Ocado running late more often December 4, 2011 ONLINE grocer Ocado has seen the punctuality of its deliveries slip in the face of increasing demand. The listed company, which sells Waitrose goods, is understood to have delivered 90-95 per cent of its shopping early or on time in the past three months, compared to an average punctuality rate of 95.5 per cent in [...]
Tesco kicks off price war September 22, 2011 TESCO has kicked off a price war with rivals, announcing that it plans to splash out £500m on dropping prices on 3,000 food items. In an aggressive attempt to outflank the competition, the supermarket giant has vowed to focus the campaign on cheap, everyday products and to scrap complex promotions in favour of across-the-board price [...]
Supermarket’s pricing war could put squeeze on Ocado September 21, 2011 TESCO is tipped to launch a price war next week, which one analyst says could put the squeeze on online deliver service Ocado under its pledge to match prices. The retailer was said by industry sources to be trying to dent Asda’s sales, but Ocado could be hit in the crossfire. Panmure Gordon’s Philip Dorgan [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 20, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES TESCO BANK FACES MORTGAGE DELAY Tesco faces a fresh delay to the roll-out of Tesco Bank, with mortgages unlikely to be launched until early next year. Britain’s biggest retailer by sales had been expected to introduce mortgages this autumn but, having bought out Royal Bank of Scotland’s 50 per cent share in their [...]
Ocado slumps as its margins are squeezed September 19, 2011 ONLINE grocer Ocado said yesterday that sales growth slowed in the third quarter and full-year profit margins were likely to be lower than expected as the company ploughed cash back into the company. The company, whose stock floated at 180p in July 2010, said growth was held back by capacity constraints. Ocado said gross sales [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS OCADO’S GROWTH STRATEGY WORKING? September 19, 2011 PHILIP DORGAN | PANMURE GORDON As growth rates slow and returns remain low, it is not appropriate to value Ocado as ‘another Amazon’. Increasingly, we believe that it will be valued relative to its multichannel competitors. This appears sensible, but it is not supportive of the current share price. JONATHAN PRITCHARD | ORIEL SECURITIES The [...]
Glasenberg adds to stake in Glencore September 19, 2011 GLENCORE boss Ivan Glasenberg has made another show of confidence in the commodity trader, buying almost £13.5m of shares to add to his holding as part of a plan to use his dividend income to buy more shares. Glasenberg, who announced last week he had bought £10m of shares and would buy more, bought another [...]
Why Ocado isn’t delivering as the markets hoped September 19, 2011 WHEN Ocado came to the market in July 2010, to some (its investors) it was a great opportunity to buy into a growth online market with a unique business model and amazing technology. The company had been going for ten years and was just about to break through the tipping point, which would lead profits [...]
Pressure piled back on banks amid Eurozone gloom September 19, 2011 World markets slumped today as the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis appeared to be deepening as German Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a regional election defeat which undermined her power. With the world looking to Germany to help steer the Eurozone out of stormy economic waters the confidence of investors was sapped. Meanwhile a series of meetings [...]
Ocado sales growth slows in third quarter September 19, 2011 British online grocer Ocado saw a slowdown in sales growth in its fiscal third quarter and said full-year profit margins were likely to rise a less than expected as it invests in improving customer service. Ocado, which mostly sells the products of upmarket grocer Waitrose, said on Monday gross sales rose 16.9 per cent to [...]