Best of the Brokers for 15 April 2015 April 14, 2015 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com WM MORRISON Shore Capital said it welcomed the speedy shake-up in management under new chief executive David Potts and reiterated his “buy” rating with a target price of 200p. He said Morrisons was on track to become a more “shareholder-friendly” stock before its [...]
WH Smith says it expects strong results for the year August 21, 2014 WH Smith announced this morning that it expects positive results for the year ending 31 August. In a pre-close trading update released today, the British book/newspaper/stationery retailer said its high street, railway and airport businesses had all performed well over the last year. It added that its new store opening programme remains on track, [...]
Retail sales helped by early Easter and likely to continue – London Report April 12, 2015 RETAIL sales data from the British Retail Consortium due out this week is expected to show decent sales growth due to the fact that Easter occurred at the very beginning of April this year. The report will also show that UK consumers are highly unlikely to hold back on making purchases due to the possibility [...]
Reports reveal services leading the UK recovery – London Report May 31, 2015 THE UK service sector is once again expected to be the star turn as purchasing managers (PMI) reports this week show continued economic growth. Figures due out on Wednesday are expected to show the sector held up well in May, remaining stable at 59.5 (with 50 and above denoting growth) after rising to this level [...]
John Lewis is named the retailer with the strongest reputation March 19, 2015 Middle-class shoppers’ favourite John Lewis was yesterday declared the retailer with the best reputation in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), a survey found. The survey, by the Reputation Institute, also showed that among the firms whose reputation had improved the most between 2013 and 2014 were WH Smith and H&M. However, there was bad [...]
Brighthouse getting its house in order July 1, 2015 Rent-to-buy boss tells Kasmira Jefford why it has a valid place on the high street THE OWNERS of Brighthouse couldn’t have picked a better name to sum up the UK’s biggest rent-to-own retail chain. Its bold red and yellow fascia above window displays that promise “low weekly payments” and “no deposit” unashamedly seek to grab [...]
WH Smith halts sales fall with overseas shops June 11, 2014 WH SMITH, the books to stationery retailer, brought years of sales decline to a halt in the last quarter, thanks to its strategy of opening more shops in airports and travel locations around the world. Shares in WH Smith edged up 1.5 per cent yesterday as it revealed that total group sales were flat in [...]
SSP poaches WH Smith exec April 2, 2014 SSP CHIEF executive Kate Swann has poached one of her top former employees at high street retailer WH Smith to lead the travel concession group’s UK & Ireland business. The private equity-owned group, which owns chains like Delice de France and also runs outlets for Marks & Spencer, said yesterday that Simon Smith, managing director [...]
WH Smith raises dividend after increasing profit April 10, 2014 STATIONER and bookseller WH Smith yesterday raised its dividend to shareholders, reflecting its confidence in future prospects after it posted a three per cent rise in first-half profit. The group, which has over 1,200 stores primarily in the UK as well an increasing presence overseas, said headline pre-tax profit for the six months to the [...]
7/7 London bombings 10th anniversary: Timeline of the day that changed the capital July 7, 2015 It’s been 10 years since London was rocked by a series of bombs that brought the capital’s Tube network and roads to a standstill. On that day confusion reigned: at first it was reported that there had been a power surge. At one point as many as six explosions were thought to have gone [...]