The FTSE 100 closed up 0.3% on Black Friday as the week looks
set to end without a bang and any risk rally is on pause for now,
IG's chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp says. "The FTSE 100
certainly looks in need of something to move it on, with the index
having barely moved over the last three sessions. It now seems
vulnerable to at least a short-term drop, although if oil prices
can rejoin the risk party at least there is hope that oil stocks
can help prop the index for the time being," Beauchamp says. Airtel
Africa led the gainers, ending up 1.4%, while Ocado was the biggest
faller, down 2.1%.
Companies News:
SSE PLC to Sell 25% Stake in SSEN Transmission for GBP1.47
Bln
SSE PLC said Friday that it will sell a 25% stake in its
electricity transmission network business SSEN Transmission to
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board for 1.47 billion pounds ($1.78
billion).
---
Breedon Revenue in 10-Months to October Rose; Sees 2022 Meeting
Guidance
Breedon Group PLC said Friday that revenue in both the four
months to the end of October and the first 10 months of the year
rose on year, and it backed its full-year expectations.
---
Devro Agrees to GBP540 Mln Takeover
Devro PLC said Friday that it has agreed to a 540 million pound
($654.3 million) takeover by Saria SE & Co. KG through its
subsidiary Saria Nederland BV.
---
LPA Flags FY 2022 Trading Loss Despite Upswing in 2H
LPA Group PLC said Friday that it will make a small trading loss
for the year, despite a strong second half with improved trading on
year.
---
ScS Group Sees FY 2023 Performance in Line With Views, 16-Week
Orders Fell
ScS Group PLC said Friday that like-for-like order intake for
the 16 weeks to Nov. 19 fell given a tough comparative, but added
that full-year performance is in line with expectations despite the
challenging backdrop.
---
Devro Upbeat on Prospects as Volume, Pricing Drive Revenue
Higher
Devro PLC said Friday that it is confident for the full year and
further ahead, as revenue and margins rise across markets.
---
Thor Mining Trading Suspended on ASX Ahead of Capital Raise
Thor Mining PLC said Friday that trading of its shares on the
Australian Securities Exchange has been suspended ahead of a
planned capital raising.
---
LSL Property Services Sees 2022 Missing Prior Expectations
LSL Property Services PLC said Friday that it expects overall
2022 performance to miss prior expectations, with full-year profit
expected to be slightly above or below 2019 levels.
---
Kenmare Resources Cuts 2022 Production Views on Power
Outages
Kenmare Resources PLC said on Friday that production for the
full year is expected to be at or around the bottom of its guidance
ranges due to unplanned power outages caused by issues in the
electricity transmission grid.
---
ITM Power Appoints Dennis Schulz as CEO
ITM Power PLC said Friday that it has appointed Dennis Schulz as
chief executive officer with effect from Dec. 1.
---
Conviction Life Sciences Company to Raise GBP100 Mln in London
IPO
Conviction Life Sciences Company said Friday that it plans to
raise 100 million pounds ($121.2 million) and float on the London
Stock Exchange next month.
Market Talk:
SSE 25% Disposal of Transmission Asset Seen as a Welcome
Deal
1106 GMT - SSE executing the widely expected 25% disposal of its
electricity transmission asset for GBP1.47 billion--with proceeds
to go toward funding renewable growth--should be welcomed, Citi
says. The energy company is unlikely to get the market overly
excited on the back of the sale, however, Citi analyst Jenny Ping
says in a research note. "We also see limited valuation read across
to other network utilities in the U.K. that could stick, given the
meaningfully different regulatory asset value growth outlook," the
U.S. bank says. Citi retains its neutral rating and 1,664 pence
price target on the stock. Shares are up 0.8% at 1,747.0 pence.
(joseph.hoppe@wsj.com)
BT Analyst Meet Fails to Provide Visibility on Stabilizing Line
Loss
1021 GMT - BT Group CFO Simon Lowth and Openreach CEO Clive
Selley hosted an analyst meeting on Thursday, but they didn't give
any visibility on stabilizing line loss nor cogent rationale for
the Equinox 2 proposal, Jefferies analysts Jerry Dellis and Yi Hsin
Yeoh say in a research note. The U.K. telecommunications company's
Equinox 2 program will encourage internet service providers to bulk
migrate legacy customers to fiber to the premises for a pricing
discount, but it remains unclear why Equinox 2 is being launched
when Openreach is unable to execute existing demand for FTTP, the
analysts say. Jefferies has a buy rating on the stock with a 250.00
pence price target. (kyle.morris@dowjones.com)
ScS's Performance is Resilient, Looks Well-Placed for
Recovery
1005 GMT - ScS's update showed a resilient business performance,
with encouraging recent order levels prompting expectations to
remain unchanged, Shore Capital analysts Darren Shirley and Clive
Black say in a research note. The U.K. furniture and floorings
retailer is expected to report a pretax profit for FY 2023 of GBP8
million, they say. This compares with GBP16.4 million reported a
year ago. "We see the group as well placed to continue to gain
share through tough times, and so benefit and thrive when the U.K.
consumer economy stabilizers and ultimately returns to growth,"
they say.(michael.susin@wsj.com)
UK Seeking Swiss-Style Ties With EU Wouldn't Necessarily Support
Pound
0958 GMT - Sterling wouldn't necessarily benefit if the U.K.
government pursued a Swiss-style relationship with the EU,
Commerzbank says. "In particular since the negotiations for
[Brexit] already were so complicated, I would assume that
negotiations regarding closer cooperation would hardly be less
complex," Commerzbank currency analyst Antje Praefcke says in a
note. Since 1972, there are more than 120 individual agreements
between the EU and Switzerland, and negotiations for each one took
2-10 years prior to an approval period over several years, she
says. That means if the U.K. plans to move in that direction,
negotiations would take time, she says. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)
Contact: London NewsPlus; paul.larkins@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 25, 2022 12:42 ET (17:42 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
FTSE 100
Index Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
FTSE 100
Index Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024