FTSE 100 Rises, Led by AB Foods; Smurfit Kappa Slides

0932 GMT - The FTSE 100 index rises 0.5% to 7530.48, outperforming other European indexes and boosted by a strong rise in Primark-owner Associated British Foods after it raised its fiscal 2023 guidance for the second time in the year. Other retailers also rose, while telecoms, banks and pharmaceuticals are all mostly higher. The number of rising stocks in the FTSE 100 suggests investor confidence is picking up, while a positive session on Wall Street on Monday has also helped, writes Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell. AB Foods rises 6%, while telecoms group BT gains 2.2%. Packaging company Smurfit Kappa slides 9.3%, however, as investors react negatively to a planned merger with WestRock. (jessica.fleetham@wsj.com)

COMPANIES NEWS:

Melrose Sees GBP200 Mln Cash Hit From Pratt & Whitney Engine Recalls; Backs Guidance

Melrose Industries said that although it sees a hit to cash of around 200 million pounds ($250.2 million) stemming from the Pratt & Whitney GTF engine recalls, it backed its previous guidance and said its buyback program was going ahead as planned.

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AB Foods Lifts Views on Robust Sales Growth

Associated British Foods on Tuesday raised its fiscal 2023 guidance on the back of improved sales growth across its categories.

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JTC PLC Sees 2023 Ahead of Views; 1H Pretax Profit Fell

JTC PLC expects to deliver 2023 results ahead of current market views after it posted a fall in pretax profit for the first half partly due to costs from its SDTC acquisition and foreign exchange losses.

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Wickes Group Backs Full-Year View After Pretax Profit Fall

Wickes Group backed its full-year guidance after pretax profit fell in the first half of the year on higher IT costs.

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Keywords Studios Warns of Potential Hit From US Entertainment Strikes

Keywords Studios said U.S. entertainment strikes have begun to hurt its performance early in the second half, and could hit organic revenue growth by up to 2.5% for 2023 as a whole.

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Fevertree Drinks 1H Pretax Profit Fell Sharply on Increased Costs; Lifts Dividend

Fevertree Drinks said that pretax profit for the first half sharply fell on the back of increased sales cost and other expenses, and that it has raised its dividend payout.

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Chemring's Expectations in Line With Views But Dependent on US Defense Approvals

Chemring Group said the board's expectations for fiscal 2023 are in line with views, subject to the U.S. Defense Department approving certain deliveries.

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Cornerstone FS Sees 2023 Ahead of Views After Swing to 1H Pretax Profit

Cornerstone FS said it is on track to report results for 2023 significantly ahead of views as it posted a swing to pretax profit for the first half of the year.

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Smart Metering Systems Backs Guidance After Rise in Pretax Profit, Revenue

Smart Metering Systems backed its full-year view after pretax profit and revenue rose in the first half of the year on higher rental figures.

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Northern Bear Performs in Line With Expectations

Northern Bear said it has continued to perform in line with management's expectations for the last two months, and that performance in fiscal 2024 is ahead of a strong prior-year.

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IQE Sees Slower-Than-Expected Recovery in Semiconductor Industry

IQE said it expects pockets of recovery in the semiconductor industry in the second half, though more slowly than it had previously anticipated, and that it is cutting costs partly through headcount reductions.

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Time Finance Lending Portfolio Rose in 1Q

Time Finance said its lending portfolio rose over the first quarter of fiscal 2024 and continues to grow in line with its mid-term strategy.

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Gaming Realms Posts Higher Pretax Profit, Expects Continued Growth in 2H

Gaming Realms reported an increase in pretax profit for the first half and backed its outlook for the year on what it called a strong momentum.

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EKF Diagnostics Shares Fall on Revenue Guidance Cut

Shares in EKF Diagnostics dropped 11% after the company cut its full-year revenue view due to a delay in fermentation capacity.

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Property Franchise Pretax Profit Rose on Cost Control

Property Franchise Group reported a rise in first-half pretax profit mainly thanks to lower costs and said current conditions, with strong leasing activity and a subdued sales market, are expected to continue through the second half.

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Dowlais Backs View But Flags Demand Uncertainty Amid US Strike Talks

Dowlais Group backed its guidance for the full year after its first-half pretax loss narrowed but warned that demand in the second half could be impacted by potential strike action in the U.S.

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Eleco Pretax Profit Fell on Higher Costs; Revenue Seen in Line

Eleco said pretax profit fell for the first half after booking higher costs, and that it expects revenue for the year to be in line with the board's plans.

