John Lewis outlook remains uncertain heading into winter

Liam Roche
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John Lewis outlook remains uncertain heading into winter

John Lewis Partnership posts pre-tax loss of £29m

Robust online sales and reduced Covid-related costs allowed John Lewis Partnership to reduce its losses, although it remains in the red after taking on £100m of costs by closing its stores and letting go of thousands of staff.

The partnership, which includes Waitrose, posted a pre-tax loss of £29m for the six months ending in July.

This was an improvement on the £635m loss that came a year ago when the firm was badly impacted by the onset of the pandemic.

The retailer said it will not yet make a decision on resuming staff bonuses or give back business rates as its outlook remains uncertain.

Usually, John Lewis makes the brunt of its profits in H2 with Christmas being its busiest time of the year.

Dame Sharon White, John Lewis’s chairwoman, said that “even with the success of the vaccination programme the course of the pandemic this winter is hard to call”.

Semafone luanches lawsuit against PCI-Pal

Andrew Hore
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Semafone luanches lawsuit against PCI-Pal

Rival Semafone Ltd has filed lawsuit against PCI-Pal (LON:PCIP) for the alleged infringement of UK patent No. GB 2473376, which relates to Semafone’s Dual-Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF) masking technology. This enables card payments to be securely processed by call centres. There is also a similar lawsuit in the US. The PCI-Pal share price fell 11p to 77.5p.
Semafone claims that PCI-Pal’s Agent Assist product infringes its UK and US patents. Agent Assist has been sold by PCI-Pal for years and it is unclear why Semafone has chosen this time to launch its lawsuit. It may be that the technology in A...

NFTs could revive Stanley Gibbons shares

Jon Levinson
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NFTs could revive Stanley Gibbons shares

Today’s announcement that its US subsidiary, Mallet Inc. was pushed into filing for Chapter 11,  as a sub tenant defaulted could be the nadir of its fortunes. The finals for the March 2021 year end showed an adjusted loss of £2.7m on £10.8m turnover and he shares at 2.75p are near its all time low with a £13m market cap.
The  £5.8m purchased of the world’s most famous and valuable stamp – the 1856 1c Magenta from British Guiana, which is the only one in existence,  could lead to a rebirth of  Stanley Gibbons  (LSE: SGI) as a stamps ownership  g...

Rolls-Royce share price jumps on announcement about all-electric plane

Liam Roche
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Rolls-Royce share price jumps on announcement about all-electric plane

Rolls-Royce Share Price

The Rolls-Royce share price is up by 4.27% on Thursday as the engineering company confirmed it will attempt to set a world record of 300mph later this year with its first all-electric plane. The move comes on the back of a rocky spell for the FTSE 100 company in recent weeks and months, after a promising start to the year.

This has been true across the board when it comes to companies involved in the airline industry due to its unpredictability. This article will examine what the company’s near-term outlook is, along with its longer-term future following the exciting news of today.

Travel Industry

While it feels impossible to predict, the vaccine roll-out continues to progress, and reports from airlines and other relevant firms are showing numbers picking back up.

This slow but steady progress allowed Rolls-Royce to record an underlying profit of £307m, albeit way off the £1.63bn recorded the year before.

Rolls-Royce has taken a number of precautionary measures in order to keep its balance sheet in check, including a corporate restructuring and raising capital, while its long-term debt will not be due until 2024. These factors have allowed the Rolls-Royce share price to climb by 66.7% since the beginning of the year.

Electric Plane

Rolls-Royce’s all-electric plane will attempt a world record of 300mph later in 2021 following its completion of its debut 15-minute flight.

The flight went ahead at a military testing site using a battery pack that the engineering firm said was the most “power-dense” ever put together for an aircraft.

Warren East, Rolls-Royce’s chief executive, said: “The first flight of the Spirit of Innovation is a great achievement.

“This is not only about breaking a world record; the advanced battery and propulsion technology developed for this programme has exciting applications for the urban air mobility market and can help make ‘jet zero’ a reality.”

Co-op pens Amazon deal but bemoans HGV driver shortage in UK

Liam Roche
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Co-op pens Amazon deal but bemoans HGV driver shortage in UK

Co-op pre-tax profit down by 38%

Co-op has reached an agreement with Amazon to begin robot deliveries as part of a plan to increase its online sales to £200m before the end of 2021.

The UK supermarket company confirmed the deal with the US tech giant that will allow Prime customers to purchase food from co-op which could then be delivered on the same day.

