Topps Tiles CEO leaves, replaced by CFO
Topps Tiles (LON:TPT) announced on Tuesday that its Group Chief Executive had decided to step down.
Shares in the UK’s largest tile specialist were down during trading on Tuesday.
The company revealed that Group Chief Executive Matt Williams has decided to leave his position with effect from 29th November 2019.
Meanwhile, the current Chief Financial Officer, Rob Parker, will take over as Group CEO on the same date.
Topps Tiles added that Matt Williams will remain as an advisor to the business until the end of May 2020 to ensure a smooth handover.
The company has begun to search for a new Chief Financial Officer, it added.
Matt Williams said that he will leave the business in order to “pursue a new challenge”.
“Topps is, and will always remain, a very special company to both me and my family. It is a quality business with enormous strength in its specialism which it derives from its people and culture. It has been an honour and privilege to lead and work alongside everybody within the Topps family and I wish them all well for the future,” Matt Williams continued.
At the beginning of October, the company announced that like-for-like sales declined during its fourth quarter, and were impacted by a difficult economic climate.
It blamed the “more challenging economic backdrop”, with uncertainty hitting consumer sentiment.
Rob Parker is “delighted to be offered this opportunity to lead the organisation”.
“Topps is an exceptional business in so many ways and I am very proud of the part I have played in our journey so far. I look forward to the future with energy and excitement as we continue to refine our market leading retail offer and to further our expansion into the commercial tile market,” Rob Parker said.
Shares in Topps Tiles Plc (LON:TPT) were down trading at -2.19% as of 13:35 GMT Tuesday.
MC Mining shares dip despite Generaal Mining Right approval
On Tuesday, MC Mining Ltd (LON: MCM) announced that the South African Department of Mineral Resources granted a mining right for its 74% owned Generaal coking and thermal coal project in the Limpopo province.
The Generaal, Chapudi and Mopane Projects comprise the Company’s Greater Soutpansberg Project. The GSP is in close proximity to the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone, which is an area designated by the government to focus primarily on energy and metallurgical industries.
The Generaal Project contains more than 407 million gross tonnes of inferred coal resources, which supports the MC Mining strategy of being South Africa’s pre-eminent producer of hard coking coal.
The Group submitted its mining right applications for the three GSP projects to the South African Department of Mineral Resources in 2013. The Generaal Project mining right is the second of the applications to be granted, following the Chapudi Project being granted in December 2018. Elsewhere, KEFI Minerals PLC (LON: KEFI) said it was still waiting for a go-ahead at the Tulu Kapi Gold project and Panther Metals Plc (NEX: PALM) secured a lucrative exploration licence. Meanwhile, Shanta Gold Limited (LON: SHG) and Mining company Capital Mining Ltd (LON: CAPD) both reported impressive third quarters.MC Mining comments
David Brown, Chief Executive Officer, stated,
“The granting of the Generaal Project mining right is a further step in unlocking value from MC Mining’s significant coking and thermal coal assets, positioning the GSP to be a potential long-term coal supplier to industrial users both local and offshore, including the planned Musina-Makhado SEZ.”
“The long-term development of the three GSP project areas is complementary to our flagship Makhado hard coking coal project, also in the Soutpansberg Coalfield. The Company has made significant progress in advancing Makhado during the last 12 months and anticipates completing the Phase 1 capital raise process in the near-term in order to facilitate the commencement of construction in Q1 CY2020. The conclusion of domestic and export Makhado Phase 1 and Phase 2 off-take agreements reflects the market appetite for hard coking coal and the significant potential of projects located in this coalfield.”
Investor notes
The Company’s shares dipped by 6.67% or 2.00p to 28.00p 05/11/19 13:25 GMT. Analysts from Peel Hunt reiterated their ‘Buy’ stance on MC Mining stock. Neither a p/e ratio nor dividend yield are available, the Group’s market cap is £42.26 million.Suzuki report quarterly slip amid Indian market slump
Suzuki Motor Corp (TYO: 7269) have given shareholders a worrying update this morning after reporting that quarterly profit slipped by almost a third, amid crashing demand in India.
