The FTSE 100 Index closed Thursday up 0.2% to 7692 points, in line with global markets as the ECB's dovish hike boosted sentiment, IG Group chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp said in a note. "Far from pouring cold water on the rally, Christine Lagarde has energised it anew with hints that the ECB's rate hike campaign could actually be at an end," he adds. The BOE is likely to follow Fed and ECB's tone, which could support U.K. stocks next week, he adds. Centrica shares outperformed the index, rising 7.5% after reporting strong 1H profits, followed by RELX and Informa, up 4.7% and 4.1%, respectively.


COMPANIES NEWS:

Schroders 1H Pretax Profit, Assets Under Management Fell

Schroders on Thursday reported a fall in pretax profit for the first half of 2023 as its assets under management declined over the period given negative market performance.

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Airtel Africa Swung to a 1Q Pretax Loss on Foreign Exchange Headwinds

Airtel Africa said Thursday that it swung to a pretax loss in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 after booking higher costs, and that their results had been affected by foreign exchange headwinds stemming from the devaluation of the Nigerian naira in June.

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Centrica Swung to 1H Net Profit; Extends Share Buyback by GBP450M

Centrica on Thursday reported a swing to net profit on a strong operational performance for the first half, and extended its share buyback program by a further 450 million pounds ($582.4 million).

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BT Group Backs Guidance as First-Quarter Earnings Rose

BT Group on Thursday backed its full-year guidance and said revenue and adjusted Ebitda in its fiscal first quarter rose as the flow through from revenue and continued strong cost control more than offset cost inflation.

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Segro Swung to 1H Pretax Loss on Property Losses; Adjusted Profit Rose

Segro on Thursday reported a swing to pretax loss for the first half of the year, driven by a swing to losses on property gains, though adjusted profit and revenue rose

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Shell 2Q Earnings Dropped; Launches $3 Bln Buyback

Shell said Thursday that second-quarter earnings fell, and launched a $3 billion share buyback program.

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Barclays 2Q Profit Beats Views; Launches GBP750 Mln Buyback

Barclays on Thursday reported second-quarter profit ahead of market views on higher net interest income and a lighter credit impairment charge, and announced a larger-than-expected share buyback.

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Iberdrola Raises 2023 Profit Outlook After 1H Net Profit, Revenue Rose

Iberdrola on Thursday raised its profit outlook for 2023 and said that net profit grew in the first half of the year on the back of higher revenue that allowed it to offset a rise in operating costs.

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Rentokil 1H Pretax Profit Rose; Sees Good Performance Continuing

Rentokil Initial said Thursday that pretax profit for the first half of the year rose, driven by growth across all major regions and categories, and said it continues to expect good performance for the rest of 2023.

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Frasers Group FY 2023 Pretax Profit Doubles Boosted by Sports Retail

Frasers Group on Thursday reported a more than doubled pretax profit for fiscal 2023 which was boosted by sports retail, and said that it expects to report a strong performance for the year ahead as momentum continues.

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RELX Backs Guidance, Lifts Dividend Despite 1H Earnings Miss

RELX on Thursday reported first-half earnings that were shy of estimates, but raised its dividend and maintained full-year guidance after noting improving long-term trends.

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St. James's Place Swung to 1H Pretax Profit, Says Client Funds Retention Remains Strong

St. James's Place said Thursday it swung to a first-half pretax profit, and that its retention of client funds remained strong at 95.6%.

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Beazley Backs 2023 View After 1H Premiums Written Growth

Beazley on Thursday backed its 2023 guidance after posting a rise in premiums written in the first half of the year, driven by good conditions in the property market.

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Anglo American 1H Earnings Dropped on Weaker Prices, Higher Costs

Anglo American said Thursday that earnings slipped in the first half of the year as macro headwinds weighed on the results, but it remains on track to meet full-year production views.

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Weir Group's CFO John Heasley Resigns to Join Anglo American

Weir Group said Thursday that its Chief Financial Officer John Heasley has resigned to join diversified mining group Anglo American.

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ITV PLC 1H Pretax Profit Falls; On Track to Meet Key Targets

ITV PLC on Thursday reported a 79% fall in pretax profit for the first half of the year, and said it was on track to achieve all key targets.

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Informa Sees 2023 Results at Top End of Guidance Range After 1H Growth

Informa on Thursday said it expects its 2023 results to be at the top end of its guided range as it reported a jump in pretax profit for the first half year and has forward visibility for the second half.

