Ryanair profits up 25%
Ryanair (LON:RYA) have reported a profit of €245 (£173.7m) for the three months to the end of June, 25 percent higher than last year.
Revenues were also up 10 per cent to €1.65bn and the company are expecting their full year results to be at the top end of their expectations, which were between €940m and €970m issued in May.
However, Ryanair added: “We caution… that this guidance, which is 12% ahead of last year’s profit, is heavily reliant on the final outturn of H2 fares over which we currently have almost zero visibility.”
Passenger numbers increased by 16 per cent to 28m thanks to improved load factors and their new “Always Getting Better” programme, designed to improve passenger experience. According to the company it has attracted “millions” of new customers, prompting CEO Michael O’Leary to say he should have “started being nice years ago”.
The airline has also accepted an offer from International Airlines Group (IAG) for its 29.8% stake in Aer Lingus, saying it “maximises Ryanair shareholder value”.
Chinese stocks tumble by 8.6%
Chinese shares suffered their biggest one-day drop since February 2007 on Monday, renewing fears over the health of the world’s second largest economy.
The market fell by 8.6%, the equivalent of $500bn, with 2,247 companies falling and only 77 gainers. The CSI300 index .CSI300 of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen plunged 8.6 percent, to 3,818.73, while the Shanghai Composite Index .SSEC lost 8.5 percent, to 3,725.56 points.
This comes just weeks after fears of a stock market collapse led to government intervention in the form of interest rate cuts, initial public offering suspension and relaxed margin lending. This seemed to lead to some stabilization, with the market up 15% before Monday’s fall.
Bernard Aw, market strategist at trading firm IG, told the BBC that surprisingly weak manufacturing data “added to worries that there could be further weakness in the Chinese economy, after the patch of recent economic data showed signs of stability”.
More than 1,500 shares listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell by their daily downward limit of 10%.
HP report finds smartwatches are laden with security risks
A report by tech giant Hewlett Packard has concluded that smart watches are littered with security flaws.
The report said that “100 percent of the tested smartwatches contain significant vulnerabilities, including insufficient authentication, lack of encryption and privacy concerns.”
“The results of our research were disappointing, but not surprising. We continue to see deficiencies in the areas of authentication and authorisation along with insecure connections to cloud and mobile interfaces.”
One security expert said manufacturers needed to pay closer attention to customer security.
“Keeping up with other manufacturers to be a forerunner in this technology field may force products to be released without the necessary attention to how secure they actually are,” said Mark James, security specialist at online security firm ESET.
The study tested 10 different wearable watches, although declined to say which ones. Security features put to the test included password protection and data encryption, as well as its cloud storage service. It found all the watches had at least one problem area. There are concerns that, with consumer demand for smartwatches booming, there has been too much focus on getting watches onto the market rather than fully testing its security capabilities.
New rules lead to more Britons swapping banks
There has been a 4 percent increase in customers moving accounts in the last year, due to new rules introduced in 2013 that ensure customers can switch accounts within seven working days.
The rules are designed to break the dominance of the Big Five banks: Lloyds, RBS, Barclays, HSBC and Santander. The sector’s competition watchdog is currently undertaking research into whether there is enough competition for current accounts in the UK, due to be published in September. It could well recommend that the banks be broken up, in order to allow for a more competitive market.
It seems the new rules are finally having the desired effect, with Bacs data showing that there were 1.1 million switches compared with 1.06 million over the same period one year before. 69 percent of Britons are now aware of the service, compared with 58 percent in the month of its launch.
Glaxo Smith Kline gets go-ahead for malaria vaccine
Glaxo Smith Kline (LON:GSK) have become the first drug company to be given approval from European Medicines Agency for a malaria vaccine.
Mosquirix, which is designed primarily for use on children, has been in development for 30 years. Currently the only drugs available are oral tablets. The drug has completed its safety review and could soon be used for immunisation across sub-Saharan Africa and is set to make a significant difference.
Andrew Witty, chief executive of GSK, said:
Today’s scientific opinion represents a further important step towards making available for young children the world’s first malaria vaccine.
GSK have said that they will not be making a profit on the drug, despite it costing them £236m so far to develop.
GSK’s share price is staying relatively steady, currently up 0.18%. It is one of the UK’s leading healthcare companies, who research and develop pharmaceuticals, vaccines and consumer healthcare products.