As a result, the Japanese car maker slashed its full year sales outlook after the report was published, showing a gloomy future for Suzuki Indian operations.
The result does not come at the best of times for the Japanese manufacturer, as it was reported that rivals Peugeot (EPA: UG) and Fiat (NYSE: FCAU) had finalized their merger move to form a new automobile titan.
However, Suzuki have not been the only car manufacturer to cut their annual guidance. Renault (EPA:RNO) also experienced falling demand and as a result cut their annual guidance last month.
“We no longer think that growth in India will be an uninterrupted move upwards,” President Toshihiro Suzuki told an earnings briefing.
“We anticipate hills and valleys, so we need to focus on recovering from the current valley we’re in to ensure sustainable growth.”
Operating profit for Suzuki tumbled 32% to £398.6 million in the July-September quarter from the same period a year earlier.
Additionally, the Japanese titan saw domestic production fall due to the need to attend to a mileage scandal.
Suzuki, which accounts for roughly half of India’s passenger vehicles through its majority stake in Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (NSE: MARUTI) sold just 305,000 vehicles in India in the quarter, down 32% and its lowest quarterly sales since the December 2014.
Globally, Suzuki posted quarterly sales of 670,000 vehicles, seeing a 20% fall from the year prior.
Seniority have forecasted total global sales totaling 2.85 million units, down 15% from an earlier forecast.
Suzuki and Toyota Motor Corp (NYSE: TM) announced in August they would take stakes in each other.
This was an attempt to try and leverage their combined scale to manage costs and boost development of new vehicle technologies.
Shares of Suzuki jumped 1.44% despite the slowdown in sales, trading at 5,347 JPY. 5/11/19 13:06BST.
AIB shares fall despite positive update
AIB Group plc (LON: AIBG) have released a recent trading statement on Tuesday morning. Despite challenging political conditions the bank delivered a solid performance however, shares have fallen slightly.
The Dublin-headquartered bank said net income “remained steady” in the nine months ended September 30.
AIB’s net interest margin for the period was 2.42%, though taking a 7 basis point hit year-to-date from excess liquidity and further weakened by a drop in investment securities income and “increased MREL-related funding costs”
Despite the tough market conditions, the fact that AIB have managed to deliver positive results will suffice shareholder appetite.
Other competitors have found it tough to operate in the market, as we have seen the crisis at Deutsche Bank AG (ETR: DBK) continue, whilst HSBC (LON: HSBA) and Lloyd’s (LON: LLOY) have reported third quarter losses.
“We continue to take management action in relation to negative deposit pricing. Due to the distortionary impact on NIM from excess euro liquidity volumes grossing up our balance sheet, we expect our full-year NIM to be marginally below 2.40%,” said AIB.
AIB have made a concerned effort to cut costs within operations, expecting annual costs of around €1.5 billion.
As of September 30, gross loans stood 0.3% higher at €62.7 billion versus €62.9 billion at the end of 2018.
While the performing loan book was up 2.3% at €58.1 billion from €56.8 billion.
Customer accounts rose 3.7% to €70.2 billion from €67.7 billion on a “strong Irish macro-economic backdrop” and the loan to deposit ratio on September 30 was 87%.
Chief Executive Colin Hunt said: “Following a solid operational performance in H1, we continue to focus on controlling the controllables; non-performing exposures, quality of lending and cost discipline. Our recently announced portfolio sale brings our 2019 c. 5% NPE milestone into sight. We continue to align our business to serve our customers sustainably and look forward to updating the market in Q1 2020 with our strategic refresh and intentions for capital return.”
Shares of AIB fell 1.62% during Tuesday and are trading at €3 per share. 5/11/19 12:43BST.
