Morrisons sells 140 convenience stores for cut-price GBP25m
9th Sep 2015 14:12
(ShareCast News) - Morrison Supermarkets has confirmed the sale of 140 convenience stores for £25m, half the amount the grocer was said to have expected. Morrisons admitted that it also expected to incur a loss on disposal of around £30m and may also be liable for a further £20m due to a guarantee o
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Bank tax, TSB bid plans, China nuclear deal
6th Sep 2015 17:05
(ShareCast News) - The Treasury is facing fresh opposition over its new bank tax, with both Labour and the Scottish National party (SNP) arguing it will weaken competition in the sector and proposing changes to the Finance Bill to reduce the charge for smaller operators. The opposition parties are c
Read moreMorrisons may receive only £30m from sale of convenience stores
6th Sep 2015 12:45
(ShareCast News) - Supermarket chain Morrisons may get as little as £30m from the sale of its convenience stores, according to report, as talks with investment company Greybull Capital rumbled on. According to the Sunday Telegraph, sources said the grocer expected to rake in between £30m and £50m fr
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: easyJet flies higher on profit guidance, Weir slips on demotion
3rd Sep 2015 12:40
(ShareCast News) - London's FTSE 100 was on the front foot Thursday, taking its cue from strength on Wall Street as the closure of Chinese markets provided investors with some much-needed respite. At 1305 BST, the top-flight index was up 1.4% at 6,165.81. Budget airline EasyJet flew higher after lif
Read moreWm Morrison shoots higher on UBS upgrade
3rd Sep 2015 08:52
(ShareCast News) - Shares in supermarket retailer Wm Morrison shot higher after UBS upgraded the stock to 'neutral from 'sell' and lifted the price target to 175p from165p. The bank noted that new chief executive officer David Potts has only been in the business about six months, but already percept
Read moreDiscounters set to eat Tesco´s lunch, JP Morgan says
2nd Sep 2015 11:01
(ShareCast News) - The UK´s 'Big 4' food retailers pose "a rather structural threat" for the industry, according to JP Morgan. In Ireland, Aldi and Lidl already have 18% of the market in the bag - alongside 8% of the UK market in the till - and are continuing to grow their market shares the fastest.
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Tullow recovers, Tesco and Morrison hit by Nielsen data
28th Aug 2015 14:04
(ShareCast News) - By mid afternoon on Friday, the FTSE 100 was almost exactly flat on the day, meaning despite all the drama of China's 'Black Monday', London's blue chips would end the week higher than they finished the Friday before. Leaving the rest in its wake by mid-afternoon was Inmarsat, aft
Read moreSupermarket sales volumes fall in August says Nielsen
28th Aug 2015 11:05
(ShareCast News) - The volumes of UK supermarket sales in recent weeks fell for the first time since December, with Tesco, Sainsbury and Morrison all losing market share to discount stores. According to data gathered by Nielsen, grocery sales volumes shrank 0.3% during the four weeks ending 15 Au
Read moreSainsbury's loses second place to Asda, says Kantar
25th Aug 2015 11:22
(ShareCast News) - Growth in the British grocery markets continued to be sluggish, with all the "big four" chains losing market share, according to the latest figures published by Kantar Worldpanel for the 12 weeks ending 16 August. Sainsbury's was the only one of the "big four" to post any growth,
Read moreUK retail sales slowed by food decline, BRC-KPMG finds
11th Aug 2015 09:15
(ShareCast News) - A decline in food sales led to a slowing in UK retail sales growth in July, although the BRC-KPMG retail sales monitor increased more than was predicted. With strong non-food sales offsetting a negative performance from food, like-for-like sales in July rose 1.2% year-on-year, ahe
Read moreMorrisons appoints Grainger's independent directors to non-exec board
29th Jul 2015 14:03
(ShareCast News) - Belinda Richards has been appointed as Wm Morrison's non-executive director and chairman of the audit committee, the supermarket giant said on Wednesday. Richards, who is currently the senior independent director of Grainger and a non-executive director of Aviva UK life and pensio
Read moreSainsbury's overtakes Asda as UK's second-biggest supermarket
28th Jul 2015 16:03
(ShareCast News) - Sainsbury's has overtaken Asda to become the number two supermarket after Tesco, according to data released by market researcher Kantar Worldpanel. Despite a fall in sales of 0.3%, Sainsbury's had edged its market share of 16.5% ahead of Asda, which now stands at 16.4%. Kantar sa
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Co-op Bank, British aerospace, Morrisons
27th Jul 2015 07:48
(ShareCast News) - Shareholders in The Co-operative Bank are considering buying the remaining 20 per cent stake as they look for ways to recover their investment. Several American hedge funds are understood to be considering making an offer for The Co-operative Group's holding as they explore a pote
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Royal Mail dips on underwhelming revenues, insurers and supermarkets higher
21st Jul 2015 14:04
(ShareCast News) - London markets were muted on Tuesday as investors awaited earnings reports from US tech giants and remained wary of interest rate hikes from the Bank of England and Federal Reserve. As of 15:00 BST, the FTSE 100 was trading flat at 6,784. Royal Mail dipped after delivering a mixe
Read moreFood retailers defend sugar record after SACN report slashes sugar guidance
17th Jul 2015 10:38
(ShareCast News) - A government-backed report on carbohydrates has called for the British recommended daily allowance of sugar to be cut in half, which has forced retailers to robustly defend their efforts to cut the sugar content and calorie counts of their products. As expected, the Scientific Adv
Read more