How B&M Retail IPO nearly beat Prada June 12, 2014 A budget department store founded by a shopkeeper in Blackpool during the late 1970’s has today become the biggest retailer to come to the stock market since fashion house Prada three years ago. According to fresh figures released this afternoon B&M Retail, which started life in the seaside resort in 1978, raised £1.1bn ($1.8bn) in [...]
How this UK discount retailer nearly beat Prada June 12, 2014 A budget department store founded by a shopkeeper in Blackpool during the late 1970’s has today become the biggest retailer to come to the stock market since fashion house Prada three years ago. According to fresh figures released this afternoon B&M Retail, which started life in the seaside resort in 1978, raised £1.1bn ($1.8bn) in [...]
The price of a chocolate bar is about to rise. Here’s why July 27, 2014 Two of the world’s largest chocolate companies have announced price hikes in response to rising cocoa prices which have hit a three-year high. Mars, the maker of M&Ms, Snickers and of course the namesake Mars bar, is the latest confectioner to raise prices in a bid to offset the rising costs of cocoa. Hershey, the [...]
Poundland eyes 2014 flotation as sales surge October 1, 2013 POUNDLAND is eyeing a possible initial public offering (IPO) in the first half of next year as the private equity owners of the discount retailer look to cash in on its surging sales. The chain, which has benefitted from thrifty shoppers seeking value during the economic downturn, posted a 15 per rise in sales to [...]
Saga nudges past issue price on its first day May 29, 2014 Over-50s insurance-to-holiday provider Saga yesterday joined a small band of newly floated firms trading above their issuance stock price, as it began trading in London. The group, which was listed on the stock market at 185p, rose to 188p during the day but ended up barely above its initial price, closing at 185.25p. Saga, which [...]
Ships ahoy as Silicon Valley Bank sets sail for Independence Day summer party July 3, 2014 Silicon Valley Bank UK’s boss Phil Cox may hail from Cornwall rather than California, but he’s still keen for the bank’s British employees to celebrate the 4th of July in style. Employees at the Lothbury branch of the bank will be setting sail on a cruise along the Thames this evening for the outfit’s aptly-timed [...]
FTSE reshuffle promotes UK’s new listed firms June 3, 2014 SIX NEWLY-LISTED companies,including Just Eat and AO World, are set to join the ranks of the FTSE 250 index as part of the index’s quarterly reshuffle. The overhaul is a sign of the radical reshaping of the investment landscape sparked by this year’s stock market stampede. The two stocks will join Pets at Home, Poundland, [...]
Traders paw off Pets at Home as shares fall back March 12, 2014 PETS at Home shares fell by a whisker in initial trading yesterday as the £1.2bn float was left in the shade by a strong debut from fellow high street chain Poundland. Pets, which floated at 245p yesterday morning, ended the day trading around 243p after falling as low as 230p during a rocky start in [...]
Bottom Line: New players have a better chance than most May 22, 2014 IT’S A tough one to call. At the same moment that Fat Face officially pulled its market listing, four other companies filed upbeat intentions to float – each convinced that they had the perfect formula that would have investors running for the shares. Despite the fickle market, some of them might actually be right. Zoopla has [...]
Bottom Line: New players have a better chance than most May 22, 2014 IT’S A tough one to call. At the same moment that Fat Face officially pulled its market listing, four other companies filed upbeat intentions to float – each convinced that they had the perfect formula that would have investors running for the shares. Despite the fickle market, some of them might actually be right. Zoopla has [...]