On a largely uninspiring day for global equity markets, London’s FTSE 100 ended modestly lower after trading broadly flat for much of the day.
Sterling strength weighed on the overseas earnings dominated index, with the blue chip benchmark closing down 0.3% at 7,029.79, while the more domestically focused FTSE 250 finished 0.2% lower at 22,438.90.
Reopening names were in demand, among them the likes of Carnival (CCL), bid up 3.1% to £16.94, International Consolidated Airlines (IAG), which improved 2.5% to 202p, and also Cineworld (CINE), which ended 4.8% higher at 94p.
AVEVA ADVANCES
Industrial software group Aveva (AVV) advanced 1.6% to £33.28 despite reporting a fall in annual profit as revenue fell following pandemic-led disruptions in first half of the year, with the firm seeing a big recovery in the second half of its financial year.
Product and service solutions company Electrocomponents (ECM) shed 1p to trade at £10.40 after it reported a fall in annual profit as lower margins offset a rise in revenue.
Engineering group Smiths (SMIN) fell 1.1% to £15.43 on announcing that chief executive Andy Reynolds Smith had stood down with immediate effect and been replaced by former 3M executive Paul Keel.
The change had been ‘mutually agreed as the right time to provide new leadership as Smiths enters into its next growth phase’, the company said.
AVON RUBBER PLANS NAME CHANGE
Defence equipment maker Avon Rubber (AVON) fell 10.7% to £29.18 despite hiking its interim dividend after swinging to a first-half profit amid ‘significant growth’ in its respiratory protection business.
The firm plans to change its name during the second half of its financial year to Avon Protection, which it said reflects its ‘transformation into a focussed provider of life critical personal protection systems’.
London West End property group Shaftesbury (SHB) edged 1.75% lower to 588p as it booked a deeper first-half loss after the pandemic hurt footfall at retail outlets, squeezing rental income.
OTHER NEWS
Sandwiches, salads and sushi maker Greencore (GNC) tumbled 15.7% to 144p on profit-taking after a tasty run, with investors digesting a 19% first half sales plunge to £577.1 million and a lurch into loss.
Infrastructure and safe transport group Hill & Smith (HILS) edged 1.1% higher to £15.20 as it said it has made a good start to the year with revenue rising 10% in the first fourth months compared to a year earlier.
Automotive retailer Lookers (LOOK) revved 7.8% higher to 69p after reporting strong trading since reopening its dealerships on 12 April and saying pre-tax profits for 2021 should ‘comfortably exceed’ market estimates.
Self-storage group Big Yellow (BYG) cheapened 10p to £13.04 despite reporting that annual profit jumped owing to higher revaluation gain on investment properties.
Equipment and plant hire company Speedy Hire (SDY) fell 5% to 77p as it booked a 21% drop in annual profit but resumed its dividend, citing a strong recovery in the second half.
Infant merchandise retailer Mothercare (MTC) was marked down 3.1% to 15.9p as it said it expected to report a small underlying operating profit for the full year, even as its sales slumped 40%.
Homewares distributor Portmeirion (PMP:AIM) perked up 5p to 677p on news it enjoyed an ‘excellent’ first four months of the year to April 2021 with sales up more than 50% year-on-year.