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Sage Group Backs FY 2023 Revenue Guidance on Nine-Month Performance

Sage Group said Thursday that it is backing its fiscal 2023 organic recurring revenue-growth guidance after posting a strong performance for the first nine months of its year.

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RS Group 1Q Total Revenue Fell on Tough Macroeconomic Backdrop

RS Group said Thursday that total revenue in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 fell 2% and reflected lower purchasing manager index data, a continued tough electronics market, and the weakening industrial market.

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Hammerson Swung to 1H Loss on Charges; But Revenue Rose and Footfall Was Strong

Hammerson said Thursday that it swung to a first-half pretax loss on one-off disposal and impairment losses, though revenue rose and footfall and like-for-like sales remain strong.

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Britvic 3Q Boosted by Positive Price Mix, Volume Growth

Britvic said Thursday that third-quarter trading was strong with revenue up 9.9%, driven by positive price/mix and volume growth.

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Foxtons 1H Profit, Revenue Rose; Well-positioned for Rest of 2023

Foxtons Group said Thursday that its first-half pretax profit and revenue rose, and that it was well-positioned for the rest of the year despite macroeconomic uncertainty.

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Drax 1H Pretax Profit Rose; Backs Full-Year Views

Drax on Thursday backed its full-year views after profit and revenue rose in the first half of the year.

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Mitchells & Butlers 3Q Sales Rise as Food, Drink Volumes Grow

Mitchells & Butlers said Thursday that third-quarter like-for-like sales rose 9.7% on year as food and drink volumes grew.

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Amigo Shares Fall After Swinging to FY 2023 Pretax Loss

Amigo Holdings shares fell 31% on Thursday after the company swung to a pretax loss in fiscal 2023.

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Inchcape Shares Jump After 1H Earnings, Revenue Rose

Shares in U.K.-based car dealer Inchcape rose after its first-half earnings and revenue rose on year and guided for full-year results at the top end of market expectations.

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Safestyle UK Shares Slump as Inflation Chills Consumer Spending

Shares in Safestyle UK crashed Thursday after it said it expects to book a loss for the first half of the year as the tough economy weighs on consumer demand, likely dragging the full-year performance below current market forecasts.

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Headlam Shares Fall on Weaker-Than-Expected Residential Trading Volumes, Lower Dividends

Shares in Headlam Group fell Thursday after the company said recent residential trading volumes were weaker than expectations and will take longer to recover than previously thought, and that it intends to lower its dividend cover temporarily.

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Jupiter Fund Management Shares Rise After 1H Pretax Profit Jump

Jupiter Fund Management shares rose on Thursday after the company posted a rise in pretax profit for the first half of 2023 despite bringing in lower revenue given it booked lighter costs.

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Franchise Brands 1H Profit, Revenue Rose; Names New CFO

Franchise Brands on Thursday reported higher first-half adjusted profit and revenue and forecast a full-year performance at least in-line with its expectations, and named Mark Fryer as incoming chief financial officer.

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Anglo American Platinum Appoints Craig Miller as New CEO

Anglo American Platinum said Thursday that it has appointed Craig Miller as new chief executive officer, replacing Natascha Viljoen, effective Oct. 1.

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CMC Markets Performed as Expected in 1Q Amid Quiet Markets

CMC Markets on Thursday said its performance for the first quarter of fiscal 2024 was as expected and that its net operating income for the three-month period is tracking at a similar run-rate to last year's.

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RBG Shares Fall on Dividend Suspension Aimed at Reducing Net Debt

Shares in RBG Holdings fell Thursday after the company said it was suspending its dividend policy to focus on reducing its 6.5 million pound ($8.4 million) loan, and that transactions at its Convex Capital business were taking longer to complete due to the economic environment.

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Lookers Shares Rise on Improved Offer From Global Auto

Shares of Lookers PLC rose 26% on Thursday after Global Auto Holdings increased its offer for the London-listed auto retailer to 504.2 million pounds ($652.5 million), which has been recommended by its board.

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Empresaria Shares Fall After 2023 Adjusted Pretax Profit Seen Missing Views

Empresaria Group shares fell 27% on Thursday after the company said it expects its adjusted pretax profit for 2023 to be lower than market expectations as softening demand and slowing of hiring decisions continue to make conditions challenging.

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Indivior 2Q Profit, Revenue Rose; Hikes 2023 Guidance

Indivior said Thursday that pretax profit and revenue for the second quarter rose on strong sales volume growth, and raised its full-year revenue and adjusted operating profit guidance.

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Informa Says Investment Fund Acquires Stake in Saudi Joint Venture

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07-27-23 1206ET