FTSE 250 food ingredients group Tate & Lyle (TATE) rises 3.1% to 690.25p, continuing gains from Thursday amid rumours that Bermuda-based food processing play Bunge is mulling a £3.9 billion or 850p-a-share cash bid and may not be the only interested party given recent share price weakness. Tate & Lyle's profits have been hit by a more competitive market for higher margin SPLENDA Sucralose sweeteners and lower demand for its liquid corn sweeteners.
Small cap hydrocarbons explorer Sound Oil (SOU:AIM) surges 16.7% to 6.12p as it secures a £14 million capital injection from a new institutional investor at a large premium. We look at the news in more detail here.
Geo-location technology microcap 1Spatial (SPA:AIM) jumps 8% to 6.75p after tellingthe market that full-year results (due to be published 13 May) will hit forecasts and its order backlog has hit £7 million. This implies rough £18.5 million revenue and £1.1 million of adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA). We take a closer look at the story here.
FTSE 100 oil explorer Tullow Oil (TLW) falls 2.8% to 837p on disappointing newsfrom its Tapender-1 exploration well offshore Mauritania. The well failed to find hydrocarbons and, coupled with the previous failure on the Fregate-1 well, undermines the company’s attempt to open the country up as a new oil province.
Bookmaker William Hill (WMH) nudges ahead 1% to 336.3p despite poor first quarter figures that reveal a 14% decline in operating profit. The market had already expected a weak performance because of unfavourable football results.
Media giant WPP (WPP) rises 0.2% to £12.76 after reporting 7% like-for-like revenue growth in its first quarter, much better than expected thanks to new business wins. The news follows February's downgraded profit guidance for the year. Latin America showed the strongest gross margin growth in WPP's sub-regions. It warns 2014 looks likely to be 'another demanding year' due to currency movements.
Platinum producer Lonmin (LMI) falls 1.1% to 285.55p after sayingthere's no resolution for a three-month strike in South Africa relating to wages and benefits.
Instrumentation and controls technology kit supplier Spectris (SXS) adds its name to the lengthening list of UK companies getting squeezed by foreign exchange pressures. Yet the group reportsencouraging 7% growth in US revenues in an early year trading update. The shares ease back 6p to £22.99.
Housebuilder MJ Gleeson (GLE) is unmoved at 377.5p as investors weigh up good and bad news. It flags uncertainty around forward land sales due to planning delays but says full-year profit may possibly beat expectations.
