Yahoo Finance FTSE 100 Live 19 February: Blue-chips close at five-month high, Treasury sells more of NatWest, Currys bid war
The FTSE 100 briefly hit its highest mark since September today, and remains close to those levels, as it build slightly on Friday’s huge gains.
The £700 million takeover pursuit of Currys is in focus today after the electricals chain turned down an approach by US activist investor Elliott.
Traders are also looking ahead to a busy week of corporate results, with Barclays, Rolls-Royce and US-listed Nvidia among those reporting.
Moneysupermarket today revealed record annual revenues of £432 million, despite no material contribution from the energy switching market.
FTSE 100 Live Monday
Currys in potential bid battle
Big week for corporate results
Insurance switching lifts Moneysupermarket
Closing market snapshot
16:54 , Daniel O'Boyle
Take a look at our end-of-day market data
FTSE 100 in highest close of 2024
16:37 , Daniel O'Boyle
The FTSE 100 closed at its highest level since September of last year, finishing the day up 0.2% at 7,728.50.
London’s top flight was led by AstraZeneca, Rolls-Royce and Vodafone.
The biggest faller was Centrica, down 5.6%.
The FTSE 250 closed up 0.1% at 19,214.33.
City buying spree continues as London-listed Bank of Georgia swoops for Ameriabank
16:21 , Daniel O'Boyle
The City’s dealmaking boom continued today, as the London-listed lender Bank of Georgia agreed to buy Armenian bank Ameriabank.
The Tblisi-based bank chaired by Mel Carvill will pay just over $300 million for Ameriabank, allowing it to expand into a second country.
Carvill said: “This transaction is a significant milestone for the Group and a new chapter in our strategic development. Through Ameriabank we are set to enter Armenia, one of the fastest-growing economies in the region. Ameriabank has a well-regarded and experienced management team, and I am delighted that they will stay on after the transaction is closed.
City Comment: 2023 was rough for London house prices — now it’s time for a rebound
15:26 , Jonathan Prynn
It is a starkly contrasting tale of two city property surveys this morning. So is it the best of times, or the worst of times, for London’s property market?
According to agents Benham and Reeves, which have picked the bones of the latest Land Registry data, prices fell 5.7% in the capital last year, more than any other region in the land, and painfully more than the 1% average across the UK as a whole.
But the picture could not be more different this month, according to the latest data on asking prices from Rightmove. It sees a 2.8% monthly increase in January, suggesting that the bounce back in London is stronger than virtually anywhere else in the UK.
It is no great surprise that London is more geared to changes in mortgage rates than anywhere else in the country.
Ex-student mixologists line up cocktail cans to break the US
14:30 , Daniel O'Boyle
Parents lamenting their student kids wasting time and money on boozing between lectures: take heed of the story behind MOTH ready-made cocktails. They could be devising a business plan in their student digs, as Rob Wallis and Sam Hunt were.
The pair, both now 29, met as children, then became flatmates at university in York. With relaxed parents who “sent us nice gins and vodkas in the post rather than jumpers, we’d spend evenings inviting people round and making cocktails,” says Wallis.
Hunt had the idea of bottling up their old fashioneds into a ready-to-drink concoction for sale, but on graduation they drifted into work: Wallis was a barista by day, bartender by night to pay off his overdraft; Hunt worked in lighting for the TV and film industry in Soho.
Senior YouGov exec quits at start of key election year
14:04 , Daniel O'Boyle
YouGov lost one its top officers today as it headed into one of the most vital years for the polling industry ever.
With about 40 key elections around the world, all eyes are on YouGov, used by businesses and governments to measure public sentiment. Today it said chief business officer Sundip Chahal has “mutually agreed for personal reasons” to leave with “immediate effect”.
Chairman Stephen Shakespeare said: “Sundip played a central role in leading and managing the team and has overseen the growth at YouGov over the years both in his previous role as Chief Operating Officer and more recently as Chief Business Officer.
In recent months, he has played an important part in progressing the acquisition of GfK’s Consumer Panel Services, and I am pleased to share that the integration is advancing well following completion of the acquisition in January.”
Earlier this month Shakespeare’s wife sold more than £4 million of shares in the business which has seen its stock rally hard lately.
YouGov has been discussing moving its stock market listing to the US.
Buyer found’ to get Rekom raving again
13:49 , Daniel O'Boyle
The administrators of the UK’s biggest nightclub operator, Rekom, have reportedly found a buyer prepared to pay around £20million for the business.
The rescue deal was revealed today by respected hospitality industry website Propel. Rekom went into administration last month, citing “extremely difficult” trading conditions. Rising costs — including from the increase in the minimum wage — had hit at the same time as the industry was grappling with a drop off in trade as the cost-of-living crisis kept revellers away.
