Bunzl raised its annual guidance and hiked its dividend despite a fall in first-half profit. In results for the six months ended 20 June 2024, the FTSE 100-listed packaging firm posted pretax profit of £279.4m, down from £317.1m a year earlier, as revenue fell to £5.71bn from £5.91bn previously. However, the company raised its interim dividend to 20.1p from 18.2p and, looking ahead, Bunzl said it now expects adjusted operating profit in 2024 to show a strong rise compared with 2023, mainly driven by an increase in operating margin. The firm also started a share buyback programme of up to £250m. In early trading, Bunzl shares topped the blue-chip leader board, up over 9%.


BHP Group cut its dividend after the blue-chip miner’s full-year results showed profit fell by 25%, reflecting volatile commodity prices and rising costs. The Australia-based firm said pretax profit dropped to US$16.04bn for the financial year ended 30 June 2024 from US$21.40bn a year earlier, as expenses, excluding net finance costs, rose by 15% to US$36.75bn. Revenue rose by 3.4% to US$55.65bn from US$53.81bn, mainly thanks to higher prices for iron ore and copper. BHP is paying a final dividend of 74 US cents, down 7.5% from 80 cents last year, with the total annual payout cut by 14% to 146 cents from 170 cents. However, with the sector higher on firmer commodity prices, BHP shares managed to edge up just over 1% by around 9.25am.

Faron Pharmaceuticals revealed it has won fast-track approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its lead candidate, bexmarilimab, which is designed to treat relapsed or refractory myelodysplastic syndrome (r/r MDS) in combination with azacitidine. In a first-half trading update, Faron noted that preliminary phase II data from the bexmarilimab trial confirmed the positive findings from Phase I, with an overall response rate of 79% observed for the 14 patients treated with the combination of bexmarilimab and azacitidine. Faron's cash position was significantly strengthened in the first half through a convertible loan issuance and two share placements, resulting in a cash balance of €30 million as of June 30. Faron Pharma shares had gained nearly 13% by around 9.25am.

 

Headlines we expect on Wednesday

Pensionbee First half results

Last time out Revenue £10.9m, adjusted EBITDA loss £7.9m, cash position £14m

 

Naked Wines Final results

Last time out Total sales £354m, pretax loss £15m, net cash £10.3m