Johnson Matthey surges 13% in FTSE 100, Boohoo up 7%
Johnson Matthey shares have surged 12% after a New York investor doubled its stake in the clean air firm.
The rise of 202p to 1832p came as filings revealed the investment arm of Standard Industries now had a 10% interest as the biggest shareholder.
The stake building reignited the takeover speculation seen after Standard made its initial 5.2% purchase of shares in April 2022.
Standard’s latest move took place with Johnson worth less than £3 billion and shares heading out of the FTSE 100 index following this week’s quarterly reshuffle.
The 200-year-old business, which is best known for helping car makers reduce harmful emissions, has failed to spark despite a new management team’s pivot towards green economy technologies including hydrogen.
Today’s rebound returned shares to where they were in mid July as Johnson pulled clear of BP and Shell at the top of the FTSE 100 index.
The oil giants rallied after Brent Crude topped $87 a barrel, a 4% rise over the week on expectations that Saudi Arabia will extend its voluntary production cut into October.
Shares in BP rose 2% or 11.25p to their highest level since late April at 498.75p, while Shell added 27.5p to 2430p. Their gains and the support of banking stocks Barclays and Standard Chartered meant the FTSE 100 rose 35.19 points to 7474.32.
Others on the front foot included Whitbread, which rallied 39p to 3479p after Jefferies sweetened its “buy” recommendation with a new 4400p target price.
Frasers Group added 7p to 813.5p after lifting its Boohoo stake for the second time in as many days to 10.4%. Interest in Boohoo shares, which lifted by 7% or 2.3p to 38p, was helped by broker Peel Hunt reiterating a 75p target price.
The FTSE 250 index weakened 13.22 points to 18,592.48, with holidays group TUI the biggest faller down 3% or 14.8p to 455.6p. WH Smith moved the other way, lifting 31p to 1498p.
Manufacturing declines at fastest rate since 2020
The UK manufacturing sector performed a little better in August than initial estimates, but still had its worst month in more than three years, according to the latest PMI data.
The closely watched S&P Global / CIPS UK Manufacturing PMI for August came to 43.0. While this was better than the 42.5 “flash” figure, it was still far below the 50 mark that separates growth from decline.
The figure was the lowest since the heights of the Covid-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020.
(Owen Humphreys/PA)
/ PA ArchiveRob Dobson, director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said the decline was reminiscent of the pandemic and global financial crisis: “August saw a further deepening of the UK manufacturing downturn. The PMI sank to a 39-month low as output and new orders contracted at rates rarely seen outside of major periods of economic stress such as the global financial crisis of 2008/09 and the pandemic lockdowns.
“”Manufacturers reported a weakening economic backdrop as demand is hit by rising interest rates, the cost-of-living crisis, export losses and concerns about the market outlook. While this is being felt across the manufacturing industry, business-to-business companies are especially hard hit. Intermediate goods producers saw the steepest drops in output, new orders and employment as a result.”
Next buys out private equity firm’s stake in £376m Reiss
Next and the Reiss family have bought out private equity firm Warburg Pincus’ stake in fashion retailer Reiss, in a deal that values the brand at £376 million.
Next will acquire a further 21% stake in Reiss, upping its holding from 51% to 72%. The Reiss family’s holding will increase to 22%, with the other 6% held by Reiss management.
Together, Next and Reiss will pay £128 million for just over a third of the business.
Simon Wolfson, NEXT Chief Executive said: “Reiss has performed exceptionally well since we first invested in March 2021. This success has been driven by the strength of its brand, first class management and the benefits of Total Platform; we look forward to continuing to develop the business with Christos and the Reiss team. Warburg Pincus has been an excellent partner throughout the term of our investment and we have enjoyed working with them during the last two years.”
Adarsh Sarma, Managing Director and Rianne Schipper, Principal, Warburg Pincus said: “Warburg Pincus is proud to have supported Reiss through its growth journey since 2016. We would like to thank Christos, Jonathan and the management team for their unrelenting hard work and commitment – they have done an outstanding job, consistently demonstrating category-leading performance. We have also been delighted by our partnership with Next and the way in which Next’s Total Platform has accelerated growth and enhanced the performance of the business.”
