Friday preview: Sky, Anglo-American, JLT, US GDP ...

28th Jul 2011 17:01

After the whole News International farrago of recent weeks it will probably be a relief for the board of pay-TV and internet service provider British Sky Broadcasting (BskyB) to get back to the rows and columns of a profit and loss account.Market consensus is for full-year revenue of £6,436m, up from £5,912m the year before. Profit before tax is seen surging to £963.6m from £779m, giving earnings per share of 40.16p, up from 31.1p the year before. The investment analysts expect the full-year dividend to rise to 21.24p from 19.4p last year."The sharp rise in profitability will reflect continued tailing off of heavy recent investment in broadband, telephony and HD [high definition], combined with the high degree of operational gearing within the business," Charles Stanley analyst Sam Hart explains, underlining why Rupert Murdoch was so keen to get his mitts on the rest of the company (News International already owns 39.1% of BskyB). "We forecast a net 63,000 new subscribers to have been added in the quarter, taking the total to 10.2m. The pace of customer acquisition has slowed in recent quarters, as the emphasis has shifted towards raising average revenue per user by encouraging customers to take more additional products (e.g. HD, broadband, telephony)," Hart added."A price freeze on subscriptions until September 2012 was announced on 8th July. Analysts will be seeking clarification on the motives behind the price freeze, as it was a move which had not been anticipated. It has raised concerns that the tough consumer environment may be having a greater impact on BskyB's business than previously thought," the broker said.Mining titan Anglo-American issues interim figures, but the group earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation has already been revealed so the main focus will be on the coal and copper division, Credit Suisse reckons, following production issues in the first half of 2011.The Swiss bank is predicting earnings before interest and tax of $6.1bn, versus a consensus figure of $6.4bn, and earnings per share of $2.63, versus consensus of $2.59. "We currently forecast a 2011 dividend of 72c (2010: 65c), consensus for the full year is 72c. The company is yet to clarify the pay-out split between interim and final. We see upside to cash returns either through a higher dividend or buyback announcement either at the interims or full year results in early 2012. A buyback announcement with the interim results would be a positive surprise to the market in our view," Credit Suisse said.Manganese Bronze may sound like a mining company but in fact it is the manufacturer of the world-famous London black cab. The company has had some success growing international sales after a period when it looked like it was in danger of going to the wall. Broker Matrix expects "the shape of the business to remain unchanged, with conditions difficult in the UK, but strong internationally". The continued weakness of sterling is unhelpful for costs, particularly with regard to engines from Italy, the broker notes."We expect further working-capital improvements, which, along with strong international trading, are reducing the company's debt exposure," the broker added.Insurer broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson is expected by Panmure Gordon to announce headline underlying trading profit for the first half of 2011 of £72.6m, up 3% on last year, driven by an 8% increase in turnover to £408m. The broker has pencilled in 9.2p for the interim dividend."Key things to look out for will be the positive impact of new hires and the possible slowdown in the currency benefit, albeit the effect may well be more muted in H1 [first half] than H2 2011," the broker reckons.International Airlines, also known as IAG, brings out second quarter figures, the second time it has reported since it was formed in January through the merger of British Airways and Iberia. Beating last year's performance should be like shooting fish in a barrel, as last year results were affected by the Icelandic ash clouds, not to mention British Airways' staffing disputes and restructuring efforts."Although it is difficult to make comparisons with last year, demand is continuing to show firm underlying growth particularly in the long haul premium segment," Charles Stanley's Tony Shepard notes. "The new group appears to be operating effectively and we look for a good increase in Q2 [second quarter] passenger yields. This should more than offset any disruption from the geo-political events in Middle East and North Africa and, the tragedies in Japan," Shepard reckons."Fuel costs and fuel hedging continue to be an issue. Kerosene jet fuel peaked in April about $1,141/mt [metric ton] and is now about $1,054/mt. During 2011, fuel surcharges have increased which should help to recoup most of the fuel price rise though higher fares may deter future demand. In 2011, IAG's fuel bill is expected to be about €5.2bn which is some €1.3bn higher than 2010. For 2011, about 54% of fuel consumption is hedged and the sensitivity is about €20m to a $10/mt price move," the broker revealed.On the economic front, UK mortgage approvals for June are expected to edge up to 46,000 from 45,900 in May. Stateside, assuming anyone can tear their attention away from Republicans and Democrats fiddling while Washington burns, second quarter gross domestic product for the second quarter is expected to have grown by 1.8%, representing a slight easing from first quarter growth of 1.9%.INTERIMSAnglo American, Charter International, International Airlines, Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd (Singapore), Jardine Strategic Holdingd Ltd. (Singapore), Manganese Bronze Holdings, Pearson, Rentokil Initial, Travis PerkinsINTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATECharacter Group, Chrysalis VCT, Dunedin Smaller Companies Inv Trust, Jupiter Green Inv Trust, Octopus Titan VCT 1, Octopus Titan VCT 2, Paragon Group Of Companies, ProVen Growth & Income VCT, ProVen VCT, ZytronicQUARTERLY PAYMENT DATEEquity Partnership Inv Co Income Shares, Schroder Income Growth FundINTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTSHousehold Spending (JPN)Jobless Rate (JPN)Consumer Prices Index (JPN)Industrial Production (JPN)Construction Orders (JPN)GFK Consumer Confidence (GER) (07:00)Producer Prices (FRA) (07:45)Consumer Spending (FRA) (07:45)Consumer Prices estimate (EU) (10:00)International Reserves (EU) (11:00)GDP (Advance) (US) (13:30)Personal Consumption (US) (13:30)Chicago PMI (US) (14:45)NAPM Milwaukee (US) (15:00)U. of Michigan Confidence(Final) (US) (15:00)GMSINVUFINALSBritish Sky Broadcasting GroupEGMSNoventa Ltd.AGMSBritish Smaller Companies VCT, Creon Corporation, Edinburgh Inv Trust, European Convergence Development Co, Fidelity China Special Situations , Homeserve, ING Global Real Estate Securities Ltd., INVU, Longships, Parallel Media Group, RAM Investment Group, Suretrack Monitoring , Tongaat-Hulett Ltd., TorotrakUK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTSGFK Consumer Confidence (09:30)Net Consumer Credit (09:30)M4 Money Supply (09:30)Mortgage Approvals (09:30)FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATEAberdeen All Asia Inv Trust, Acal, Aveva Group, Brown (N.) Group, Edinburgh Inv Trust, Investec Structured Products Calculus VCT, KCOM Group, Kiotech International, Lindsell Train Inv Trust, Montanaro European Smaller Companies Trust, MS International, Octopus VCT , PME African Infrastructure Opportunities, Puma VCT V, Severn Trent, TP70 2008 (I) VCT, TP70 2008 (II) VCT, UBC Media Group--jh