It’s shares weren’t quite sent down the plughole yesterday, but there was no mistaking the desire among some investors to make a clean break from the consumer goods group behind Imperial Leather and Original Source shower gel.
While sales at PZ Cussons rose by 1.9 per cent to £385.4 million in the six months to November 30, the FTSE 250 soap and shampoo maker revealed yesterday that adjusted operating profits had slid by 10.3 per cent to £37.5 million in the period. Executives blamed this on “reduced margins in certain business units in Europe and Africa”.
“Initiatives are under way to improve performance of these business units and, together with the positive momentum elsewhere in the Group and in particular in Asia, provide a solid basis for improved performance in the second half of the year,” Caroline Silver, its non-executive chairwoman, said.
The City wasn’t reassured, however, and shares in PZ Cussons fell 18½p, or almost 6 per cent, to 311½p. Analysts highlighted the group’s strong run over recent weeks, which had carried PZ Cussons up by 7 per cent between mid-December and mid-January.
Institutions linked with Sir John Zochonis, former chairman of the company and great nephew of George Zochonis, its co-founder, hold its largest stakes. Zochonis Charitable Trust holds a 13 per cent interest and the estate of Sir John, who died in 2013, holds almost 12 per cent.
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PZ Cussons gave way as profit-taking, falling oil prices and higher borrowing costs hit international markets. The FTSE 100 surrendered 1.1 per cent, or 83.55 points, to close at 7,587.98, with financial heavyweights and the global miners hit hardest. Investors were urged to switch their short positions from HSBC into Standard Chartered. Investec ditched its “sell” rating for HSBC, upgrading it to “hold” and raising its target price from 640p to 740p. The bank can now credibly target annual loan growth of about 5 per cent, analysts said, although the fourth quarter may not be pretty. HSBC fell 10p to 760½p, Standard Chartered faded by 24½p to 814p, Barclays eased almost 6p lower to 201¾p and Royal Bank of Scotland shed 8¼p to 292p.
The miners dropped almost in step: Anglo American dropped 39½p to £17.16½, BHP Billiton closed down 30¼p to £15.69¾, Glencore fell 7p to 408p, Antofagasta gave up 16½p to 935½p and Rio Tinto stumbled by 67½p to £39.57.
The FTSE 250 also struggled, finishing down 1 per cent, or 206.99 points, at 20,370.93.
Dignity dropped to fresh lows in the wake of its profit warning, giving up 13½p to 862p. Since it spooked investors on January 19, shares in the funeral provider are down 65 per cent. In the latest twist, filings revealed that Harris Associates, the Chicago-based investor, has acquired a 5.15 per cent stake. At the other end of the mid-cap index, Investec ditched its “sell” rating for Renishaw, a specialist precision engineer, upgrading to “hold” and lifting its target price from £42.50 to £41. Shares in the company rallied by 110p to £49.10.
Investors also lapped up Monday night’s announcement from Entertainment One that it would acquire the remaining 49 per cent stake in The Mark Gordon Company that it did not already own. News that the group had swooped to take control of the producer behind films including Molly’s Game and last year’s remake of Murder on the Orient Express, as well as Designated Survivor, the television series starring Kiefer Sutherland, sent its shares up 4¾p to 317p.
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Wall Street report
Falling healthcare stocks and rising bond yields pulled markets lower for a second day. The Dow Jones industrial average had its worst opening in nearly 16 years with a fall of 241 points. The index finished 362.59 points down at 26,076.89.
Support services Pollster plays its Trump card
As President Trump prepared yesterday to deliver his first State of the Union address and as America braces for another frenetic election campaign, demand for polling has pushed YouGov higher in London.
The Aim-listed pollster rose 14½p to 346p after it told the market that it had been trading ahead of forecasts for six months. It is focused on improving margins and expanding in the United States, it said.
Polling companies will be in demand across the Atlantic before the midterm elections in November. YouGov, which is due to release its half-year results on March 26, has a deal with CBS, the American television network.
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YouGov floated in 2005 and had a market value of £364 million last night. Liontrust, the asset manager, is its largest shareholder, with a 14.7 per cent stake. Blackrock and Standard Life each hold just shy of 10 per cent and Stephan Shakespeare, its chief executive, has about 7 per cent.
Its most recent Nation Tracker poll for CBS found that 18 per cent of American adults described themselves as a “strong Trump supporter”, while 41 per cent said they were “strong against Trump”.
Wall Street report
Falling healthcare stocks and rising bond yields pulled markets lower for a second day. The Dow Jones industrial average had its worst opening in nearly 16 years with a fall of 241 points. The index finished 362.59 points down at 26,076.89.