The service will first be rolled out in Glasgow and nearby before spreading to the rest of the UK before the end of the year.

“We are delighted to be working with Amazon. Its reach and leading technology and innovative approach means greater convenience for people in their communities,” Steve Murrells, group chief executive, said.

Co-op just reported a 3.2% fall in its H1 sales to £5.2bn following a busy period in the market a year prior.

Profits before tax were down by 38%, from £78m to £44m, while the firm recorded an underlying loss of £15m.

The supermarket chain also drew attention to the shortage of truck drivers in the UK, pleading for government intervention.

“This won’t be solved in isolation, this is a global issue where the supply chain has completely broken down,” Chief Executive Steve Murrells told Reuters on Thursday.

“You can’t solve (a shortage of) 90,000 HGV drivers in isolation, it needs a structural change,” he said.

Co-op is expecting its full-year profits to be reduced due to the HGV driver shortage that is impacting the UK supply chain.

Hiring is tough and it is not getting any easier for firms

Liam Roche
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Hiring is tough and it is not getting any easier for firms

Hospitality mentioned by the ONS as the industry facing the biggest challenges

Labour shortages have been difficult for businesses seeking to regain momentum on the back of lockdowns and the trend could be set to continue.

According to the latest ONS vacancy survey, 41% of businesses struggled to recruit in late August.

A lack of EU workers was cited as an issue by 46% of Transport and Storage companies.

Hospitality was specifically mentioned as the industry facing the biggest challenges.

“It’s no surprise to see hospitality topping the list of those struggling to recruit. Restrictions meant they were late to the party and many people who used to work in bars and restaurants found other jobs to pay the bills, jobs that often have more sociable hours,” says Danni Hewson, AJ Bell financial analyst.

“There’s also a niggling uncertainty amongst the public that we’ve really seen an end to restrictions and most people believe that any spike in COVID cases would result in hospitality being forced to close once again.”

People shopping for groceries recently will have noticed more expensive food prices and the HGV driver shortage has been a key factor.

“Almost half of businesses in the transport and storage sector said that a lack of EU workers was to blame for the shortages and across the board one in four businesses said a fall in the number of EU applicants was an issue,” says Hewson.

It is difficult to assess the impact of Brexit on the issue due to the arrival of the pandemic.

“It’s also impossible to guess how the end of the furlough scheme will change the picture. Some jobs will be lost, and some workers will be brought back into the labour market where they will be received with open arms if the latest recruitment drive by John Lewis is anything to go by,” said Hewson.

Hedge funds are turning to private equity for higher returns

Liam Roche
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Hedge funds are turning to private equity for higher returns

Hedge funds have closed 770 deals so far in 2021

Hedge funds made $153bn worth of investments into private companies in the first six months of 2021, highlighting the extent to which they are now investing in private companies.

Goldman Sachs issued a report that showed that hedge funds have closed 770 deals so far in 2021, already surpassing the amount through the whole of 2020.

Lat year, 753 deals were done at a combined total of $96bn.

The data shows that hedge funds, which are more usually known for buying shares in public companies, are now being attracted by private markets as they seek higher returns.

It also highlights how private equity and venture capital have come into the public eye.

Andrew J Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, commented on the trend: “In the UK firms like Forward Partners and Seraphim have recently followed in the earlier footsteps of Draper Esprit and gone public. Meanwhile, PE has woken up to the enormous returns which can be made by betting on the right tech startup. Technology being the future of literally everything, it’s unsurprising big money is targeting a sector which used to be the preserve of traditional tech VC, until a company IPO’d.”

“What’s unclear yet is whether hedge fund investors and others will stomach the ups and downs of the startup world. VC investing is a power law game. Just like VC funds themselves, a few companies create the vast majority of investment returns. Even investing at a later stage, startups are still riskier than your traditional PE bet. The winning investors will be those who pay close attention to their portfolio construction and internalise the other cultural differences of the tech startup investing world.”

FTSE 100 makes progress but some companies held back on China concerns

Liam Roche
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FTSE 100 makes progress but some companies held back on China concerns

The FTSE 100 added 0.54% on Thursday morning, bringing the index to 7,054.

“The FTSE 100 started on the front foot on Thursday as investors faced competing catalysts from East and West,” says AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.

“Some decent corporate news and an upbeat report from the US manufacturing sector outweighed continuing worries about China which dragged down mining stocks and other firms with links to the Chinese economy including luxury brand Burberry.”

