Tesco poised for dramatic exit from US December 4, 2012 TESCO is likely to close its US franchise, Fresh & Easy, pending a strategic review of the lossmaking business. Chief executive Philip Clarke will announce the review today alongside the retailer’s quarterly results, and will make a decision on the venture by April. Fresh & Easy has failed to turn a profit in its five [...]
Sainsbury’s has top quarter for market share December 4, 2012 SAINSBURY’S has picked up market share in the last quarter, to make it the biggest winner among the overall grocery market, data revealed yesterday. According to figures from market researcher Kantar Worldpanel the supermarket’s sales rose 4.7 per cent and its share rose 0.2 points to 16.9 per cent in the 12 weeks to 25 [...]
Best of the Brokers December 4, 2012 TESCO Espirito Santo has downgraded the supermarket giant from a “hold” guidance to a “sell” and cut the price target from 300p to 275p, warning of a drop in profit margins. CWC Barclays has upgraded the telecoms firm to an “equal weight” rating, and upped its target by 32 per cent to 41p following CWC’s [...]
Sir Terry Leahy to chair bargain store December 3, 2012 SIR TERRY LEAHY is making a comeback to the retail sector as chairman of B&M Bargains after US private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier and Rice yesterday revealed it has bought a stake in the chain for around £965m. The former Tesco boss is an adviser to CD&R, which has fought off rivals such as Advent, [...]
Stagecoach to Steam ahead December 3, 2012 TRAVEL firm Stagecoach will signal whether its joint venture with Virgin is on track when it submits its interim statement tomorrow. The current franchise is due to expire this month, but traders seem positive and shares have steamed ahead by over 25 per cent since lows in May. Spreadex quotes a price of 291.7p-293.8p for [...]
Stage set for more austerity as the chancellor gives Autumn Statement December 2, 2012 THE biggest news of the week will come from chancellor George Osborne on Wednesday, when he delivers his Autumn Statement. Osborne has already revealed he will be continuing Britain’s austerity drive, saying in a television interview that to turn back from the policy now would be “a complete disaster for our country”. His half-yearly financial [...]
What the other papers say this morning November 29, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Morgan Stanley to boost returns Morgan Stanley’s chief executive wants to use the bank’s excess capital to boost returns for the company’s “long suffering” shareholders. In the strongest signal yet that Morgan Stanley is preparing to hand back more than token sums to shareholders since the financial crisis, James Gorman told a securities [...]
Greencore strikes up sandwich deal with Starbucks’ US stores November 27, 2012 GREENCORE yesterday announced it has struck a $50m (£30m) deal to supply Starbucks’ stores in the US, as the food group revealed a 21 per cent rise in full-year profits. The Dublin-based group said the partnership will see it produce sandwiches for all of the coffee giant’s east coast stores except Manhattan, a major coup [...]
Cranswick profits jump as pig prices passed on to customers November 26, 2012 CRANSWICK, the sliced meat and sausage-maker, yesterday reported a 21 per cent rise in half-year profits as it succeeded in passing higher pork prices onto its customer. The Yorkshire-based group warned last month that UK prices were at a three-month high and would continue rising because of high livestock feed prices and the introduction of [...]
Unite Group launches retail bond November 21, 2012 Unite Group, the UK’s biggest student accommodation provider, yesterday become the latest firm to launch a retail bond. With £2,000 as the minimum investment, the bond pays a coupon rate of 6.125 per cent and matures on 12 June 2020. The group aims to raise £50 to £75m from the bond to fund expansion. Investec [...]