The FTSE 100 closed Tuesday up 0.6% to 7785 points as natural-resources stocks rallied following the four-day Easter break. Mining shares lead the blue-chip index top raisers on the back of higher metal prices, with Rio Tinto closing up 4.9% followed by Antofagasta and Anglo American, up 4.8% and 4.2% respectively. Shares of oil-and-gas company Shell closed up 0.6% supported by firmer oil prices and after the announcement of a partnership with smaller peer Harbour Energy to develop a carbon capture project in the Humber estuary, AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould says in a note. Beazley shares closed down 1.6%, leading a short list of fallers.
COMPANIES NEWS:
MJ Hudson to Sell Remaining Divisions to Apex for GBP40 Mln
MJ Hudson Group PLC said Tuesday that it has agreed to sell its remaining operating divisions to Apex Consolidation Entity Ltd. of Apex Group Ltd. for around 40 million pounds ($49.5 million) on a debt-free basis as it winds down the business.
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Devolver Digital Swung to 2022 Pretax Loss on Impairments
Devolver Digital Inc. said Tuesday it swung to a pretax loss in 2022 due to several impairments, but that revenue rose thanks to a rise in games released.
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Spectral MD to Combine With SPAC Rosecliff Acquisition; Delist From UK Market
Spectral MD Holdings Ltd. said Tuesday that it has agreed to combine with special-purpose acquisition company Rosecliff Acquisition Corp I, valuing the company at around an enterprise value of $170 million.
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JTC Sees Growth Beating Views This Year After 2022 Pretax Profit Rose
JTC PLC on Tuesday posted a 29% rise in pretax profit in 2022 on new business wins and said it expects to exceed its growth guidance this year.
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Impax Asset Management 2Q Assets Under Management Rose
Impax Asset Management Group PLC on Tuesday said its assets under management rose in the second quarter of fiscal 2023.
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Zegona Communications 2022 Pretax Loss Narrowed; Continues to Seek Investment Opportunities
Zegona Communications PLC said Tuesday that its pretax loss for 2022 narrowed and that it continues to seek investment opportunities.
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Tavistock Investments Buys Precise Protect for Up to GBP7.0 Mln
Tavistock Investments PLC on Tuesday said it bought insurance and protection business Precise Protect Ltd. for up to 7.0 million pounds ($8.7 million).
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Datalex Amends Line of Credit, Explores More Fundraising Options
Datalex PLC said Tuesday that it has amended its line-of-credit agreement to provide further financial flexibility, and it is exploring further fundraising options.
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MGC Pharma Shares Drop After GBP1.8 Mln Fundraise, Subscription
MGC Pharmaceuticals Ltd. shares fell Tuesday after it said that it has raised 1.8 million pounds ($2.2 million) in a discount share placing and subscription to progress its clinical trial pipeline.
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Galaxy Digital to build UK banking team as US crypto crackdown bites -- Financial News
Mike Novogratz's crypto firm has returned to profit. Now it wants to build out its Emea dealmaking team
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Rockwood Strategic Fiscal 2023 Net Asset Value Rose
Rockwood Strategic PLC said Tuesday that net asset value total return for the year ended March 31 rose over 21% to 1,959.56 pence a share, and that total shareholder return in the period was 28.2%.
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EnSilica CFO Steps Down
EnSilica PLC said Tuesday that Chief Financial Officer Matthew Wethey has stepped down.
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MHP 4Q 2022 Revenue Rose on Strong Poultry Exports
MHP SE said Tuesday that revenue rose in the fourth quarter of 2022 and for the year as a whole as poultry exports and average prices grew.
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Hollywood Bowl 1H Revenue Rose, Is Confident on Full-Year Prospects
Hollywood Bowl Group PLC said Tuesday that its first-half revenue rose 11% on year, and that it is confident in its prospects for the full fiscal year 2023.
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Woodbois Expects Higher Revenue, Positive Operational Cash Flow in 2023
Woodbois Ltd. on Tuesday said it sees 2023 revenue exceeding the previous year's as it posted an increase in first-quarter sales and that it is exploring the sale of two production sites in Gabon.
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LSL Property Services Sells Two Brokerages to Pivotal Growth Joint Venture
LSL Property Services PLC said Tuesday that it has sold its two direct-to-consumers brokerage firms Embrace Financial Services Ltd. and First2Protect Ltd. to its joint venture Pivotal Growth Ltd.
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Kibo Energy Shares Fall on Warrant Repricing, Loan Note Conversion
Kibo Energy PLC shares fell Tuesday after the company said it will take several measures to ensure its financial and operational stability, including a warrant repricing, convertible loan notes conversion and a bridge loan re-profiling.
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Oriole Resources Shares Rise on Potential Gold Project Financing
Shares in Oriole Resources PLC rose 12% on Tuesday after the group said it has signed a letter of engagement to secure $1.0 million in financing from a Canadian investment-banking firm for gold exploration at its licenses in Cameroon.
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CBI Director General Dismissed Following Misconduct Investigation
The U.K. Confederation of British Industry said Tuesday that Director General Tony Danker has been dismissed with immediate effect following an investigation into workplace misconduct complaints.
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Western Copper Partner Rio Tinto Participates in Strategic Investment for C$2.3M
Western Copper & Gold Corp. said Tuesday its partner Rio Tinto PLC will participate in a strategic investment and maintain its interest in the company.
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Beacon Energy Shares Jump as Trading Resumes After Rhein Petroleum Buy
Shares of Beacon Energy PLC rose 24% on Tuesday as the company returned from suspension having completed its acquisition of European oil-and-gas company Rhein Petroleum GmbH.
MARKET TALK
Pod Point's Profit Likely to Increase as UK EV Market Accelerates
1220 GMT - Pod Point has 100% potential upside given its market leadership and the clear need for electric-vehicle charging infrastructure in the U.K., Bank of America Global Research's analyst say in a BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research report. The EV-charging company is set to benefit from increased EV registrations in the U.K. during the first three months of 2023, up 15% year-to-date with record high registrations in battery EVs, they say. BofA raises its 2023-25 U.K. EV sales expectations by 3% to 4%, increasing Pod Point's revenue and gross profit estimates by 3%. (michael.susin@wsj.com)
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Just Eat Takeaway 1Q App, Web Trends Imply Performance Below Consensus
1017 GMT - Just Eat Takeaway.com's first-quarter app and web trends imply weaker performance than consensus expectations across all regions, Citi analysts say in a research note. The Amsterdam-headquartered food-delivery group's order growth for the first quarter is seen at minus 15% in the quarter compared with consensus at minus 10%, with Southern Europe and Australia and New Zealand as the biggest drag on order growth, they note. Despite this, Citi sees Ebitda at EUR269 million versus company guidance of EUR225 million. Updates on New York City's potential plans for delivery rider minimum wages and fee cap changes are also being awaited, they say. Citi has a buy rating on the stock with a EUR33 target price. (kyle.morris@dowjones.com)
Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires;
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
04-11-23 1220ET
