ABF.L - Associated British Foods plc
| Previous close | 1,739.00 |
| Open | 1,751.50 |
| Bid | 1,849.50 x 0 |
| Ask | 1,850.50 x 0 |
| Day's range | 1,751.50 - 1,881.50 |
| 52-week range | 1,554.00 - 2,730.00 |
| Volume | 1,537,076 |
| Avg. volume | 1,469,881 |
| Market cap | 14.65B |
| Beta (5Y monthly) | 0.70 |
| PE ratio (TTM) | 16.66 |
| EPS (TTM) | 111.10 |
| Earnings date | 21 Apr 2020 |
| Forward dividend & yield | 0.46 (2.67%) |
| Ex-dividend date | 12 Dec 2019 |
| 1y target est | 2,786.87 |
- Yahoo Finance UK
What to Watch: Record EU PMI slump, markets fall, Primark pay cuts
A daily overview of the top business, market, and economic stories to watch in the UK, Europe, and abroad.
- Yahoo Finance UK
Coronavirus: Primark chiefs take 50% pay cut with stores closed
Primark's board said it was 'acutely aware' may employees had seen their livelihoods affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
- Reuters
AB Foods bosses take pay cut as coronavirus to dent profit
Primark owner Associated British Foods said on Friday its bosses are taking temporary pay cuts and will not receive bonuses for the current year given that profits will be dented by the coronavirus emergency. It said the base pay of chief executive George Weston, finance chief John Bason and Primark boss Paul Marchant will be reduced temporarily by 50%. The group's non-executive directors, including the chairman Michael McLintock, have also decided that their fees should be reduced temporarily by 25%.
- Fool.co.uk
2 FTSE 100 shares I’d buy today in the worst stock market crash since 1987
Peter Stephens thinks these two FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE:UKX) stocks could deliver high returns in the coming years.The post 2 FTSE 100 shares I’d buy today in the worst stock market crash since 1987 appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.
- Bloomberg
How the Shopping Mall Can Survive Covid-19
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Lakeside shopping center, just outside of London, is a mecca of consumerism. It’s situated in the county of Essex, which loves shopping so much that a reality TV show captures the exploits of its glamorous, bauble-buying residents.But since last week, the mall has been open for only essential purchases, in line with government guidance. Its owner Intu Properties Plc said last Thursday that it had collected just 29% of the rent due from its tenants there and around the country. At the same time last year, it had received 77% of the amount due. Occupants including Associated British Foods Plc’s Primark and Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz AB, which has shuttered thousands of stores around the world, are withholding payments or seeking better terms.It’s a scenario that’s being repeated on both sides of the Atlantic. Cheesecake Factory Inc., which has 294 stores throughout the U.S. and Canada, said in a filing last week that it would not pay its April rent, and that was in discussions with its landlords, a who’s who of American mall owners.While consumer-facing groups such as apparel chains have been the first shoe to drop, landlords look set to be the next. Retailers are bracing for a prolonged shutdown. On Monday, Macy’s Inc. said it was forloughing most of its 130,000 strong workforce after losing the majority of its sales because of store closures.No wonder some, such as U.S. mall owner Taubman Centers Inc., are fighting back. It told tenants in a memo that they still have to pay, although it added that it’s working with affected occupiers.The developing stand-off will do nothing to help the plight of stores, nor in the longer term, shopping center owners. As I have argued, the fall-out from the catastrophic loss of business from the coronavirus retail crisis needs to be shared. Some consequences will have to be borne downstream, by suppliers; some upstream, by landlords.But this could be tricky. With fixed assets like malls, it’s not easy to adjust the cost base. Some also have significant borrowings. Lenders may have to bear some of the burden, while government relief looks increasingly necessary. My colleague Brian Chappatta has warned of the potential dangers to the mortgage market.Intu, which owns 17 U.K. malls including Manchester’s Trafford Center and the Metrocentre in Gateshead, is particularly vulnerable. Even before the outbreak, it was struggling under a mountain of borrowings. It said last Thursday that it was in talks with its lenders on waiving covenants, and that it could access the U.K. government’s 330 billion-pound ($410 billion) support mechanism.Meanwhile, in the U.S., mall owners CBL & Associates Properties Inc., Macerich Co. and Taubman stand out for their above average net debt-to-Ebitda ratios and heavy use of secured lending, according to Lindsay Dutch, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.Others look to be in a better position.Simon Property Group Inc. has one of the strongest balance sheets. But it agreed in February to buy Taubman for $3.6 billion. This deal, if it goes ahead, together with the Covid-19 impact, could increase Simon’s net debt to 7 times Ebitda at the end of 2020, from 5.6 times a year earlier, according to Moody’s. Taubman has some prize assets, such as the Short Hills Mall in New Jersey and the Gardens Mall in Florida , but the higher leverage and integration will be more challenging in the current environment.Indeed, there will be pain even for the most solid operators. Simon is the biggest landlord to Cheesecake Factory, according to analysts at RBC Capital Markets.But even when the virus abates, the retail landscape won’t be the same. Some weaker stores and restaurants will