Telegraph reports a rise in profits
The Telegraph Media Group has reported a sharp rise in profits after revealing subscriber numbers reached a record high.
The number of new subscribers grew 23.4% this year to 522,000.
“2019 represented another successful year for TMG as we continued our transformation to a subscription-first business. Our substantial and consistent subscription growth has continued into 2020, with the important milestone of 500,000 subscribers surpassed in May 2020,” said Nick Hugh, chief executive of Telegraph Media Group.
“With average revenue per subscriber also continuing to increase in line with our plan, we remain on track to deliver a sustainable and profitable business model. This underpins our continued investment in quality journalism – something that has become ever more important in these uncertain times,” he added.
“With average revenue per subscriber also continuing to increase in line with our plan, we remain on track to deliver a sustainable and profitable business model.”
In April, the group warned of cashflow difficulties and dozens of employees were put on furlough. However, the group has since repaid all the government support and added that it did not need to access the loan.
Operating profit before exceptional items hit £14.3m last year, which is up from £8.3m in 2018.
The company is on track to reach 10m registered readers and 1m subscribers by the year 2023.
Global equities remained in the red after cautious Fed and BoE statements
Recovering slightly from their morning losses, global equities regained some ground in the afternoon, even as the the Federal Reserve – Fed – and Bank of England – BoE – statements remained fresh in everyone’s minds.
After an initially sharp fall, the Dow Jones recovered and then dipped again, down 0.41% or 115 points, to just shy of the 28k benchmark, at 27,917 points.
This came even though the Fed appeared dovish yesterday evening, with Wall Street stocks dropping despite the US central bank promising to keep interest rates low, and even revising its US GDP forecast from -6.5% to -3.7%.Also worth noting were the afternoon’s jobless claims data, with a reading of 860,000 exceeding the 825,000 forecast, but still shy of the feared seven-figure number which has yet to transpire.
Elsewhere in global equities, Eurozone markets had an equally deflated Thursday. The CAC dropped by 0.69%, to 5,040, while the DAX fell by 0.36%, to 13,208 points.
Speaking on the BoE statement and the FTSE, Spreadex Financial Analyst, Connor Campbell, stated:“Echoing the Federal Reserve by keeping interest rates near zero, the Bank of England warned of an ‘unusually uncertain’ recovery during the month’s MPC meeting, prompting analysts to speculate the QE programme could be expanded in November if the UK’s comeback starts to slow down.”
So somewhat ominous and noncommittal, and this announcement did little allay fears, with the FTSE – like its peers – gaining some ground in the evening, but still finishing with a 0.47% dip, down to 6,050 points. In a fairly mixed afternoon for the British currency, the pound sterling was up by 0.1% against the dollar and down by the same amount against the euro, at rates of 1.30 and 1.10 respectively.John Lewis reveals £635m loss and plans to axe bonus
John Lewis has posted a £635m pre-tax loss for the first half of the year.
The department store announced that it would not be paying its staff bonus for the first time since 1953.
“I know this will come as a blow to partners who have worked so hard this year,” said Dame Sharon White, the group’s chief executive.
“The decision in no way detracts from the commitment and dedication that you have shown.
“The partnership found itself in a similar position in 1948 when the bonus was halted following the Second World War.
“We came through then to be even stronger than before and we will do so again.”
The department store has also applied for planning permission to turn three floors of its flagship Oxford Street store into office space, which it will rent out.
“Oxford Street is our largest and oldest shop and has a surplus of non-selling space compared to our newer shops. We have therefore made a planning application for the upper floors of the shop, to give us greater flexibility on how we use this space more efficiently in future, with the potential to have office space at the top of the building,” said a spokesperson.
“While no decisions have been made, any plans would look to further improve our customers’ experience.”
Sales at the department store fell 10% over the first six months of the year, whilst revenue grew 2% over the period.
John Lewis said they lost an estimated £200m in sales amid the pandemic, whilst spending £50m on protective equipment.
Nostra Terra shares surge 45%
Nostra Terra shares (LON: NTOG) have surged 45% on Thursday after the oil and gas company revealed for the new well to be drilled at Pine Mills.
A survey in preparation for constructing the drilling pad has been completed. The well design has been agreed and a drilling contractor has been selected. Drilling operations are planned to commence in October.
“Activity is picking up in the direct area from multiple operators. We’re happy to see progress towards the new well at Pine Mills, our first based on 3D seismic data. Nostra Terra has significant working interest in the well and subsequent development and looks forward to updating shareholders as operations proceed,” said Matt Lofgran, Nostra Terra’s chief executive.
Shares in the oil and gas company also rose 8% earlier this week after the company said it has completed the acquisition of the Caballos Creek oil field in Texas.
“Nostra Terra has acquired another asset that is immediately accretive, adding significant cash flow to the company, achieved with non-dilutive financing. The board is planning further growth in a similar fashion during the remainder of the year. We look forward to providing further updates in the future,” when announcing the news.
Nostra Terra shares (LON: NTOG) are currently trading +44.55% at 0,40 (0937GMT).
Safestyle shares down 10% on £5m loss
Safestyle shares (LON: SFE) were down 10.5% on Thursday after the group revealed pre-tax loss of £5m in the six months to June 30.
The group said that revenue and profitability between March and May had fallen as a result of the pandemic and having to cease trading.
However, the group remained positive about trading post-lockdown and reported a 26% growth between June and August.
“The first half of 2020 presented some major management and operational challenges which were successfully navigated with strong support from our shareholders, effective Government intervention and the efforts of all of our staff. Clearly their health and safety, along with that of our customers, was our priority during the lockdown period,” said chief executive Mike Gallacher.