“Construction equipment hire business Ashtead topped the FTSE 100 leaderboard as it lifted full year expectations – the group is widely seen as a beneficiary of the anticipated infrastructure spending splurge in the US.”

The Chinese economy was dealt a blow in August due to strict measures on the coronavirus, which is raising concerns over the prospects of a global economic recovery.

Reports coming from America suggest that President Biden has been undertaking meetings to discuss putting forward domestic spending legislation.

FTSE 100 Top Movers

Rolls-Royce (3.93%), IAG (3.49%) and Flutter Entertainment (3.08%) are leading the way atop the FTSE 100 at the time of writing.

Burberry (-2.01%), Rio Tinto (-1.76%) and Anglo American (-1.37%) are trailing the pack thanks to concerns over the Chinese economy.

Artisanal Spirits sees sales grow upon suspension of US tariffs

Liam Roche
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Artisanal Spirits sees sales grow upon suspension of US tariffs

Artisanal Spirits listed on AIM market in June

The Artisanal Spirits Company (LON:ART), the owner of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (“SMWS”) and other spirits for sale primarily online to a discerning global membership, confirmed its H1 results on Thursday.

The group’s revenue increased 20% to £7.9m, slightly ahead of management’s expectations.

Strong international sales growth, particularly in America, with performance boosted by the suspension of US tariffs on imports of single malt Scotch whisky in March 2021.

The AIM-listed firm saw a recovery in UK venue & events sales following phased reopening in Q2.

Gross profit increased 31% to £5.1m. This resulted from the revenue volume growth, as well as the gross margin improvement to 65%, which reflected the positive impact of the suspension of US tariffs.

The Artisan Spirits company share price is up by 3.58% on Thursday morning.

David Ridley, Managing Director of the Company, said:

“Momentum in key international markets continues to build on the back of growing demand for our products and we have seen a strong and sustained recovery in UK venue & events sales since their phased reopening from COVID from mid-May onwards, giving us confidence in meeting market expectations for the full year. While Brexit continues to present some logistical challenges for exports to certain EU markets, we continue to work through them.”

“From an operational perspective, we continue to make decisive progress against the strategic objectives outlined at the time of IPO, with ongoing material investment in spirit and cask wood and good progress with our new supply chain facility, standing us in excellent stead for the future.”

“We are still at the very beginning of our journey as a listed company, but we have made a bright start. Against a backdrop of favourable market trends, we are optimistic about our ability to realise our growth ambitions to double ASC sales between 2020 and 2024, and we look forward to keeping shareholders updated as we work to deliver long-term value.”

Greatland Gold confirms acquisition of exploration tenements

Liam Roche
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Greatland Gold confirms acquisition of exploration tenements

Greatland Gold to expand footprint in the Paterson province

Greatland Gold (LON:GGP) confirmed on Thursday that it has entered into an agreement with Province Resources Limited to acquire the 100% owned Pascalle tenement.

The 100% owned Taunton tenement and two tenement applications will be purchased for exploration licenses in the Paterson Province of Western Australia for a consideration of cash and shares.

The AIM-listed firm acquired the 100% owned Pascalle tenement covering 75km2. The new tenement is proximal to world class gold-copper deposits with Havieron 20km to the East and Newcrest’s Telfer Mine 14km to the West.

Greatland has acquired the 100% owned Taunton tenement in Paterson South, centred 240km
south-east of Havieron and covering 100km2.

The gold miner acquired two licence applications in Paterson South, located between 120km-
170km south east of Havieron and covering 840km2.

All areas contain multiple magnetic and other geophysical anomalies identified to
date and remain untested

Shaun Day, Chief Executive Officer of Greatland Gold, commented: “This is our first licence
acquisition since Havieron and adds over 1,000km2 of exploration ground in the Paterson region expanding Greatland’s strategic footprint in one of the most prospective exploration areas for gold-copper deposits in Australia.”

“The Pascalle tenement is optimally located directly between two world class discoveries of Havieron and Telfer and nearby existing infrastructure. We know this area well and our exploration team has the experience and intellectual property from Havieron to explore for prospective mineralisation systems.”

“Furthermore, the tenements in the Paterson South region give us exposure to some exciting
geophysical targets under around 400 meters of cover with one adjacent to our existing Canning licence application. This provides an opportunity to use the knowledge we have gained in the northern Paterson and apply this to the same host rock formations and structures we are seeing in the south.”

The Greatland Gold share price is down by 1.6% on Thursday morning.

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