 March was £532.2m, down 9.9 per cent from £580.9m the previous year. Revenue fell [...]
M&S braced for fresh decline in profits as store closures continue May 19, 2019 Marks & Spencer is set to report a sharp decline in profits for the full year as it looks to beef up its online offering amid a raft of store closures. The high street stalwart is expected to post pre-tax profits of roughly £520m in its full-year results of Wednesday, a fall of 10 per cent on [...]
Botanical drinks startup with top City backers set for crowdfunding May 14, 2019 A botanical drinks startup which counts high-profile City veterans and celebrities among its backers is set to launch a £1m crowdfunding in its latest expansion drive. David Spencer-Percival, the serial entrepreneur who runs No.1 Rosemary Water, told City A.M. he is looking to lure in fresh capital amid a global product drive and the launch of [...]
Joules lures in top Asda director as new chief executive May 8, 2019 Fashion group Joules has poached retail veteran Nick Jones to take over as chief executive, it announced this morning. A former top director at Marks & Spencer and Asda, Jones has spent 25 years working within the retail industry. Read more: Prime retail rents slip for embattled high street landlords After 15 years with M&S, latterly [...]
Marks and Spencer will shut seven stores for the final time as part of a wider restructuring May 4, 2019 Marks and Spencer will shut down seven more stores today as part of its long-term plan to close 100 by 2022. It will bring the total number of stores closed to 47 as the high street retailer adapts to consumer's changing habits. The department store chain is ending its association with town centres across the UK and [...]
Horse Racing Betting Tips: Turner has the Power to land opening race with Darkness May 2, 2019 MARCUS Tregoning has trained some very good horses over the years with the likes of Sir Percy, Nayef and Mubtaker. In truth, the last few years have been a bit quiet for the Hampshire-based trainer, but Mohaather’s win in last month’s Greenham Stakes at Newbury had him dreaming about a first 2000 Guineas success. Sadly, [...]