What the other papers say this morning – 23 May 2014 May 22, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Corrupt companies face higher fines British companies that bribe foreign officials to win contracts, commit fraud, or launder money, face fines of up to 400 per cent of their illicit profits, under new penalty guidelines. In the most serious cases companies will pay fines comparable with those meted out in the US, where [...]
Best of the Brokers for 23 May 2014 May 22, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com MARKS & SPENCER UBS has kept its “neutral” rating for the high street shop, but cut its target from 475p to 465p after this week’s results, which were slightly better than expected. The broker thinks M&S’s three-year recovery plan has been disappointing so far, [...]
M&S warns new website will hit clothing sales May 20, 2014 MARKS & Spencer warned yesterday that the launch of its new website will deliver a further blow to its already fragile general merchandise sales, as the high street retailer reported a third year of falling profits. Chief executive Marc Bolland admitted the website “will take four to six months to be at full strength” as [...]
Bottom Line: Bolland has until the autumn to do better May 20, 2014 RELAUNCHING a retail website is not easy. Behind the flashy new design and faux editorial content that draws shoppers towards key products is layer upon layer of complex infrastructure – payment systems and forms and code and algorithms. Somewhere in that complex maze of programming, Marks & Spencer tripped up. Before its new site went live [...]
Greencore splashes out on new factory to fuel growth in the US May 20, 2014 GREENCORE, the food group that supplies retailers with everything from sandwiches to Yorkshire puddings, announced plans to step up its expansion in the US as it reported an eight per cent rise in half-year revenues yesterday. The London-listed group, whose biggest clients in the US include Starbucks and 7-Eleven, said it will spend £20m on [...]
London Report: Vodafone and Marks weigh down on FTSE May 20, 2014 SELL-OFFS in mobile operator Vodafone and retailer Marks & Spencer dragged down Britain’s blue-chip equity index yesterday, after disappointing forecasts from both companies. The benchmark FTSE 100 index closed down by 0.6 per cent, or 42.55 points, at 6,802.00 points. Vodafone took the most points off the FTSE as it fell by 5.5 per cent [...]
What you need to know before the open May 20, 2014 A mixed open for European markets this morning. Yesterday, the Dax and Cac managed to finish on a positive note, but the 10 per cent drop AstraZeneca shares saw kept the FTSE in negative territory. On the data front, the Office for National Statistics will be releasing several key data at 9.30 this morning, with [...]
M&S profit falls less than expected as Bolland stresses step by step approach May 20, 2014 Marks and Spencer has reported a fall in profits for the third year in a row: in the year ended in March, the store saw a 3.9 per cent decrease in underlying pre-tax profit, to £623m. That is, however, considerably better than the 7.5 per cent drop analysts have been predicting. Pressured chief executive Marc [...]
Amanda James joins FTSE female top execs after Next promotion May 19, 2014 NEXT has promoted the finance boss of its retail division Amanda James to group finance director after announcing yesterday that David Keens is to stand down. Keens, who has held the post for 23 years and who has been at Next for 28 years overall, will retire from the group shortly after its full-year results [...]
M&S braced for a third year of falling profits May 19, 2014 MARKS & Spencer boss Marc Bolland is tomorrow expected to flag the beginning of a new era for the retailer, marked by improved margins and increased shareholder returns, despite a third year of falling profits. The 130-year-old firm is expected by analysts to report a 7.5 per cent decline in full-year pre-tax profits from £665m [...]