(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are called to open slightly higher, after a busy start to the day, with corporate earnings and updates.
In early corporate news, miner Anglo American confirmed Thursday it was "reviewing" a takeover bid from its larger Australian rival BHP Group, in what would rank as one of the sector's biggest deals in years.
"The buyout offer from BHP, the world's largest publicly listed miner, for Anglo American, won't just shake up the mining industry, but will send a fresh chill through the City of London. There are concerns that if the deal goes through it could be the tip of the iceberg and more giants could leave the exchange," said Susannah Streeter at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Still to come on Thursday, there is a US gross domestic product reading, which could affect the trajectory of interest rates.
Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: called up 0.1% at 8,047.00
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Hang Seng: up 0.2% at 17,242.36
Nikkei 225: closed down 2.2% at 37,628.48
S&P/ASX 200: financial markets in Sydney closed for holiday
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DJIA: closed down 42.77 points, 0.1%, to 38,460.92
S&P 500: closed marginally higher at 5,071.63
Nasdaq Composite: closed up 16.11 points, 0.1%, to 15,712.75
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EUR: up at USD1.0712 (USD1.0687)
GBP: up at USD1.2474 (USD1.2432)
USD: up at JPY155.65 (JPY155.06)
Gold: down at USD2,320.20 per ounce (USD2,329.42)
(Brent): up at USD88.16 a barrel (USD88.12)
(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS
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Thursday's key economic events still to come:
Australia Anzac Day. Financial markets in Sydney closed.
08:30 EDT US GDP
08:30 EDT US trade balance
08:30 EDT US initial jobless claims
08:30 EDT US wholesale inventories
08:30 EDT US quarterly personal consumption expenditures index
10:00 EDT US pending home sales
11:00 EDT US Kansas Fed manufacturing index
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UK car production fell back last month as factories adjusted for new models, latest figures show. The number of cars built was 59,467, down by 27% compared with a year ago, said the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders. It was the first fall since August last year but the trade body said it was in line with expectations for a variable year, as manufacturers adjust factories to produce the next generation of cars, notably electric. Volumes for the UK fell by 0.3% to 19,995 units, while production for export was down by 36% to 39,472 units, although more than six in 10 cars made in March were shipped overseas.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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Jefferies raises Anglo American price target to 3,000 (2,600) pence - 'buy'
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Goldman cuts Centrica price target to 194 (195) pence - 'buy'
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Barclays raises Reckitt price target to 6,100 (6,000) pence - 'overweight'
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Miner Anglo American confirmed Thursday it was "reviewing" a takeover bid from its larger Australian rival BHP Group, in what would rank as one of the sector's biggest deals in years. Anglo American did not disclose the price of the "unsolicited" offer, which must be sewn up before a deadline of May 22. BHP's offer would first hinge on Anglo American splitting off its platinum and iron ore operations in South Africa. Anglo's platinum operations are listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange under Anglo American Platinum, as are its iron ore operations under Kumba Iron Ore. Australian-based BHP has a market value of around USD148 billion, while London-based Anglo American has a market value of about USD36 billion.
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Sainsbury reported that revenue edged up 3.8% to GBP32.70 billion in the financial year ended March 2, from GBP35.16 billion a year earlier. Pretax profit fell by 15% to GBP277 million from GBP327 million. Sainsbury left its dividend unchanged at 13.1 pence. Looking ahead, the company said it is confident of delivering strong profit growth in the year ahead. Chief Executive Simon Roberts said: "We said we'd put food back at the heart of Sainsbury's and that's what we've done. Our food business is firing on all cylinders. We have the best combination of value and quality in the market and that's winning us customers from all our key competitors, driving consistent volume market share growth as more customers choose us for their weekly shop and all their special occasions."
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AstraZeneca reported that revenue rose to USD12.68 billion in the first quarter of 2024, up 17% from USD10.88 billion a year earlier. Pretax profit jumped to USD2.80 billion from USD2.62 billion On the back of the results, Astra upped its dividend to USD3.10 from USD2.90. "AstraZeneca had a very strong start in 2024 with substantial Total Revenue growth of 19% in the first quarter," said CEO Pascal Soriot. "Our strong pipeline momentum continued and already this year we announced positive trial results for Imfinzi and Tagrisso that were unprecedented in lung cancer, the data from both of these studies will be presented during the ASCO plenary in June. We are also looking forward to seeing the results of several other important trials throughout the year."
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Barclays reported that total income fell to GBP6.95 billion in the first quarter of the year, from GBP7.24 billion a year earlier. It explained that the fall was due to "higher structural hedge income, strong performance in Equities and balance growth in USCB were more than offset by lower FICC income in IB, lower inflation linked income as well as adverse product dynamics in Barclays UK deposits and mortgages." Pretax profit fell to GBP2.28 billion from GBP2.60 billion. Barclays said that its common equity tier 1 ratio fell to 13.5% from 13.8%.
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Persimmon reported that home completions in the first quarter of 2024 fell to 1,027 from 1,136 a year earlier. This included 852 private homes and 175 Partnership homes. The housebuilder said that this was in line with expectations. Looking ahead, Persimmon said it continues to expect growth in full year completions to between 10,000 and 10,500 completions with an operating margin in line with the prior year. Chief Executive Dean Finch said: "Our first quarter performance was in line with expectations, and we saw an improvement in sales rates alongside firm pricing. Trading over recent weeks has been encouraging with robust visitor numbers and enquiries, giving us confidence for the remainder of the year."
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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PureTech Health reported that total revenue in 2023 fell to USD3.3 million from USD15.6 million. Its pretax loss narrowed to USD36.1 million from USD92.8 million. "2023 was a landmark year for PureTech, in which we made strong strategic and clinical progress. We've carried this momentum into 2024, with our hub-and-spoke R&D model continuing to deliver value for both patients and shareholders. Through this model we are able to ambitiously pursue our mission of giving life to science by developing therapies that make a meaningful difference to patients with devastating diseases," said CEO Bharatt Chowrira.
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OTHER COMPANIES
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PPHE Hotel reported that revenue in the first quarter of 2024 rose by 12% annually to GBP77.9 million. It explained that this was "driven by growth in occupancy as room rates continued to normalise across both leisure, corporate and meetings and events segments, as well as an increase in operational days in the Croatian portfolio, particularly Grand Hotel Brioni, and the leap year benefit across all markets." Looking ahead, PPHE said booking activity remains healthy, with overall forward booking levels consistent with 2023 levels. It added that it remains confident in delivering full year performance in line with market expectations. CEO Boris Ivesha said: "While still early in the year, leisure trends remain supportive and interest in our brands and assets in key European capital cities continues to support our confidence in our future prospects."
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By Sophie Rose, Alliance News senior reporter
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