The supermarket giant saw its shares gain ground this morning, leaving it as one of the best performers in the FTSE-100. The move came off the back of interim results which showed a modest uptick in revenues but a significant rise in profitability. Investors stand to see a 10% increase in the interim dividend, whilst management also noted that the volume growth posted during the first half of the year was above expectations. Full year guidance was increased slightly and the Tesco share price was just over 2% higher in early trade.
The company behind Utility Warehouse issued a trading update this morning covering the first half of the year. This showed continued growth in customer numbers as product innovation continues apace, too. Management reiterated guidance in the note, expecting customer growth for the full year to be in the 12%-14% range, with a further update due with interim results at the end of next month. The Telecom Plus share price opened some 2.5% higher although gains have proved difficult to sustain in early trade.
The large infrastructure construction company Galliford Try published full year results today, noting that profits and revenues had come in ahead of analyst expectations from earlier in the summer. Pre-tax profits jumped by almost 40%, dividends paid for the full year are almost 50% higher and the company has also announced a £10m share buyback. Looking ahead, the order book is strong and 92% of FY25 revenue has already been secured, reflecting the recent run of contract wins which have been announced. The Galliford Try share price is trading up by just over 4% at 9am.
Headlines we expect on Friday
JD Wetherspoon Final Results
This time last year revenue £1925m, Operating profit £107m, Estate 826 pubs
