Full year numbers from the outsourcing giant – reported to be one of the country’s biggest employers – saw the company’s reported loss before tax come in at £107m, reversing a £61m profit posted a year ago. That’s despite a strong uptick in contract wins but management have acknowledged the need to drive costs down on an urgent basis, with the process that started late last year clearly not having delivered yet. Turning this position around doesn’t look as if it will be a quick win, and as a major supplier to the government there’s political risk to factor in here, too. Shortly after the open, shares were down almost 20%.
The owners of a raft of household brands including Mr Kipling and Oxo have this morning announced that pension deficit payments being made into the RHM Pension Scheme have now been suspended, following a strong performance by the fund. This means that starting with the next financial year, the group will benefit from an extra £33m worth of free cash flow. That has the potential for the company to accelerate its growth ambitions, something that investors have been quick to welcome. Shares are up around 12% in early trade.
The AIM listed specialist drug discovery company published a business and portfolio update this morning, noting that the company was sufficiently capitalised and no funding activity was imminent. In addition, new therapy development is progressing well including with two late stage assets that each have the potential to be first line treatments for debilitating auto-immune diseases. These are seen as being in markets of high unmet need and as a result have significant revenue potential. It’s been a rough ride for the stock however, but the 67% gain seem in early trade on Wednesday recovers most of the losses accrued since the start of the year.
Headlines we expect on Thursday
ITV final results
This time last year Total group revenue £4,345, adjusted EPS 13.2p, FY dividend 5p
Beazley final results
This time last year Pre-tax profits $191m (2021: $369m), Return on Equity 7% (2021: 16%), Net investment loss $180m (2021: $116m income)