More bad news for blockchain industry as KR1’s portfolio sinks by nearly a third
There were further signs of woes for the blockchain industry today after digital technology investor KR1 reported a near one-third drop in the value of its portfolio in just a few months.
The Aquis-listed business said the net asset value of its investments stood at £85.4 million at the end of July, well down from £121 million at the end of February.
Its share in Lido, a crypto staking technology company, was the worst performer, with its valuation slashed 45% to £18.8 million.
Bitcoin prices dropped 12% in August, in what became the digital currency’s biggest monthly fall of the year.
Johnson Matthey shares jump 12%, oil giants higher
BP and Shell supported the FTSE 100 index today after Brent Crude futures rose above $87 a barrel to extend gains for this week to 4%.
Shares in BP rose 10.5p to their highest level since late April at 498p, while Shell added 35p to 2446.5p. The FTSE 100 index lifted 21.79 points to 7460.92.
Johnson Matthey jumped 12% at the top of the index, a rise of 197p to 1827p. The backing follows a poor stock market run for the 200-year-old business, which helps leading energy, chemicals and automotive companies reduce harmful emissions.
The FTSE 250 index weakened 49.66 points to 18,556.04, with holidays group TUI the biggest faller after a decline of 4% or 17p to 453.4p. WH Smith moved in the other direction, lifting 32p to 1499p.
Superdry future in doubt as it plunges to near £150m loss
Hopes that Superdry can ever return to former glories under founder CEO Julian Dunkerton were fading today after a disastrous set of results that leave investors worried for its future.
Dunkerton made a dramatic return to the business in 2019, furious at what management had done to a business he built and regards as one of his family.
Since then, shares have continued to plunge and his overhaul of the company ran into Covid and rough economic conditions.
Today’s results for the year to April had already been delayed by an auditor’s snafu, which hardly helped perceptions in the City. The shares were suspended while the books were completed.
FTSE opens higher
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Shares plunge as NHS 111 provider Totally plans cost cutting
Shares in NHS outsourcer Totally Plc plunged by 11% this morning as it revealed it was cutting costs amid higher-than-expected expenses and slowdowns in the awarding of Government contracts.
The business, which operates the 111 service, said “the cost of agency staff required to deliver safe services for patients exceeds our anticipated forecasts and many decisions related to the awarding of new contracts are currently on hold”.
As a result, the business is “actively implementing strategies” to cut costs.
However, the business said it still expects to meet the financial targets it set out last month.
Shares are down 11% to 9.4p. They are down 80% since July of 2022.
Accsys Tech falls 18% after slump in demand amid construction slowdown
Shares in Accsys technologies fell as much as 18% this morning after the firm said a slowdown in housebuilding had hurt demand.
The company, which develops wood for construction said: “Trading conditions in the building materials, construction and residential housing markets in the UK, Europe and North America have continued to soften, impacted by rising interest rates, the higher inflation environment and slowing residential activity.”
Shares fell 18% to 80p.
Weak August for stock markets, Bitcoin’s worst month of year
The prospect of higher for longer interest rates and China’s softening economic data meant a rough month for financial markets in August.
Deutsche Bank reported today that just 12 out of 38 non-currency assets in its coverage were in positive territory, only slightly better than February’s 11 thanks to a recovery over the last week.
The gains since Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s Jackson Hole speech last Friday meant the S&P 500 ended the month down 1.6% in total return terms compared with 4.7% on 18 August.
The overall monthly decline for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq ended a run of five monthly gains, although they have still delivered returns of 18.7% and 34.9% respectively this year.
The 8.2% slide for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index leaves it in negative territory for the year, down 4.4%. The FTSE 100 index fell by close to 3% in the month.
Brent crude oil prices rose 1.5% for a third consecutive time, while European natural gas prices surged 23.5% as concern grew about a potential strike at LNG facilities in Australia.
Deutsche Bank reported a weak month for cryptocurrencies in August, with Bitcoin down 10.9% in its biggest monthly decline of 2023 so far.