“Hobbit village” crowdfunding on Kickstarter
If you’re a Tolkien fan with a secret desire to experience life in Middle Earth, now’s your chance: one company are crowdfunding to build “Podditon”, a realistic hobbit style holiday village in Suffolk.
Based in West Stow, the company already runs West Stow Pods, a glamping business near Thetford Forest. However its owner, Jan Lengyal, is hoping to raise £50,000 to build the UK’s first habitable village based on “The Shire”. The authentic “hobbit holes”, as they are known in the timeless Lord of the Rings trilogy, will be eco-efficient and sleep up to five people.
The sustainably built development will utilize natural building techniques and materials and, upon completion, will be carbon neutral or carbon positive. Lengyal isn’t the avid Tolkien fan you might expect; what really drew him to the project was the eco-friendly manner in which it was built. In an interview with teh Telegraph, he said: “I’m very conscious of people’s – and my own – carbon footprint, so if I can stop one family from flying to Benidorm, and instead holidaying in Britain, that’s my ultimate goal.”
However, for the project to get the go-ahead, it needs to be 100% funded through it Kickstarter campaign. Donations start at as litte £2, going up to £1,000 – where donors will be some of the first to spend five nights in the Poddit Hole, as well as getting a guided tour of the area’s nearby Anglo-Saxon village. The project has until 21st August at 3.14pm to achieve it’s £50,000 goal.
Diageo under investigation for manipulating results
Diageo (LON:DGE) is being investigated by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, after it was alleged the company shipped out excess stock to US retailers in order to boost their financial results.
The business has showed signs of being under pressure int eh recent months, with performance down in North America and sales relatively flat.
Diageo told the Wall Street Journal it had received an enquiry and was co-operating with the investigation. A spokeswoman said: “”Diageo is working to respond fully to the SEC’s requests for information in this matter.”
Diageo is one of the UK’s leading drinks manufacturers and the biggest alcoholic drinks company in the US, owning the Smirnoff, Johnny Walker, Guiness and Baileys brands. The company were trading down 3.33% this morning after the news broke.
Aggreko falls 13% after trading update
Aggreko plc (LON:AGK) fell 13% this morning after releasing a less than favourable trading update.
The company said in a statement:
“We now expect the 2015 interim and full year results to fall sort of current market expectations.
Our 325MW of gas contract extensions in Bangladesh are entering the final stages of approval, with our expectation being that 180MW will be secured into the first half of 2016 and the remaining 145MW for three years. The trading terms secured for these extensions, which would retrospectively apply from the second quarter 2015, are likely to be less favourable than our earlier expectations”, leading to an adverse effect on profit.
Furthermore, security challenges in Yemen mean the company are operating below full capacity.
The oil arm of the business has also taken a hit:
“We have seen a further slowdown in North America with volumes in the shale basins continuing to decline. More recently, we have begun to see an impact on our offshore oil and gas business in the Gulf of Mexico.”
Aggreko plc is a United Kingdom-based company, which provides power and temperature control solutions.
Pearson’s half yearly report shows consistent growth
Pearson (LON:PSON) published their half yearly report this morning, showing consistent growth.
Sales were up 1% to £2.2bn,with strong growth in North America, Brazil and China. Operating profit down 4% from £73bn to £72bn and its divedend was raised by 6% to 18p.
The company are trading up 3.24% this morning, following on from yesterday’s news of a sale of its Financial Times newspaper to Nikkei Group for £844m.
John Fallon, chief executive said:
“Overall, we’re competing well, enabling us to reaffirm our full year guidance and increase the interim dividend. The new education products and services we’re developing which will enable far more people of all ages to discover the joy of learning and progress in their careers. We believe the returns on the signific”.
Looking forward the company have a positive outlook, expecting the UK market to stabilize as well as strong growth in China and North America.
Amazon shares surge after reporting first sizeable profit
Shares in Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) shot up more than 18% in after hours trading yesterday, as the company reported an unexpected $92m profit.
Traditionally Amazon has grown its revenue consistently, whilst its profit remained low or non-existant – in the same period last year, Amazon made a loss of $126m. Its announcement yesterday was the first time the company have reported a sizeable profit.
Sales in North America rose 25.5% to $13.8bn in the second quarter, driven by technology and electrical goods. Amazon’s top line grew 20 percent in the quarter, and company profile was boosted by the heavily advertised “Prime Day” on July 15th, where the company gained more new members trying it’s speedy Prime delivery service than ever before.
Founder Jeff Bezos said the results were down to pure hard work: “The teams at Amazon have been working hard for customers,” he said.