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Gym Group Narrows Pretax Loss on Higher Revenue

Gym Group said it narrowed its pretax loss in the first half and reported an increase in revenue that allowed it to mitigate cost inflation.

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Ocean Harvest Shares Tumble on Guidance Cut

Shares in Ocean Harvest Technology Group fell 11% after the company cut its full-year revenue guidance due to delays in onboarding new customers in Europe.

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Mattioli Woods Pretax Profit Leaps 48%, Lifts Dividend

Mattioli Woods on Tuesday reported a leap in pretax profit for the fiscal year ending May 31 and proposed a slightly higher dividend.

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Porvair Sees FY 2023 Earnings Above Comparable Year

Porvair expects fiscal 2023 earnings to beat those reported for the comparable period last year after a satisfactory third-quarter performance.

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Creo Medical Group Pretax Loss Narrowed on Higher Revenue

Creo Medical Group said its pretax loss for the first half narrowed while revenue rose, and said it expects revenue growth to continue an upward trajectory and to introduce measures to stabilize costs.

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FRP Advisory Buys Wilson Field Group for GPB4.8 Mln

FRP Advisory Group has bought restructuring and debt advisory services company Wilson Field Group for 4.8 million pounds ($6.0 million).

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HC Slingsby Appoints Andrew Kitchingman as Chairman

H.C. Slingsby named Andrew Kitchingman as its nonexecutive chair with immediate effect.

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Accsys Technologies Chairman Stephen Odell to Step Down, Trudy Schoolenberg Named Interim Chair

Accsys Technologies' chairman Stephen Odell has decided not to seek reelection for personal reasons and will be replaced by Trudy Schoolenberg on an interim basis.

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Trellus Health Appoints Joy Bessenger as CFO

Trellus Health named Joy Bessenger as its chief financial officer, effective from Sept. 18.

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Dukemount Capital Expects Stock-Trading Resumption on Wednesday

Dukemount Capital expects trading in its shares to restart on Wednesday after being suspended in November, the London-listed company said Tuesday.

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Savannah Resources Names Emanuel Proenca as New CEO

Savannah Resources said it has appointed Emanuel Proenca as new chief executive officer, who will start in his new role on Monday.

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Rotork Finance Director Jonathan Davis to Retire; Appoints Ben Peacock as CFO

Rotork said group Finance Director Jonathan Davis will retire and step down from the board on April 30, and that Ben Peacock has been appointed chief financial officer.

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Harworth Group Posts Significantly Lower Pretax Profit on Smaller Value Gains

Harworth Group reported a sharp decline in pretax profit due to lower revenue and smaller gains from changes in the value of investment properties.

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Griffin Mining Restarts $10 Mln Buyback After Pretax Profit, Revenue Rose

Griffin Mining said its pretax profit rose in the first half of the year on higher resources sold, and that it has restarted its share-buyback program.

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Feedback Shares Fall on Widened Pretax Loss Although Revenue Rose

Shares of Feedback fell 11% on Tuesday after the company reported a widened pretax loss for fiscal 2023 after booking higher costs reflecting the company's expansion and technology improvements, and despite revenue nearly doubling.

MARKET TALK:

Griffin Mining's Buyback, Cash Generation Undervalued by Market

1023 GMT - Griffin Mining is trying to boost its market valuation with the reinstatement of its share buyback program, Berenberg analysts Richard Hatch and William Dalby write in a research note. The China-focused mining company is currently trading too cheap for a producing business, the analysts say, noting that they expected shares to rise after the news of a buyback and solid cash generation. However, the market has stayed muted on the stock so far, the analysts note. Berenberg lifts its price target to 120 pence from 110 pence and keeps a buy rating. (christian.moess@wsj.com)

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JTC PLC Seen With Strong Momentum Ahead For Shares

1011 GMT - JTC PLC's earnings showed a further period of outperformance against already upgraded expectations and point to strong momentum ahead, Berenberg says in a note after theprovider of fund, corporate and private-client services posted its first-half results. "Given the strength of this underlying performance and messaging that seems at odds with shares...effectively flat since mid-2021, we expect an improved period for shareholders from here, alongside a very strong outlook for future years," analysts write. Berenberg rates the stock buy. Shares rise 7.5% to 725 pence but are down 3.1% since the start of the year. (elena.vardon@wsj.com)

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Metro Bank Faced With Capital Dilemma

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09-12-23 0647ET