When Rekom went into administration, the chair of the 46-site business, Peter Marks, said the move would give the operator of the Pryzm, right, and Atik brands and the Proud Mary bars “breathing space”.
Administrators Grant Thornton UK would not comment on the reports this morning.
Soaring interest rates hit London property hardest
13:04 , Daniel O'Boyle
House prices fell in all but six of London’s 33 local authority areas last year as the capital’s property was hit harder than any other region of the UK by soaring interest rates, new analysis reveals today.
The average London house price dropped by 5.2% in 2023, from £535,711 to £508,037, knocking £27,674 off the value of a typical home in the capital, according to latest Land Registry figures.
That compares with just 1% for the UK as a whole. But within that overall figure, the performance of individual boroughs varied enormously, according to data today compiled by agents Benham and Reeves. Prices fell in 26 boroughs and the City of London with the biggest declines seen in the most expensive neighbourhoods.
Treasury cuts NatWest stake again
12:18 , Daniel O'Boyle
The treasury has cut its stake in NatWest again, selling another 1.4% of the banking giant after shares rose following its results on Friday.
The taxpayer now owns 33.56% of the bank, down from 34.96%.
The government has made an effort to sell down its stake, acquired when the bank was bailed out amid the global financial crisis, in the past year. It will launch a retail sale, allowing members of the public to buy shares, at some point this year.
FTSE 100 highest since September
12:10 , Daniel O'Boyle
The FTSE 100 is into positive territory for the day, and significantly, for the year as well, hitting its highest point since September
Take a look at our market snapshot.
Pension savers ‘risk losing thousands’ due to lack of transparency over charges
11:42 , Daniel O'Boyle
Pension savers could potentially be left thousands of pounds worse off in retirement due to overlooking charges when transferring their funds, a provider is warning.
Just over seven in 10 (72%) of people who had recently transferred their pension did not know the exact fees for their old pension, or their new charges, according to a survey for People’s Partnership, which provides the People’s Pension.
It called for greater industry transparency to ensure savers understand key information when transferring their pension, with seemingly small differences in percentage charges adding up to significant amounts in cash terms over the years that money is invested.
City Spy: Is this the next FTSE 250 takeover target?
10:25 , Daniel O'Boyle
London’s M&A mini-boom gathered pace this week after warehouse owner Tritax Big Box unwrapped a £924 million offer for rival UK Commercial Property.
That might not be the only warehouse deal in town., Spy writes.
Currys bid battle: AJ Bell names the price for the offer to match the average takeover premium last year
10:00 , Michael Hunter
Stockbroker AJ Bell has done the maths this morning on what the price of an offer for Currys would need to be to match the average premium paid by bidders on last year’s run of M&A.
The firm’s investment director, Russ Mould, said: “A suitor would have to offer at least 71.1p per share to match the 51% average premium seen on UK-listed takeovers in 2023.”
Currys rejected a bid from US investors Elliott today, priced at 62p per share.
China’s JD.com then said it was interested in bidding, and in the early stages of making an offer, without referring to price.
Currys has been linked in the City with a possible offer from existing investor Frasers Group, which is well-known by bargain hunting in the retail sector and has built up its stake
But Mould played down that prospect today as the City readied for what could be one of the first full-blown bidding wars over a household-name company in years.
“It is unlikely that Frasers would make a bid for the group. While it has expressed a desire to be a bigger player in electricals, it prefers to buy companies when they are on their knees, not after someone else has also pushed up the price with an offer. Frasers had its chance to bid for Currys last year when no-one else was interested.”
He added:
“Elliott’s takeover approach implies it sees a resilient streak in Currys and that there is turnaround potential. The fact Chinese retail group JD has now joined the party by expressing interest in the business shows it could be time to load up on the popcorn and sit back and enjoy a bidding war.”
Quarter of hospitality firms out of cash as ‘urgent support’ needed
09:27 , Daniel O'Boyle
A quarter of UK hospitality firms say they have no cash reserves left, according to new research, as industry bosses have urged the Treasury to prioritise cutting tax for the sector.
The joint survey by UKHospitality, the British Beer and Pub Association, British Institute of Innkeeping and Hospitality Ulster revealed the increased cost pressures facing venues across the country.
The trade groups said UK pubs, restaurants, hotels and cafes are in a “perilous state” and in need of “urgent support” to avoid local businesses shutting for good.
Currys shares hot up as China's JD.com confirms it is also bidding for the company
09:23 , Michael Hunter
Shares in Currys leapt to the top of the FTSE 250 after confirmation of a second bidder for the company stoked hopes of a takeover battle.
China’s online retailer JD.com issued a brief statement saying it was “in the very preliminary stages of evaluating a possible transaction that may include a cash offer” for the fridges-to-phones retailer.