Kenmare Resources names new Non-Executive Director
Titanium mining company and operator of the Moma Titanium Minerals Mine in northern Mozambique, Kenmare Resources (LON: KMR), today announced that it had appointed a new Non-Executive Director with immediate effect.
The new Non-Executive Director has been named as Dr. Elaine Dorward-King. Dr Dorward-King has over thirty years’ worth of experience in mining, chemical and engineering spaces and a PhD in Analytical Chemistry from Colorado State University.
Her past roles have included acting as Executive Vice President of Sustainability and External Relations for Newmont Goldcorp (NYSE: NEMP), holding roles such as Global Head of Health, Safety and Environment for Rio Tinto (LON: RIO) between 1992 and 2013, and Managing Director of Richards Bay Minerals.
In conjunction with her appointment to the Board, Dr. Dorward-King will also become a member of Kenmare Resources’s Sustainability Committee.
Elsewhere in mining, KEFI Minerals PLC (LON: KEFI) said it was still waiting for a go-ahead at the Tulu Kapi Gold project, while Panther Metals Plc (NEX: PALM) secured a lucrative exploration licence and Shanta Gold Limited (LON: SHG) reported an impressive third quarter.
Kenmare Resources comments
Steven McTiernan, Chairman, stated,“I am delighted to welcome Elaine to Kenmare’s Board. Her significant leadership experience in both mineral sands and sustainability will complement the existing skillset of our Directors to ensure a strong balance of skills, experience and diversity.
Kenmare is focused on operating responsibly, with a progressive land rehabilitation programme, the majority of our power needs supplied by hydropower and no chemicals used in our mining or processing operations. We look forward to Elaine’s counsel as we strive to continually improve our environmental, social and governance performance.”
Investor notes
Following the update, the Company’s shares have dipped 0.41% or 1.00p to 244.00p per share. Analysts from Peel Hunt reiterated their ‘Buy’ stance on Kenmare Resources stock. The Group’s p/e ratio is 6.86 and their dividend yield stands at 0.85%.
Gem Diamonds shares jump despite reduced sales outlook
Gem Diamonds Limited (LON: GEMD) have reduced their sales outlook for diamonds as prices ‘remain under pressure’, additionally the firm has renewed its lease or the Letseng mine in Lesotho.
In their third quarter trading update, ending 30th September the miner said that capital expenditure has been reduced by $7 million, reducing expected capital spend for 2019 to around $12 million.
The company said it sold 25,631 carats during the quarter, down 10% from 28,379 in the second quarter, while achieved prices declined by 6% to $1,417 per carat from $1,501.
The cut in sales forecast will not worry shareholders as significantly as expected.
The global mining industry has seen slumps, particularly with firms such as Antofagasta (LON: ANTO) cutting their production guidance and Centamin (LON: CEY) also experienced output declines.
“Prices for smaller and commercial type goods remain under pressure with polished inventory levels remaining high,” the company said. “Larger high-quality diamonds have also experienced some price pressures in 2019, contributing to the lower prices achieved during the period.”
Production from the Letseng mine totalled 27,539 carats in the third quarter, up 1% from 27,210 in second quarter.
Gem Diamonds said there was lower-than-expected contribution from the mine’s Satellite pipe, which is being developed in addition to the Main pipe.
It said that as the mine transitioned into the new cutback to accommodate the planned increase in contribution from the Satellite pipe, a deviation was identified in the anticipated contact face position.
“Due to the contact variance in the Satellite pipe, the forecast contribution for 2019 has been reduced. The overall impact on carats recovered for the year remain unchanged; however carats sold have been reduced due to the lower contribution from the higher-grade Satellite pipe,” the company said.
Gem Diamonds owns 70% of Letseng mine, said the lease is renewed for an immediate period of ten years which will come as a positive for the firm, despite the cut in sales forecast.
Despite this cut, investors seem optimistic about the potential of Gem Diamonds.
