Market News:
Morrisons Bid Boosts UK Supermarket Shares
Shares in the U.K.'s fourth-largest grocer by market share, Wm.
Morrison Supermarkets, surged in early trading after rejecting a
$7.65 billion proposal from Clayton Dubilier & Rice. The
supermarket says it rejected the 230 pence a share offer as
undervaluing the company. Morrison's share price performance bucked
a wider trend in morning trading, which saw the FTSE 100 opening
lower, mirroring falls in Asian stocks. The bid has helped give the
rest of the supermarket sector a boost, with the likes of Tesco and
Sainsbury also posting small rises despite the FTSE's lower
opening. Shares in Morrisons are up 31.5% at 234.6 pence, Tesco is
up 2.5% at 227.35 pence and Sainsbury is up 4.6% at 272.4
pence.
Companies News:
Wm. Morrison Supermarkets Rejects $7.65 Bln Clayton Dubilier
& Rice Offer Proposal
Wm. Morrison Supermarkets PLC said Saturday that it has rejected
a 5.54 billion-pound ($7.65 billion) possible cash offer by Clayton
Dubilier & Rice LLC as it "significantly undervalued" the
company and its future prospects.
---
Dev Clever Holdings PLC Proposed acquisition
TIDMDEV
---
UK CMA Serves Enforcement Order on Bristol Water Takeover by
Pennon
The U.K. Competition and Markets Authority said Monday that it
has served an initial enforcement order in relation to the
acquisition of Bristol Water Holdings UK Ltd. by Pennon Group
plc.
---
Capita Sells 51% Stake in AXELOS JV for Net Cash of GBP183.6
Mln
Capita PLC said Monday that it has sold its 51% stake in its
AXELOS Ltd. joint venture to PeopleCert International Ltd. for a
net cash receipt of 183.6 million pounds ($253.4 million).
---
Capita on Track to Deliver Revenue Growth in 2021
Capita PLC said Monday that performance has improved in the
first half of this year and that it remains on track to deliver
full-year revenue growth--its first in six years.
---
Kerry Group to Acquire Niacet for $1.01 Bln
Kerry Group PLC said Monday that it has agreed to acquire to
acquire Hare Topco Inc., trading as Niacet Corp., for 853 million
euros ($1.01 billion), as it seeks to strengthen its food
protection and preservation strategy.
---
nmcn Secures GBP24 Mln Fundraising, Agrees Debt
Renegotiation
nmcn PLC said Monday that it has agreed a renegotiation of its
debt after securing a 14 million pound ($19.3 million) equity
subscription and a GBP10.0 million convertible bridging loan with
new investors.
---
Georgia Capital Says 2Q Performance Has Been Ahead of Views
Georgia Capital PLC said Monday that its operational performance
in the second quarter onward has been very strong and significantly
ahead of management expectations, partly due to the Georgian
economy's strength.
---
Ilika Sees Lower FY 2021 Revenue, Widened Loss in Line With
Expectations
Ilika PLC said Monday that performance in fiscal 2021 met its
views, and that it expects to report slightly lower revenue and a
widened earnings loss.
---
Remote Monitored Signs Hydroponics Supply Agreement With PIC
Consultants
Remote Monitored Systems PLC said Monday that it has signed an
agreement with PIC Consultants Ltd. to supply high-grade retail
hydroponics nutrients for distribution in the U.K. market.
---
Russia's LSR Group to Delist From London Stock Exchange
LSR Group said Monday that it will delist from the London Stock
Exchange and that it has applied with the U.K.'s Financial Conduct
Authority for trading in its global depository receipts to be
canceled from Aug. 2.
---
88 Energy to Sell Tax Credits for $18.7 Mln; To Repay All
Debt
88 Energy Ltd. said Monday that has agreed to sell all of its
Alaskan oil-and-gas tax credits for $18.7 million and that it will
use the proceeds to repay all of its debt.
---
Amino Technologies Chairman Karen Bach to Step Down; Plans
Change of Name
Amino Technologies PLC said Monday that Nonexecutive Chairman
Karen Bach is stepping down, and that the company plans to change
its name.
---
Providence Resources Chairman to Step Down in July
Providence Resources PLC said Monday that Nonexecutive Chairman
Pat Plunkett is stepping down.
Market Talk:
Gilts to Underperform if BOE Warns of Possible Rate Rises, QE
Taper
0744 GMT - The Bank of England is likely to bring a more hawkish
tone at Thursday's policy decision by warning of possible future
interest rate rises and asset purchases being scaled back, which
should cause U.K. sovereign debt to underperform, says Mizuho. "The
BoE is the main event this week, with the likelihood being for a
hawkish shift, raising the risk of another quantitative easing
taper and an earlier-than-expected first rate hike," analysts at
the Japanese bank say. This should "drive further weakness in
gilts, particularly in the long-end, with considerable room for
U.K. curves to underperform U.S. and EUR [yield curves]," they
say.
---
UK Labor Market Recovery Is Expected to Be Challenging Despite
Rapid Economic Growth
0736 GMT - Unemployment in the U.K. is likely to fall in the
next few months as the economic recovery accelerates, but a
complete return to a pre-pandemic labor market is still far,
economists at Citi say. The short-term improvement of the labor
market will likely reverse as government support winds down later
this year, and the reabsorption of furloughed workers could prove
challenging, they say. "We think there is now a risk employment
market lags in the aftermath of Covid," Citi says.
---
Capita's Restructuring Progresses But Challenges Remain
0716 GMT - Capita's long restructure process is proceeding
positively but it still has some way to go, highlighting the
difficult position it has come from, Shore Capital says. The
outsourcing company's progress is becoming more visible, but the
fruits from the severe pruning of the business aren't likely to be
delivered by fiscal 2022, instead hopefully gathering pace in
fiscal 2023, the investment group says. Challenges remain for
Capita, as disposals must be completed to secure the balance sheet,
and there is potential cost inflation among core IT staff--a
possible challenge to margin recovery, Shore says. "Noting that
progress is being made, we retain a hold stance for the present,"
it says. Shares are up 0.7% at 37.91 pence.
---
The Time Has Come to Sell Iron-Ore-Heavy Rio Tinto
0349 GMT - Expectations of a coming dive in iron-ore prices
leads UBS to slap a sell rating on Rio Tinto. The bank, which had
earlier been neutral on the stock, reckons iron ore is approaching
an inflection point because of China's efforts to cool commodity
prices at a time when Brazilian supply is rising and Chinese port
stockpiles sit higher than the recent average levels. While Rio
Tinto--whose earnings are heavily reliant on iron ore--is
generating plenty of cash at today's prices, "current free cash
flow and dividends are not sustainable as we expect the iron-ore
price to fall by more than 50% (from over US$200 a ton to circa
US$90) over 12-18 months," UBS says. The bank keeps its target
price at A$104 a share. Shares are down 2.6% at A$120.25.
Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires;
+44-20-7842-931
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 21, 2021 04:07 ET (08:07 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
FTSE 100
Index Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
FTSE 100
Index Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024