United Utilities Shares Fall as Inflation Will Hit FY 2023 Profits

0741 GMT - United Utilities reported strong results for the year ended March 31, but shares in the water and wastewater group plunge 5.4% after warning of higher costs for fiscal 2023. There is a near-term earnings hit this year due to higher inflation, primarily from UU's higher portion of index-linked debt than peers and higher operating costs from chemicals and labor, Alexander Wheeler from RBC says in a note. Although these forecasts create a reduction in earnings in the near term, overall inflation still has a material positive impact on the company going forward, particularly on regulated asset base growth, the analyst says. (jaime.llinares@wsj.com)

Companies News: 

HSBC Mulls Listing of Indonesia Business, Bloomberg Reports

--HSBC Holdings PLC is looking to list its Indonesian business in Jakarta via an initial public offering and plans for the share sale are at an advanced stage, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources.

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Foxtons Group PLC Acquisitions of Gordon & Co and Stones Residential

TIDMFOXT

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Intermediate Capital FY 2022 Pretax Profit Rose Above Views, Raises Dividend

Intermediate Capital Group PLC said Thursday that pretax profit and revenue for fiscal 2022 rose above market expectations, and increased its dividend payout.

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Auto Trader FY 2022 Pretax Profit, Revenue Rose on Strong Customer Numbers, Consumer Engagement

Auto Trader Group PLC said Thursday that fiscal 2022 pretax profit and revenue rose as customer numbers, consumer engagement and product uptake were at record levels.

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Johnson Matthey Sells Battery Materials Business for GBP50 Mln

Johnson Matthey PLC said Thursday that it has sold its battery materials business for 50 million pounds ($62.9 million) to the battery chemicals and technology business EV Metals Group.

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United Utilities FY 2022 Profit Falls as Inflation Pushes Up Finance Expenses

United Utilities Group PLC on Thursday reported a lower pretax profit for the year ended March 31, reflecting higher finance charges.

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Petrofac Forecasts Small Engineering & Construction EBIT Loss in 2022

Petrofac Ltd. said Thursday that its core Engineering & Construction arm will book a small loss before interest and taxes in 2022.

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Belvoir Group Says Year-To-Date Performance Is In Line

Belvoir Group PLC said Thursday that business for the four months to April 30 was in line with management's expectations, with revenue up 14%.

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Henry Boot Sees 2022 Performance In Line With Views

Henry Boot PLC said Thursday that it continues to perform in line with market expectations of a 47.8 million pound ($60.1 million) pretax profit for 2022.

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Serco Group Upgrades 2022 Profit, Revenue Guidance on Strong 4-Month Performance

Serco Group PLC said Thursday that it is upgrading its guidance for 2022 as it had a stronger-than-expected performance for the first four months of the year, and noted that its full-year results will now approach levels achieved in 2021.

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Johnson Matthey Sees FY 2023 At Lower Half of Range; FY 2022 Hurt by Impairments, Charges

Johnson Matthey PLC on Thursday said it expects fiscal 2023 underlying operating performance to be at the lower half of the market consensus range as it reported a 13% fall in fiscal 2022 pretax profit due to a large impairment and restructuring charge.

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Yu Group Sees 2022 Performance in Line With Market Expectations

Yu Group PLC said Thursday that it expects 2022 performance to be in line with market expectations.

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Staffline Says 2021 Exceeded Expectations; Current Performance Is In Line With Expectations

Staffline Group PLC said Thursday that it exceeded expectations in 2021 and that current performance is in line with expectations, despite labor shortages and macroeconomic headwinds.

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Curtis Banks's Chairman Retires; David Barral Named Successor

Curtis Banks Group PLC said Thursday that Chairman Chris Macdonald is retiring from the board after seven years in the role.

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DP Eurasia Four-Month Sales Grew 57%

DP Eurasia NV said Thursday that its sales increased 57% in the first four months of 2022, reflecting strong demand in Turkey.

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AJ Bell 1H Pretax Profit Fell; Expects FY 2022 Profit in Line With Views

AJ Bell PLC said Thursday that despite a robust performance its pretax profit fell in fiscal 2022's first half due to strong comparatives the prior year, and that it raised its dividend payout.

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Zinc Media Gets GBP4 Mln in New Business; Confident of On-Year Revenue Growth

Zinc Media Group PLC said Thursday that it is confident of on-year revenue growth after winning 4 million pounds ($5 million) of new business in the last four weeks.

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Wickes Group Backs Full-Year Guidance as Performance to Date in Line

Wickes Group PLC said Thursday that it is backing its full-year guidance as year-to-date trading has been in line with expectations.

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Hostmore Sees 2022 Margin Falling Below Medium-Term Target

Hostmore PLC warned Thursday that its Ebitda margin for 2022 will be in the low double digits as a result of cost increases and lower sales.

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S&U Says Profitability Since February Has Exceeded Expectations

S&U PLC said Thursday that it expects to achieve full-year growth targets despite market uncertainties, as the company's performance since February has been robust.

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Robinson Sales, Profit Rose in First 4 Months of 2022 Vs. Year Earlier

Robinson PLC said Thursday that sales and profit in the first four months of 2022 rose on year, as it increases prices amid an inflation-led business environment.

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Ricardo Aims to More Than Double Adjusted Operating Profit by FY 2027

Ricardo PLC said Thursday that its performance remains in line with the board's expectations for fiscal 2022 and that it is expects adjusted operating profit to more than double over five years.

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PayPoint FY 2022 Pretax Profit Jumps on Romania Exit

PayPoint PLC said Thursday that pretax profit for fiscal 2022 jumped after an exceptional gain from the disposal of its Romania business.

 
Market Talk: 

GSK's Haleon Seen as Attractive Consumer Healthcare Asset

0730 GMT - Haleon, the consumer-healthcare business which is about to be spun off from British pharma giant GSK, is viewed as an attractive asset within the sector and that should ultimately be seen in its valuation, Jefferies analysts say in a note. This is reflected in the fact that other companies have been eyeing Haleon, the analysts say. For example, Bloomberg reported that Nestle had considered making a bid for the company together with British consumer-goods company Reckitt around the time that Unilever made a similar move, says Jefferies. Though GSK still hasn't commented on the facts, and remains committed to the July spinoff, these approaches underscore that Haleon is viewed as an attractive asset within the sector, the analysts say. (cecilia.butini@wsj.com)

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Serco's Strong Expectations for 2022 Lead to Consensus Upgrades

0715 GMT - Serco Group's unscheduled trading update and upgraded guidance for 2022 shows the strong start to the year the company has had, Liberum analysts Joe Brent and Alex O'Hanlon say in a research note. There is strength in the U.K. outsourcing company's immigration work, while areas hit by Covid-19 are recovering, Liberum says, noting that it is upgrading its earnings per share and net debt consensus for Serco's 2022 earnings. The U.K. investment bank raises its expectations for the company's EPS performance by 13% and cuts its net debt views to GBP195 million from GBP221 million. Liberum has a buy recommendation on the stock and raises its target price to 200 pence from 180 pence. (sabela.ojea@wsj.com; @sabelaojeaguix)

Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Dow Jones Newswires; paul.larkins@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 26, 2022 04:03 ET (08:03 GMT)