FTSE 100 CEOs received reduced pay for 2020 on pressure from investors

Liam Roche
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FTSE 100 CEOs received reduced pay for 2020 on pressure from investors

AstraZeneca’s Pascal Soriot was the highest paid CEO

The median pay given to FTSE 100 CEOs dropped to the lowest point since the 2008 financial crisis last year.

However, its remains 86 times greater than the median income of a full-time worker in Britain.

The leaders of firms on the FTSE 100 received a median £2.69m in 2020, down by 17% from £3.25m the year before.

This, as reported by The Times, is according two a yearly report by the High Pay Centre think tank.

The drop-off is a result of lower bonuses, chief executives taking voluntary pay cuts and pressure being piled on by investors on the back of the pandemic.

AstraZeneca’s Pascal Soriot was the highest paid CEO in 2020, receiving £15.45m, followed by Brian Cassin of Experian who received £10.30m.

Only 64% of FTSE 100 firms paid their bosses bonuses in 2020, compared to 89% a year prior.

Many shareholders revolted against the prospect of CEOs profiting during the Covid-19 crisis.

“With the pandemic resulting in large numbers of workers being furloughed on reduced pay, weaker returns to shareholders and major public expenditure required in support of companies, it is appropriate that executive pay levels have also decreased,” the High Pay Centre said.

“It is questionable whether a 17% reduction in median pay to ‘only’ £2.69m represents a sufficient economy given the immense hardship experienced by many, the accumulated personal wealth of CEOs who will typically have experienced long careers in high-earning roles, and the fact that all companies, having benefited either directly or indirectly from policy measures to support businesses,would have been in a much worse position without government intervention.”

MBH Corporation grows its healthcare vertical by acquiring Vista Care

Liam Roche
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MBH Corporation grows its healthcare vertical by acquiring Vista Care

MBH’s portfolio is now made up of 26 companies across eight industry sectors

MBH Corporation (ETR:M8H), a diversified investment holding company, on Thursday confirmed an agreement has been reached for the acquisition of Vista Care Solutions Limited (Vista Care).

It is the latest step in MHB’s extensive acquisition drive yet remains subject to regulatory approval for the proposed change of ownership from UK city councils.

Vista Care was launched in 2018 as a home care agency provider across the UK registered to provide personal care to people with a learning disability, autism spectre disorder, sensory impairment, people with an eating disorder, mental health and people who face issues with drug and alcohol misuse.

Their unaudited revenues for the financial year ended 31 May 2021 totalled £3.3m from
contracts with city councils in Nottingham, Newham and Redbridge who make up the company’s
list of customers.

The MBH portfolio is now made up of 26 companies across eight industry sectors and five countries.

“Vista Care has a clear set of growth targets that it is looking to achieve organically by increasing
bed count, in implementing their growth plans they have also set out a clear ESG policy
covering their environmental impact, the design and technology of their services and the
recording and reviewing of their progress,” MBH said in a statement.

MBH have utilised approximately €37m of its bond programme leaving a balance of
€13m to be used if required.

Callum Laing, CEO, MBH Corporation Plc, said: “Care homes are integral to the British
service economy and Vista Care represents the best of the sector with a future facing and
innovative offering that gives the people it cares for the best possible experience. We’re proud
to welcome the team on board and look forward to taking the next steps to growth alongside
them.”

Markets fall as Fed hints at move towards tapering of stimulus measures

Liam Roche
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0
Markets fall as Fed hints at move towards tapering of stimulus measures

S&P 500 closed down by over 1% on Wednesday evening

The Federal Reserve could shift its policy towards tapering its asset purchasing in the near future on the back of unexpected economic data.

Recent comments coming from officials at the US central bank have suggested this is the case as strong jobs figures and high inflation readings emerged.

Fed Governor Christopher Waller and Fed bank Presidents Eric Rosengren, Robert Kaplan and Jim Bullard have each publicly declared the need for a September taper.

Additionally, the notes from a Fed meeting at the end of July suggested that the American central bank will reduce its monthly purchases of $120bn of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities.

However, it considers that there are substantial risks in doing so, including the ongoing concern from the Delta variant of coronavirus and the opportunity cost of a lack of hiring.

Stocks closed sharply lower in choppy trading, with the S&P 500 index down by over 1%.

“Today’s market moves and the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting serve as a wake-up reminder for just how much markets are conditioned to be running on central bank support,” said Hinesh Patel, portfolio manager at Quilter Investors.

“Markets have become addicted to the sheer volume of money that has been available and this is clearly going to be a drawn-out process to reduce the liquidity it has become so accustomed to.”

The Fed certainly appears to have shifted its position from not even thinking about changing its policy to clearly entertaining the possibility of doing just that.

“As we have seen with various taper tantrums over the years, this spooks markets and is not helped by the mixed messages emerging from central banks,” Patel added.

“However, investors need to be better prepared. The current policy setting was appropriate for mandated economic shutdowns in the depths of a global pandemic, not the better state the US economy finds itself in today.”