not re-open their doors. For others, it will take considerable time for demand to return to normal.A frank conversation between retailers and landlords is needed to settle on ways for making it easier for everyone to weather this crisis. Alterations could include moving to monthly rent payments in cases where retailers are still expected to pay quarterly installments in advance, and doing so without any additional fees to facilitate the switch. Making it easier for tenants to break leases would also avoid time consuming and costly processes to exit agreements.While that may seem to favor retailers more than landlords, mall owners too have something to gain. The pandemic, and the retail shake-out that will inevitably follow, will exacerbate the divergence between the most muscular stores and restaurants and the laggards. It will also polarize the vibrant malls and secondary locations even more.To prosper in this new reality, mall owners will need to ensure they can attract the most desirable brands. The retailers that do emerge from the wreckage will remember how they were treated when the chips were down. On both sides, even-handed negotiations are the best way to help all parties recover, rather than risking bringing about the death of the mall for once and for all.This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.Andrea Felsted is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the consumer and retail industries. She previously worked at the Financial Times.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinionSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Reuters - UK Focus
LIVE MARKETS-CLOSING SNAPSHOT: A BRUTAL MONTH IS OVER
You can share your thoughts with Thyagaraju Adinarayan (thyagaraju.adinarayan@thomsonreuters.com), Joice Alves (joice.alves@thomsonreuters.com) and Julien Ponthus (julien.ponthus@thomsonreuters.com) in London. After the recovery in oil prices and the surprise expansion in Chinese factory activity revived confidence in equity markets, European bourses had a nice run this morning and even if later shares struggled to find a direction, they ended the day well on the black though. The pandemic has led Europe into a financial crisis which threatens to morph into a replay of the 2010 sovereign debt crisis which had the very existence of the euro zone at stake.
- Reuters - UK Focus
LIVE MARKETS-European retail: Empty cash drawers
You can share your thoughts with Thyagaraju Adinarayan (thyagaraju.adinarayan@thomsonreuters.com), Joice Alves (joice.alves@thomsonreuters.com) and Julien Ponthus (julien.ponthus@thomsonreuters.com) in London. Morgan Stanley believes earnings numbers on European retailers are now irrelevant and cash is becoming king instead.
- Fool.co.uk
Investing advice from Rudyard Kipling? Yes – really
Wise words from the heyday of the British Empire.The post Investing advice from Rudyard Kipling? Yes – really appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.
- Bloomberg
Primark Closes All Stores After Pandemic
(Bloomberg) -- Primark, the budget fashion chain owned by Associated British Foods Plc, has closed all of its stores due to the spread of the coronavirus, which will strip 650 million pounds ($760 million) from revenue each month the shops are shut.Primark had closed 20% of its selling space as of March 16, and on Sunday it shut all stores in the U.K., which generate 41% of its revenue. Separately, Kingfisher Plc said it won’t pay a final dividend and has closed all stores in France and Spain.Key InsightsPrimark contributes more than half of AB Food’s profits, so this will hobble the company. The next step is cost cutting, and Primark is in talks with landlords and is reviewing all spending.This will put a shock on suppliers, as Primark has stopped making any new orders. A slight balm is that the company said it hasn’t seen any material effect from the pandemic on its sugar, grocery, ingredients and agriculture businesses.British clothing chain Next Plc also announced plans to close all U.K. stores temporarily, as did Greggs, the bakery and food-to-go retailer. Next’s online business remains open.Kingfisher delayed its full-year results for two weeks at the request of the Financial Conduct Authority.Market ReactionAB Foods fell more than 7%. Kingfisher rose 14%.Get MoreFor more on ABF’s report, click here.For Kingfisher, click here.(Updates with Next and Greggs store closures)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
- Reuters - UK Focus
London stocks slide as lockdown hits
London's FTSE 100 dropped on Monday, as economists slashed their expectations for the global economy this year and a raft of UK-based companies laid out expected hits to profit, cuts in spending and the potential for trouble with rising debt. The blue-chip index fell 4.8% by 0813 GMT - sinking back into the red after a two-day bounce due to the extraordinary stimulus unveiled by governments and central banks in the UK and beyond last week. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned the government may have to impose curfews and travel restrictions even as pubs, clubs and gyms remain closed.
- Yahoo Finance UK
Coronavirus: Primark closing all stores but will pay staff wages
“With the health and welfare of our employees and customers at the front of our minds we have made the decision to close our stores in the UK, until further notice."
- Reuters - UK Focus
Primark to close its 189 stores in UK -FT
- Yahoo Finance UK
Debenhams asks for rent holiday as coronavirus hits the high street
Retailers are suffering as footfall on the UK high street plummets amid coronavirus fears.
- Reuters - UK Focus
LIVE MARKETS-Closing snapshot: What else can be done?