It came after confirmation this morning of a £700 million offer from Elliott Investment, the US activist fund which also owns Waterstones, the bookshop chain.
Curry’s rejected that 62p per share offer, saying it “undervalued” the company.
After JD.com came out as a second bidder, Currys stock surged 34p to over 63p, a rise of 16%.
AstraZeneca leads robust FTSE 100, Vodafone shares higher
08:44 , Graeme Evans
The FTSE 100 index has kept hold of Friday’s large rise after London’s top flight began the week just seven points lower at 7704.71.
The robust performance benefited from AstraZeneca lifting 380p to 10,474p, having reported a positive late stage trial for Tagrisso in lung cancer.
Telecoms stocks also returned to favour after their poor recent run as Vodafone lifted 1.6p to 67.2p and BT Group by 1.6p to 107.8p.
The fallers board was topped by Burberry after a decline of 28.5p to 1310p, while Prudential weakened 12.6p to 821.8p.
Currys jumped by a third or 15.5p to 62.6p in the FTSE 250, but Moneysupermarket gave up an initial post-results gain to stand 2.6p lower at 248.6p.
Southend Airport owner seeks deal with US funder threatening to put it under
08:14 , Daniel O'Boyle
Aviation business Esken appears to be one step closer to securing the future of London Southend Airport, but could lose its majority shareholding in the airport, after it negotiated a new deal with creditor Carlyle.
The deal, funded by Esken and and Cyrus Capital Partners, would see the airport apply for restructuring proceedings, and Esken’s stake reduced to a minority interest.
Esken says it “is urgently reviewing and assessing the terms and potential financial impact of the recapitalisation proposal on the Company and its wider stakeholders and will then decide whether to accept the terms of the recapitalisation proposal.
It added: “There can be no certainty that any of these discussions will lead to a consensual agreement, but Esken believes that a consensual outcome would be in the interests of all parties and will take all reasonable steps to facilitate such an outcome. The company is also undertaking contingency planning, including exploring access to alternative funding to cover its liquidity needs. The recapitalisation proposal, if agreed to by the company or imposed on it by the courts, could have a material adverse impact on the group.”
Moneysupermarket revenues lifted by insurance switching
08:07 , Graeme Evans
Strong demand for insurance comparison quotes today helped Moneysupermarket post 11% growth in annual revenues to £432 million and post-tax profits up 4% to £72.3 million.
Fourth quarter revenues also lifted 11%, driven by insurance growth of 27% as high premium inflation continued to boost search traffic.
The Money segment grew 4% in the quarter, fuelled by the availability of attractive products in the banking sector.
Home Services was down 6% and Mobile also softened in the quarter due to less attractive provider offers. As expected, there was no material revenues contribution from energy switching.
Chief executive Peter Duffy said: “We helped customers save a record £2.7 billion in 2023. The more we can help households save, the more the group grows.”
Shares opened 3.6p higher at 254.8p today.
Morrisons promises to match Aldi and Lidl on prices of 200 products
08:05 , Daniel O'Boyle
Morrisons has become the latest supermarket to try to win back customers from the German challenger shops as it announced it would match the prices of some of its products to Lidl and Aldi.
The food shops said that from Monday more than 200 products on its shelves would be marked as being the same price or lower as the two discount retailers, following Asda which took a similar step recently.
But the price match guarantee, which will be checked against the rivals twice a week, only includes a sliver of the products on sale at the supermarket.
Currys rejects £700 million offer from US activist investor Elliott
07:30 , Michael Hunter
Currys, the electrical goods retail giant, confirmed this morning that it turned down a £700 million offer from a US activist investor.
Elliott Investment, offered 62p per share for Currys. The stock closed at 47p on Friday,
But Currys says this morning that the price “significantly undervalued the company and its future prospects” and its board rejected it “unanimously”.
Citigroup advised Currys as it considered the offer.
Elliott, which is known as an activist investor which seeks to unlock value from target companies, already owns Waterstones, the high street bookseller.
Currys has struggled with problems within its Nordic business Elkjop, which was hit hard by heavy discounting at rivals of stock pulled from Russian markets after sanctions followed Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
In November, it announced the sale of its Greek business Kotsovolos for £175 million to Greece’s Public Power Corporation.
Last month the fridges-to-phones retailer said like-for-like sales in the peak trading season in the run-up to Christmas fell 3%.
Hipgnosis Fund to take Mercuriadis' firm to court as it seeks indemnity for "stolen idea" claim
07:20 , Daniel O'Boyle
The Hipgnosis Songs Fund says it is planning to take founder Merck Mercuriadis’ company, which manages the fund’s portfolio, to the High Court after it "refused" to offer indemnity from lawsuit from a defunct business he was involved with.
