UK Retail Could See Consumer Shift to Discounters Ahead of Christmas

0909 GMT - The U.K. retail sector braces itself for a challenging Christmas period as consumer confidence is at record lows and budget pressure is unlikely to ease, chief market analyst at CMC Markets Michael Hewson says in a note. "There will be many consumers forgoing high ticket food items and prioritizing basic food items over turkeys, stuffing, Christmas puddings and all of the other trimmings", Hewson says. Another important factor will be where they buy from, which could potentially benefit seasonal sales at Tesco and Sainsbury's given that consumers of premium supermarkets such as Marks & Spencer may switch to budget retailers and discounters. (michael.susin@wsj.com)


 
Companies News: 

SSE PLC to Sell 25% Stake in SSEN Transmission for GBP1.47 Bln

SSE PLC said Friday that it will sell a 25% stake in its electricity transmission network business SSEN Transmission to Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board for 1.47 billion pounds ($1.78 billion).

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Breedon Revenue in 10-Months to October Rose; Sees 2022 Meeting Guidance

Breedon Group PLC said Friday that revenue in both the four months to the end of October and the first 10 months of the year rose on year, and it backed its full-year expectations.

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Devro Agrees to GBP540 Mln Takeover

Devro PLC said Friday that it has agreed to a 540 million pound ($654.3 million) takeover by Saria SE & Co. KG through its subsidiary Saria Nederland BV.

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LPA Flags FY 2022 Trading Loss Despite Upswing in 2H

LPA Group PLC said Friday that it will make a small trading loss for the year, despite a strong second half with improved trading on year.

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ScS Group Sees FY 2023 Performance in Line With Views, 16-Week Orders Fell

ScS Group PLC said Friday that like-for-like order intake for the 16 weeks to Nov. 19 fell given a tough comparative, but added that full-year performance is in line with expectations despite the challenging backdrop.

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Devro Upbeat on Prospects as Volume, Pricing Drive Revenue Higher

Devro PLC said Friday that it is confident for the full year and further ahead, as revenue and margins rise across markets.

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Thor Mining Trading Suspended on ASX Ahead of Capital Raise

Thor Mining PLC said Friday that trading of its shares on the Australian Securities Exchange has been suspended ahead of a planned capital raising.

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LSL Property Services Sees 2022 Missing Prior Expectations

LSL Property Services PLC said Friday that it expects overall 2022 performance to miss prior expectations, with full-year profit expected to be slightly above or below 2019 levels.

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Kenmare Resources Cuts 2022 Production Views on Power Outages

Kenmare Resources PLC said on Friday that production for the full year is expected to be at or around the bottom of its guidance ranges due to unplanned power outages caused by issues in the electricity transmission grid.

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ITM Power Appoints Dennis Schulz as CEO

ITM Power PLC said Friday that it has appointed Dennis Schulz as chief executive officer with effect from Dec. 1.

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Conviction Life Sciences Company to Raise GBP100 Mln in London IPO

Conviction Life Sciences Company said Friday that it plans to raise 100 million pounds ($121.2 million) and float on the London Stock Exchange next month.


 
Market Talk: 

SSE 25% Disposal of Transmission Asset Seen as a Welcome Deal

1106 GMT - SSE executing the widely expected 25% disposal of its electricity transmission asset for GBP1.47 billion--with proceeds to go toward funding renewable growth--should be welcomed, Citi says. The energy company is unlikely to get the market overly excited on the back of the sale, however, Citi analyst Jenny Ping says in a research note. "We also see limited valuation read across to other network utilities in the U.K. that could stick, given the meaningfully different regulatory asset value growth outlook," the U.S. bank says. Citi retains its neutral rating and 1,664 pence price target on the stock. Shares are up 0.8% at 1,747.0 pence. (joseph.hoppe@wsj.com)

BT Analyst Meet Fails to Provide Visibility on Stabilizing Line Loss

1021 GMT - BT Group CFO Simon Lowth and Openreach CEO Clive Selley hosted an analyst meeting on Thursday, but they didn't give any visibility on stabilizing line loss nor cogent rationale for the Equinox 2 proposal, Jefferies analysts Jerry Dellis and Yi Hsin Yeoh say in a research note. The U.K. telecommunications company's Equinox 2 program will encourage internet service providers to bulk migrate legacy customers to fiber to the premises for a pricing discount, but it remains unclear why Equinox 2 is being launched when Openreach is unable to execute existing demand for FTTP, the analysts say. Jefferies has a buy rating on the stock with a 250.00 pence price target. (kyle.morris@dowjones.com)

ScS's Performance is Resilient, Looks Well-Placed for Recovery

1005 GMT - ScS's update showed a resilient business performance, with encouraging recent order levels prompting expectations to remain unchanged, Shore Capital analysts Darren Shirley and Clive Black say in a research note. The U.K. furniture and floorings retailer is expected to report a pretax profit for FY 2023 of GBP8 million, they say. This compares with GBP16.4 million reported a year ago. "We see the group as well placed to continue to gain share through tough times, and so benefit and thrive when the U.K. consumer economy stabilizers and ultimately returns to growth," they say.(michael.susin@wsj.com)

UK Seeking Swiss-Style Ties With EU Wouldn't Necessarily Support Pound

0958 GMT - Sterling wouldn't necessarily benefit if the U.K. government pursued a Swiss-style relationship with the EU, Commerzbank says. "In particular since the negotiations for [Brexit] already were so complicated, I would assume that negotiations regarding closer cooperation would hardly be less complex," Commerzbank currency analyst Antje Praefcke says in a note. Since 1972, there are more than 120 individual agreements between the EU and Switzerland, and negotiations for each one took 2-10 years prior to an approval period over several years, she says. That means if the U.K. plans to move in that direction, negotiations would take time, she says. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)


Contact: London NewsPlus; paul.larkins@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

11-25-22 0651ET