* Fed, ECB coordinated emergency move fails to reassure * STOXX 600, FTSE 100 last down 5% to 4% * U.S. shares slump as much as 11% Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought to you by Reuters stocks reporters. You can share your thoughts with Thyagaraju Adinarayan (thyagaraju.adinarayan@thomsonreuters.com), Joice Alves (joice.alves@thomsonreuters.com) and Julien Ponthus (julien.ponthus@thomsonreuters.com) in London.
- Reuters - UK Focus
LIVE MARKETS-Wall Street's Trump bump disappearing quickly
* Fed, ECB coordinated emergency move fails to reassure * STOXX 600, FTSE 100 last down 7% to 8% * Shares in holiday operator TUI plummet 30% * U.S. shares slump as much as 11% Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought to you by Reuters stocks reporters. You can share your thoughts with Thyagaraju Adinarayan (thyagaraju.adinarayan@thomsonreuters.com), Joice Alves (joice.alves@thomsonreuters.com) and Julien Ponthus (julien.ponthus@thomsonreuters.com) in London. Here's a quick chart showing the rally upward over the last 3-1/2 years and the breath-taking sell-off which took less than a month to wipe off those gains: (Thyagaraju Adinarayan) ***** EUROPEAN AIRLINES: TO THOSE WAITING FOR CLEAR BLUE SKIES As the coronavirus pandemic threatens to bring the aviation industry to a standstill, Citi has some advice for those in for the long-haul: hold the well-capitalised carriers who in 2021 will likely consolidate the market i.e.
- Reuters - UK Focus
LIVE MARKETS-The surprise stock in the black
* Fed, ECB coordinated emergency move fails to reassure * STOXX 600, FTSE 100 extend losses * Shares in holiday operator TUI plummet 30% Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought to you by Reuters stocks reporters. You can share your thoughts with Thyagaraju Adinarayan (thyagaraju.adinarayan@thomsonreuters.com), Joice Alves (joice.alves@thomsonreuters.com) and Julien Ponthus (julien.ponthus@thomsonreuters.com) in London. THE SURPRISE STOCK IN THE BLACK (1318 GMT) Cigarette maker Imperial Brands gained a eye-popper 6% this morning and is now up about 1% while most European shares are in free fall and only a handful of stocks are trading in the black across Europe.
- Reuters - UK Focus
LIVE MARKETS-Losses accelerate as Wall Street open nears
* Fed, ECB coordinated emergency move fails to reassure * STOXX 600 down 10% % * FTSE down 7.3% * Shares in holiday operator TUI plummet 30% Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought to you by Reuters stocks reporters. You can share your thoughts with Thyagaraju Adinarayan (thyagaraju.adinarayan@thomsonreuters.com), Joice Alves (joice.alves@thomsonreuters.com) and Julien Ponthus (julien.ponthus@thomsonreuters.com) in London. LOSSES ACCELERATE AS WALL STREET OPEN NEARS (1254 GMT) European stocks have reached new lows as we're getting closer to the open on Wall Street.
- Fool.co.uk
Why I’d buy these 2 FTSE 100 dividend stocks for an ISA in this market crash
These dirt-cheap FTSE 100 (INDEXFTSE: UKX) dividend stocks could be a great way to build long-term wealth, says Roland Head.The post Why I'd buy these 2 FTSE 100 dividend stocks for an ISA in this market crash appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.
- Reuters - UK Focus
LIVE MARKETS-Virus diaries: tube's empty, planes parked, streets deserted
* Fed, ECB coordinated emergency move fails to reassure * STOXX 600 down over 8% * FTSE down over 6.3% * Shares in holiday operator TUI plummet 30% Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought to you by Reuters stocks reporters. You can share your thoughts with Thyagaraju Adinarayan (thyagaraju.adinarayan@thomsonreuters.com), Joice Alves (joice.alves@thomsonreuters.com) and Julien Ponthus (julien.ponthus@thomsonreuters.com) in London.
Investing.comStockBeat: The Bell Tolls Loud for Airlines; LVMH Takes Savvy Sanitizing Step
By Geoffrey Smith
- Reuters
AB Foods shuts Primark stores over coronavirus and sales fall
Shares in AB Foods, which also owns major sugar, grocery, ingredients and agriculture businesses, slid 13% by 1108 GMT after it also said it could not provide earnings guidance for the full 2020-21 year due to the uncertain outlook. “There is no doubt that all clothing retailers are seeing lower demand...Peoples’ immediate priorities are in other areas," AB Foods' finance director John Bason told Reuters. The group said it closed 20% of Primark's selling space in continental Europe which the World Health Organisation says is now the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak.
- Simply Wall St.
How Does Associated British Foods's (LON:ABF) P/E Compare To Its Industry, After The Share Price Drop?
Unfortunately for some shareholders, the Associated British Foods (LON:ABF) share price has dived 31% in the last...