FTSE 100 slumps on the back of Fed tapering talk

Liam Roche
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0
FTSE 100 slumps on the back of Fed tapering talk

The FTSE 100 is down by over 2% on Thursday morning as fears are growing over the impact of a potential switch in policy by the Federal Reserve.

“The FTSE 100 took a bath on Thursday morning, dragged lower by weakness in the resources sector amid fears the US Federal Reserve might be about to pull the rug from under the market by tapering its support for the economy early,” says AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.

Mining giant Antofagasta saw a substantial drop in its share price as the firm lowered its guidance.

“But the Fed minutes, showing a split between members over when to start scaling back financial stimulus, the continuing spread globally for the Delta variant, weakness in the Chinese economy and the turmoil in Afghanistan add up to a cocktail of worries which are dogging investor sentiment,” Mould added.

“The question now is whether a volatile week is the prelude to the kind of late summer sell-off we have seen in previous years or if the market can regain its poise moving into the autumn.”

FTSE 100 Top Movers

Polymetal (0.70%), Just Eat (0.36%) and National Grid (0.26%) are the only three companies to be in the green at the time of writing on Thursday morning.

At the bottom of the FTSE 100, on a day of poor showings across the index, is Anglo American (-10.8%), Phoenix Group Holdings (-4.69%) and M&G (-4.6%).

Palantir buys $50m in gold to guard against ‘Black Swan Event’

Liam Roche
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Palantir buys $50m in gold to guard against ‘Black Swan Event’

Palantir will also accept Bitcoin payments

Palantir (NYSE PLTR), the data mining company co-founded by technologist Peter Thiel, confirmed recently via a statement that it purchased $50m in gold bars.

The move by Palantir is in response to what is deems to be an uncertain economic outlook, combined with a lack of desire to keep money stored in cash.

Last year, as the pandemic got worse and the US government continued its efforts to stimulate the economy, the price of gold went past $2,000 per ounce.

Investors are increasingly voicing their concerns around inflation, while gold is historically seen as a hedge against it.

“During August 2021, the Company purchased $50.7 million in 100-ounce gold bars,” Palantir said in the Aug. 12 earnings statement for its fiscal second quarter. “Such purchase will initially be kept in a secure third-party facility located in the northeastern United States and the Company is able to take physical possession of the gold bars stored at the facility at any time with reasonable notice.”

Other companies see cryptocurrencies, namely Bitcoin, as the superior asset in which to hold reserves. In particular Tesla, which bought $1.5bn worth earlier in the year.

It turns out that Peter Thiel’s Palantir has plans in that area too.

The digital mining company has also invited its customers to pay for its data analytics software in Bitcoin.

The American company revealed it would be accepting Bitcoin as a form of payment and hedge against uncertainty.

A spokeswoman told Bloomberg that no one has paid the firm in Bitcoin yet. COO of Palantir Shyam Sankar said the decision to accept Bitcoin “reflects more of a worldview”.

“You have to be prepared for a future with more black swan events,” he added.

The Palantir share price closed up by 5.47% on Wednesday.

Oriole Resources confirms upbeat initial sampling results from Cameroon

Liam Roche
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0
Oriole Resources confirms upbeat initial sampling results from Cameroon

Results support ‘hypothesis of the CLP being an area of huge potential for gold exploration’

Oriole Resources (LON:ORR) confirmed on Thursday that a number of areas of elevated gold concentrations have been located on the Central Licence Package (CLP) in Cameroon.

Assay results for gold in 376 stream sediment samples have been received for the Niambaram and Tenekou licences.

Results indicate a number of areas of elevated gold in distinct drainage basins, associated with the northeast-trending Tcholliré-Banyo shear zone corridor and interpreted north-northwest trending cross-cutting structures.

87 sample sites returned gold values ≥2 ppb Au (detection limit), while 51 sample sites returned gold values ≥5 ppb.

Mapping and sampling over the remaining three licences in the west of the Package will resume in Q4 2021.

Oriole Resources CEO, Tim Livesey, said: “The initial results from this first phase of exploration in the Package, associated as it is with the main Tcholliré-Banyo shear zone corridor, supports our hypothesis of the CLP being an area of huge potential for gold exploration.”

“The fact that multiple areas of elevated gold concentrations have been identified in multiple drainage basins gives us confidence in our exploration model and reaffirms our encouragement for the prospectivity of the area. We note with interest, the apparent correlation of a number of these elevated gold in streams sample sites with significant interpreted lineaments and mapped structures and also with areas of historical and current artisanal mining activity.”

AIM-listed Oriole Resources share price (LON:ORR) is down by 2.24% on Thursday.

Antofagasta reduces guidance despite surge in profit

Liam Roche
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0
Antofagasta reduces guidance despite surge in profit

Antofagasta share price down by over 5% on Thursday morning

Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) revealed its profits doubled during H1 thanks to the rising price of copper, however the Chilean miner reduced its production guidance.

The FTSE 100 company also said that it plans to raise its interim dividend payment to investors on the back the surging price of copper, which rose by 19% during the first half of the year.

