Pendragon back in profit
23rd Feb 2010 07:44
Pendragon, the UK's largest car dealer, bounced back into profit in 2009 but is cautious going forward ahead of the end of the car scrappage scheme and expects conditions to remain difficult. Profits in 2009 came in at £1.3m compared with a loss of £194m. On an underlying basis, profits were £10.1m
Read moreTuesday preview: Drax, Croda, Morgan Sindall
22nd Feb 2010 17:20
Drax, operator of the UK's largest coal-fired power station, is set to report a sharp drop in full year pre-tax profits on Tuesday, with the investment analyst community expecting a figure of around £266.1m, compared to £442.5m in 2008. Revenue is expected to ease to £1,356.0m from £1,752.8m. Full
Read morePendragon trading ahead of initial forecasts
17th Nov 2009 08:23
Car dealer Pendragon said trading for the four months ended 31 October 2009 has been ahead of plan as the government's scrappage incentive scheme boosted sales. The company's performance was also helped by good cost control and an improved used car performance, it said. The scrappage scheme benefi
Read moreBroker tips: Halfords, Pendragon, Carluccio's
8th Oct 2009 13:03
Thursday morning's second quarter trading update from car and bike parts seller Halfords is likely to trigger full year earnings upgrades of around 8% or 9%, Singer Capital Markets reckons. Halfords' management said it expects to beat half-year consensus expectations of a pre-tax profit of £54.5m w
Read moreBroker snap: Momentum is with Pendragon
8th Oct 2009 12:51
Panmure Gordon has turned bullish on Pendragon after holding a meeting with Trevor Finn, the car dealer's chief executive officer. The broker believes that strategically Pendragon intends to focus on leveraging off its existing assets, where it has 'very good exposure to large scale volume brands s
Read more'Cash for bangers' reaches half-way point
20th Aug 2009 13:06
Just three months after its launch, the car 'scrappage' scheme announced by the government in April has already been hailed as a resounding success. More than 150,000 have participated in the programme, in which the government and the motor industry contribute £1,000 each towards the purchase of a
Read moreLondon close: Stocks in late surge
18th Aug 2009 16:36
A late rally driven by early gains in the US had London back up at session highs, with gains among financial plays easily offsetting a weaker property sector. Investors overcame disappointing US housing starts data that had the blue chip index struggling at session lows mid-afternoon. The annual ra
Read moreLondon afternoon: Gains pegged after US housing data
18th Aug 2009 14:37
Disappointing US housing starts data took the wind out of London's sales over the lunchtime session, though the blue-chip FTSE 100 index remains in the blue. Housing starts are seen as one of the vital signs of the US economy and July's figures disappointed, with the annualised number of housing sta
Read moreLondon midday: Properties left behind in market rally
18th Aug 2009 12:00
Once again mining stocks are in the driving seat but today they are driving the market north, with many stocks recovering some of yesterday's heavy losses. Xstrata, ENRC, Kazakhmys and Lonmin are the picks of the mining sector, along with cash strapped Rio Tinto, which has received a $2.025bn offe
Read moreLondon open: Footsie fights back
18th Aug 2009 08:11
London's top stocks are winning back some of the heavy losses it posted yesterday, with miners among the main risers. Xstrata is the best blue chip performer in early dealings, closely followed by Rio Tinto, Randgold Resources and Kazakhmys. Cash strapped miner Rio Tinto has received a $2.025bn of
Read moreLondon pre-open: Footsie to recoup losses
18th Aug 2009 07:44
Footsie is expected to win back some of the heavy losses it posted yesterday. British Land saw the value of its property portfolio fall to £8.18bn in the first quarter but said the pace of decline has slowed markedly. The group, which has been the subject of intense bid speculation, said £3.2bn (39
Read morePendragon profits slide
18th Aug 2009 07:08
Car dealer Pendragon reported sharply lower profits in the six months to June 30 as recession-hit motorists held onto their old cars rather than splashing out on new ones. It posted a pre-tax profit of £11.4m, compared with £21.1m over the same period the previous year, as revenue slid to £1.59bn f
Read moreWeek Ahead: Lookers, Pendragon, BoE minutes
14th Aug 2009 12:23
The results season is showing signs of tailing off, with a distinct lack of heavy hitters due to declare figures next week. Car dealers will be in focus with both Lookers and Pendragon announcing results. Lookers declares interim results on the 19th and broker Panmure Gordon is expecting a strong
Read moreFriday preview: Lookers, Pendragon
25th Jun 2009 17:24
A quiet end to the week is in store on the corporate news front, though by coincidence two car dealers, Lookers and Pendragon both have annual general meetings, at which updates may be forthcoming on how the government's car scrappage scheme is affecting sales. Both companies have had to revise the
Read moreTechnical Analysis: Retailers start to slide back
26th May 2009 14:03
Nearly two weeks ago, it was suggested that this year's rise in retail stocks might run into some profit-taking if the FTSE continued to drift back from its highs. It certainly wasn't helped by Marks and Spencer's decision to cut its dividend to 15p a share, after posting a 40% drop in profits, an
Read more