The share price of Gem has jumped 2.89% trading at 63p per share. 5/11/19 12:21BST.
Verona Pharma widen third quarter loss
Verona Pharma Plc (LON: VRP) have reported in their most recent trading update that their third quarter loss is set to widen as research & development costs more than doubled.
For the three months ended September 30, Verona’s pretax loss totaled £12.8 million, more than three times the £3.5 million loss posted the the year before.
The massive loss will worry shareholders, and investors may not be so optimistic about the future performance of Verona looking at 2019 trading results.
The increasing costs in the Research and Development team was the main cause of the massive loss.
These costs inflated to £12.0 million from £5.3 million. Verona’s general & administrative costs also rose, jumping 43% to £2.0 million from £1.4 million.
This comes at a bad time for Verona Pharma, as rivals seem to be captivating the market and dominating the pharmaceutical scene.
Belgium’s UCB (EBR: UCB) are close to completing a move for RA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: RARX), and the new super firm will pose strong competition to Verona.
Additionally, more established names such as Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) have smashed their third quarter, expanding their market dominance.
For the nine months to September 30, pretax loss widened to £33.7 million from £18.3 million after a more than doubling of R&D costs to £27.8 million from £13.6 million.
A 28% increase in general & administrative costs to £5.9 million from £4.6 million also saw the loss widen for Verona.
Chief Executive Jan-Anders Karlsson said: “We are very pleased that our four-week phase 2b dose-ranging clinical trial with nebulized ensifentrine is progressing according to plan and that we have completed enrollment of over 400 symptomatic patients with moderate to severe COPD. We anticipate completing this study around the end of 2019. Informed by this and prior studies in around 850 subjects, we plan to advance into our phase 3 clinical trial program which we expect to commence in 2020 following an end of phase 2 meeting with the [US Food & Drug Administration].
“Karlsson added: “Initially we will focus on nebulized treatment for more severe patients but we are very excited by the positive [dry powder inhaler] formulation results that support our view that ensifentrine is an effective bronchodilator in COPD patients, whether administered as a dry powder via a handheld inhaler or as a suspension via a nebulizer.”
As a result, shares of Verona sunk 3.08% to trade at 44p per share. 5/11/19 BST.
Adecco invests in IT as revenues dip in ‘challenging market’
Human resources company Adecco SA (SWX: ADEN) told investors that they had expanded their IT and digital investment, but saw their revenues dip during the third quarter.
The Company stated that revenues were down 2% year-on-year and down 4% organically, in what was described as challenging market conditions in Europe and the US. The Group’s revenues in September and October combined were down 4%.
Adecco added that its EBITA margin was down 10 basis points on-year, to 4.9%. The Group’s structural productivity progress were offset by its revenue drop and IT investments.
However, the Company reported improvement in their gross margin, up 70 basis points to 19.4%, pushed up by “value-based pricing and enhanced business mix”. It added that its GrowTogether transformation programme is on track to deliver on its 2019 and 2020 commitments.
Similarly, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (LON: MEL) also posted an underwhelming update, while Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC (LON: ERM) and Filta Group Holdings PLC (LON: FLTA) both relished their successes.
Adecco comments
Alain Dehaze, Group Chief Executive Officer, said, “In Q3 2019, we delivered a solid performance in an uncertain external environment. We remain focused on our business transformation and continue to invest in our strategic priorities – GrowTogether, IT and our digital ventures – which are fundamentally strengthening our business. Our ongoing emphasis on value-based pricing and business mix improvement is driving a sustained increase in gross margin, which was up 60 basis points organically year-on-year. We also delivered strong performances in the Career Transition and Talent Development activities, with a return to growth in Lee Hecht Harrison and revenue acceleration in General Assembly, confirming the value that these businesses bring to our portfolio. As we look to the fourth quarter, we are continuing to build the next layer of the GrowTogether programme, with a focus on digital tools and solutions that deliver greater value to our clients and candidates. This includes rolling out an enhanced integrated front office solution, our global candidate app and the PERFORM methodology, putting us on track to deliver the EUR 250 million GrowTogether productivity target for 2020.”Investor notes
The Company’s shares have dipped 1.22% or 0.72p to 58.48p per share 05/11/19 12:44 CET. The Group’s market cap is 9.66 billion CHF, their dividend yield stands at 4.22%.First Derivatives shares spike as pre-tax profits rise
First Derivatives plc (LON: FDP) have seen their share price spike as the company released its most recent trading update, the firm saw rising pre-tax profit and an earnings rise.