Revenue for the first six months of 2021 was $3.6bn, an increase of 68% compared to the same period a year ago, while the firm’s pre-tax profit rose to $1.8bn.

Shareholders received a generous payout of 23.6 cents per share, which was a rise of 281% compared to the year before.

Anto is the latest miner to reveal healthy results thanks to rising commodity prices as economies around the world have been opened up as coronavirus restrictions have been reduced.

Antofagasta plc CEO Iván Arriagada said: “We have seen strong copper demand and prices at multi-year highs over the first half of this year which has contributed to the robust financial performance of the Group.”

However, there have been adverse conditions for Antofagasta to contend with, which has resulted in its profit guidance being lowered.

“The half year was not without challenges as we continued to manage our operations and projects under Covid-19 conditions, although the resilience and agility of the group has resulted in costs below guidance,” Arriagada added.

The Antofagasta share price is down by 5.07% during the morning session on Thursday.

Lloyds to acquire 50,000 homes in bid to become major landlord

Liam Roche
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0
Lloyds to acquire 50,000 homes in bid to become major landlord

Lloyds diversifying away from traditional sources of income

Lloyds is seeking to become on of the largest landlords in the UK as the major bank will buy 50,000 homes in the next ten years, it has been reported.

In an effort to diversify away from traditional lending as a source of income, which is not as fruitful at the moment due to low interest rates, Lloyds has entered the private home rental market.

The Financial Times reported that Citra Living brand, under which Lloyds operates, has set a “strategic challenge” of acquiring 10,000 properties before the end of 2025. By 2030 the FTSE 100 bank will aim to reach 50,000 properties.

Estimates suggest that Citra’s balance sheet would be valued in the region of £4bn, generating around £300m in profit before tax.

William Chalmers, Lloyds’ chief financial officer, told analysts a month ago that “we are keeping this on a limited basis while we explore the area, while we allow ourselves to learn from it”.

Recent changes to the tax system have led to there being fewer smaller-level landlords who previously made up the rental sector in the UK. Instead, larger companies have moved in due benefit from a shortage in housing and a rise in the number of families renting.

Lloyds said: “As highlighted at launch, Citra Living will initially start small, with a focus on buying and renting good quality newly built properties. This will be achieved by working alongside leading housebuilders to address the increasing demand for rental properties, and the aim is to gradually provide incremental stock to the UK rental market over the coming years.”

Director deals: Trident Royalties

Andrew Hore
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Director deals: Trident Royalties

Trident Royalties (LON: TRR) directors have been buying shares during August following a dip in the share price over the past two months. They have invested in excess of £500,000.
New non-exec Peter Bacchus has bought an initial 175,000 shares at 34p each. Former Glencore Paul Smith became non-exec chair earlier this year. When he joined Paul Smith subscribed £1m for shares at 40p each. He has added 775,000 shares at 34p each and he owns more than 3.3 million shares (1.84%). He also has options over 175,000 shares at 51.66p each, that relate to finance provided by a debt syndicate.
Another non...

BP share price being sustained by oil as company transitions to renewables

Liam Roche
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0
BP share price being sustained by oil as company transitions to renewables

BP Share Price

The BP share price (LON:BP) has given away 0.89% at the time of writing on Wednesday as speculation over an oncoming upwards surge mounts around the oil giant. It has been a pretty solid year so far for the FTSE 100 company which is up by 17.78%, as oil prices have increased on a resurgence in demand.

While the price of oil and environmental concerns remain a threat to the BP share price, the company has a plan to see it through the coming months. This is causing many analysts to tip BP as being one to watch. Stockopedia reported this week that the BP share price has 6 Buy, 10 Hold and 0 Sell recommendations from analysts.

Oil

For now, the oil price is approximately at its pre-pandemic level, which bodes well for BP.

The International Energy Agency said last week that raised demand for crude oil switched back in July and it now expects demand for the commodity to rise at a slower rate for the remainder of 2021. This is down to the prevalence of the Delta variant of the coronavirus.

The news raises question marks over the near-term outlook for oil after Joe Biden called on OPEC and its allies to raise its levels of output in a bid to keep rising fuel prices under control, as inflation in America reaches its highest yearly growth rate in 13 years.

However, some analysts remain bullish on the commodity despite some recent bad news.

Bank of America commodities strategist Francisco Blanch is making the case of $100 per barrel oil in 2022 as supply will begin to fall.

While the longer-term outlook remains uncertain, for now, the BP share price will be sustained by raised oil prices. Its goal will be to use its revenues to smoothly transition into the future of renewable energy.

The Future

Bernard Looney, the BP chief executive, has continued to redirect the company towards renewable energy since he took up his position last year.

Higher oil prices, on which BP remains reliant, have allowed the company to increase its investment in offshore wind, solar energy and hydrogen.

This in itself could be the source of additional investment for the FTSE 100 oil giant.

Taking advantage of current oil prices, while not waiting too long to transition, will be a key play which could influence the BP share price over the coming months.

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