Investment adviser Hipgnosis Songs Management (HSM), led by Mercuriadis, currently faces a lawsuit from Hipgnosis Music Limited (HML), which the music mogul was a director of, accusing him of “the unlawful diversion of the Hipgnosis business opportunity”.
Earlier this month, the fund, which owns the rights to hits by artists like Blondie, Beyonce and Shakira said it was seeking an indemnity “against any liability that might be incurred by the Company resulting from the actions of Mr Mercuriadis or Hipgnosis Songs Management”. But today the fund revealed that HSM has “refused” this offer.
The music royalties fund said: “The company is concerned, having been assured by Mr Mercuriadis and the Investment Adviser that these claims are without merit and that they intend to vigorously defend them, that the request for an indemnity was refused. The company is not insured as to the costs of this claim.
“The Company now intends to bring a Part 20 Claim in the High Court against the Investment Adviser in which it will seek a full indemnity.”
FTSE 100 seen slightly lower ahead of blue-chip results, Hang Seng lower
07:16 , Graeme Evans
The FTSE 100 index is expected to hold on to most of Friday’s 1.5% or 114 point improvement as IG Index is forecasting a fall of about 10 points to 7703.
US markets are closed today, with dealings ahead of the long weekend seeing an end to a run of five weekly gains for the S&P 500 index.
When Wall Street returns, the focus will be on Wednesday’s results by Nvidia after shares posted the best performance of the year so far in the S&P 500.
London-listed results later this week include Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce.
In Asia, the Hang Seng index is 0.9% lower but the Shanghai Composite has reopened following the new year holiday with an improvement of 1.6%.
Average price tag on a home jumped by more than £3,000 in February
06:59 , Daniel O'Boyle
The average price tag on a home jumped by more than £3,000 month-on-month in February, according to a property website.
Across Britain, the average new seller asking price increased by 0.9% or £3,091 this month to £362,839, Rightmove said.
The website said the increase is in line with the seasonal rise it would expect in February.
Big week for results with banks in focus
06:56 , Daniel O'Boyle
Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, looks ahead to a big week for UK banks.
She says: “There are some major UK earnings releases this week including Barclays on Tuesday, HSBC, Glencore and BAE Systems on Wednesday, Anglo American, Rolls Royce, Lloyds and Standard Chartered on Thursday. The UK banks will be in focus, after a generally weak earnings season for banks on Wall Street, and net interest income is the metric to watch.
“Looking at Lloyds first, the market expects net interest income to decline in 2023 and for it to forecast further weakness in 2024. The outlook for UK economic growth and what the Bank of England does next will be key drivers of Lloyds’ share price performance in 2024.
“Barclays will also be in focus as the bank reports results and its first major strategic update since 2016. Will the bank pledge to further increase its retail banking presence, after focusing on the investment bank for most of the last 8 years?
“Finally, HSBC has fared better than its UK rivals so far this year and has weathered the Chinese economic storm better than many had hoped. Revenues for 2023 are expected to rise by nearly 20%, although there could be some signs of weakness in Q4, which may not bode well for 2024.”
Recap: Friday's top stories
06:37 , Daniel O'Boyle
The other day Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey was musing on why UK bank share prices are so weak.
A “puzzle”, he said. Didn’t investors realise what great value bank shares are?
A stat the governor may not know: Since the start of the year the value of shares in Barclays, Santander, Lloyds, NatWest and Close Brothers are down by a combined £10 billion.
That’s tricky for the government, which wants to offload its remaining 35% stake in NatWest, perhaps as soon as the summer, in a supposed “tell Sid” deal.
If the governor is right that these shares are cheap, then Sid can buy in at a low valuation and watch as Andrew Bailey turns out to be better at picking shares than setting interest rates.
Alternatively, maybe the shares are priced perfectly correctly for an economy in recession where consumer confidence has been biffed.
If big investors don’t fancy NatWest shares, why should we?
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt says he wants to get “full value for money” for the stock. So, he’s not going to flog them at a discount.
A better plan, especially since we have paid for these shares once already when we bailed out what was then Royal Bank of Scotland back in 2008, would be to give us those shares for free.
This week, the bank reporting season is set to continue, with Barclays tomorrow, HSBC on Wednesday and Lloyds on Thursday.
Here’s a summary of our top headlines from Friday:
NatWest profits boom to £6.2bn, setting up the Government for the sale of its 35% stake in bank
UK retail sales rebounded dramatically in January after a disastrous December, offering hope that the UK’s recession will prove to be the shortest in history
Virgin Media O2 posts £3.3 billion loss amid huge impairment caused by rising interest rates hitting it debt costs as well as cuts to cash flow estimates
Power control solutions business XP Power says revenue will be "significantly below market expectations" as healthcare and industrial customers' demand for its products plunges
Shares in podcast group Audioboom are up 11% today as it said its shows were downloaded by more than 38.6 million people last month