In the six months to August 31, revenue grew by 11% to £116.7 million from £105.6 million with pretax profit rising by 11% to £8.4 million from £7.6 million.
The firm boosted its interim dividend by 10% to 8.5 pence per share from 7.7p.
Shareholders will be pleased with the performance of First Derivatives across 2019, as earnings before interest, depreciation, taxation and amortisation rose by 22% to £22.0 million from £18.1 million.
Additionally, the firm also completed a a $53.8 million deal to take sole ownership of its subsidiary Kx Systems.
This comes at an important time for First Derivatives, in a sector where competitors such as Gentrack Group Ltd (NZE: GTK) have seen progress.
Additionally, Intelligent Ultrasound Group PLC (LON: MED) saw increasing sales in the testing of its new AI software, showing the need for First Derivatives to post these positive results.
First Derivatives said: “Notwithstanding economic uncertainty, we secured a number of contract wins during the period, particularly around regulatory compliance and reporting in Europe. We have also expanded the range of third-party vendor technologies we support and developed some additional propositions that we believe will be attractive to our clients and increase our addressable market.
“As a result, irrespective of any improvement in economic conditions, we expect growth to accelerate in our traditionally stronger second half.”
The company also added that it was confident in reaching its full year results in line with board expectations.
First Derivatives said anticipates financial 2020 revenue to be £242.9 million with an adjusted Ebitda of £43.8 million.
In financial 2019, it achieved revenue of £217.4 million and an adjusted Ebitda of £38.9 million.
These results come at at an even better time as the company was mourning the loss of founder Brian Conlon, who died in July after a battle with cancer.
Shares of First Derivatives jumped 4.06% as a results of the positive results.
Shares currently trade at 2,289p per share. 5/11/19 11:44BST.
Trade war optimism runs out of puff
Following the Dow Jones hitting its all-time high on Monday, indices saw trade War optimism run out of steam on Tuesday. European markets began in a fairly unenthusiastic manner, with tensions not yet resolved and today’s UK services PMI.
Commenting on the market’s opening movements and trade war tensions, Spreadex Financial Analyst Connor Campbell stated,
“The swell of trade optimism, enough to drive the Dow Jones to a fresh all-time high on Monday evening, failed to really carry over to Tuesday morning.”
“Instead the European markets yawned their way through the open, huffing the fumes of yesterday’s positivity to ensure that at the very least they kept their recent multi-week/month/year highs intact.”
“The FTSE, which is yet to recover all the losses incurred at the very start of October, added a handful of points, unable to cross 7400 but still at its best price in a month. The DAX was sitting pretty at 13130 without really moving, while the CAC was similarly unchanged at 5820, a level last seen 12 years prior.”
“Sterling, which on Monday showed its first election jitters – or, rather, the first since the vote was confirmed; in the run up to that announcement it was repeatedly anxious about the prospect – also failed to do much. Cable nudged up 0.1%, but remained shy of $1.29; against the euro, meanwhile, the pound was flat at €1.157.”
“If the currency is in the mood to look beyond politics, there’s the small matter of the latest UK services PMI. Analysts are expecting the mildest of improvements, from 49.5 to 49.6 month-on-month.”
Regarding Company news which has made markets nervous; Lloyds Banking Group (LON: LLOY) results disappointed and Deutsche Bank (ETR: DBK) reported losses during the third quarter.