“Since we re-emerged from lockdown, our strong order intake performance has been sustained and we have moved to ramp up operational capacity to match this demand.
“We have experienced some operational challenges linked to recovering the backlog of warranty work from the lockdown, our growth and recent supplier performance. We are focused on ensuring that the impact of these issues on our good customer service levels is addressed promptly,” he added.
“It is not yet clear if the recent strong trading performance is sustainable in light of the current economic environment and any uncertainty is likely to impact consumer confidence.
“However our strong order book, our position as a leading national value brand and the progress made on modernising the business leaves us well positioned to sustain our momentum as we move into 2021,” said Gallacher.
Safestyle shares (LON: SFE) are trading -9.54% at 48,85 (0924GMT).
Thinksmart shares surge on 513% profit increase
Thinksmart shares (LON: TSL) surged over 17% on Thursday’s opening after the group revealed a 513% growth in profits.
In the 12 months to the end of June, profits hit £53m, up from last year’s profits of £8.7m. Revenue was 27% down on last year.
Thinksmart shares have traded strongly this year. Last month they hit a 52-week high.
Thinksmart shares (LON: TSL) are currently trading +12% at 42,00 (0845GMT).
Next sales “more resilient” than expected
Next sales fell 34% over the first half of the year, however, the fashion retailer has said business was “more resilient than we expected”.
For the first six months of the year, pre-tax profit was £9m and the group has raised profit forecast for the full year from £195m to £300m.
“The company’s sales performance through the pandemic has been more resilient than we expected. The scale of our online business, the breadth of our product offer, and the fact that much of our store portfolio is located out of town, have served to mitigate the worst effects of the pandemic on trade,” said Simon Wolfson, Next’s chief executive.
Next has also confirmed a partnership with lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret.
Richard Lim, chief executive of Retail Economics, said: “The impact of the pandemic decimated demand for new outfits but these figures show resilience during these horrendous conditions.”
“This is about weathering the storm more effectively than the competition and Next is well positioned following years of investment in their digital proposition while many others remain in survival mode,” he added.
The group also warned that the tighter social distancing rules could affect sales over the Christmas period.
if the rule of six is still in play, it “is likely to depress demand for gifts and clothing associated with traditional Christmas family get togethers,” said the group.
John Lewis to reduce size of flagship store
As shoppers move online, John Lewis has revealed plans to reduce the size of its flagship Oxford Street store.
The department store has applied for planning permission to turn three floors into office space, which it will rent out.
“Oxford Street is our largest and oldest shop and has a surplus of non-selling space compared to our newer shops. We have therefore made a planning application for the upper floors of the shop, to give us greater flexibility on how we use this space more efficiently in future, with the potential to have office space at the top of the building,” said a spokesperson.
“While no decisions have been made, any plans would look to further improve our customers’ experience.”
The group has so far closed 50 stores this year and expected to post high losses when it reveals half-year results on Thursday.
Before the pandemic, the department store showed signs of struggling as the group posted a 65% fall in sales in January this year.
in March, John Lewis announced plans to cut its annual staff bonus to the lowest level in almost 70 years.
Tui shares fall after CMA investigation
Tui (LON: TUI) will be refunding all cancelled holiday packages by the end of September.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced this morning that after an investigation following thousands of complaints, the holidaymaker will be refunding within the allotted time.
Amid the Coronavirus crisis, many holiday operators have struggled to refund customers on time due to a large number of cancellations.
The chief executive of the CMA said:
”It’s absolutely essential that people have trust and confidence when booking package holidays and know that if a cancellation is necessary as a result of coronavirus, businesses will give them a full, prompt refund. The CMA’s action ensures that Tui UK customers will get their refunds by the end of the month.”
As a result of this morning’s news, shares in the company (LON: TUI) fell 6.6%.
‘’TUI is facing a perfect storm of a dramatic fall in demand for winter holidays and a scramble from thousands of consumers desperate to get a refund on spring and summer cancellations,” said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
“The travel company has now promised to clear a backlog of refunds by the end of the month following an investigation by the UK’s competition authority.
“That’s clearly left TUI seriously out of pocket, given that the company already suffered a €1.1bn loss in the second quarter of this year,” she added.
Is the European Commission 55% emissions reduction target ambitious enough?
By way of the State of the Union speech delivered by President Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission has proposed to increase its emissions reduction target to ‘at least’ 55% by 2030.
The renewed emissions reduction target follows the previous commitment to a 40% reduction, and has been made as part of the EU’s plans to rebuild in a post-pandemic world.
In service of this new target being met, Ms von der Leyen stated that a European Green Deal will act as a ‘blueprint’, and said if every sector of industry plays their part, Europe will be the first ‘climate-neutral continent’ by 2050.
The EC President added that with the bloc successfully reducing its emissions by 25% since 1990, alongside 60% economic growth, these new goals are ambitious but manageable. In order to ensure parity of emissions reduction, the Juts Transition Fund will “support the regions that have a bigger and more costly change to make”.
She believes that if other countries around the world follow the EU’s lead, then the world will be able to keep global warming beneath 1.5 degrees Celsius.
To become the 1st climate-neutral continent, we’re proposing to increase the 2030 target for emission reduction to at least 55%. I recognise this is too much for some & not enough for others. But our economy & industry can manage this. And they want it, too.#EUGreenDeal #SOTEU pic.twitter.com/fbm5J1yEZd
— Ursula von der Leyen – Follow #SOTEU (@vonderleyen) September 16, 2020