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Afternoon Financial Press Update

16:39, 20th March 2019
Paul Kettle Kettle
PM Press
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Below are the key headlines from today’s updated papers, featuring the Financial Times, The Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail & more - see the full Press section here

B&Q owner Kingfisher’s boss Véronique Laury to leave as profits fall. Struggling DIY chain Kingfisher (KGF) FOLLOW is ousting chief executive Véronique Laury three years into a five-year turnaround plan widely regarded as a failure. Laury, one of the few female bosses of a FTSE 100 company, paid the price for plunging profits and poor returns across the group apart from at the UK’s Screwfix arm, which caters for the building trade. Kingfisher is best known for B&Q, which has struggled to cope with online rivals and declining interest in DIY from millennials. Today Kingfisher reported a 13% fall in profits to £693 million, a sign of Laury’s failure to revive the French chain Castorama. She will stay until a replacement is found but can expect compensation of around £1.5 million, her pay last year. The shares are down by a quarter during her reign and kept falling today, down 3% at 237p.

Science in Sport stockpiles ingredients to prepare for Brexit. Manufacturer Science In Sport (SIS) FOLLOW on Wednesday said it has stockpiled goods to make sure fitness fans have enough protein bars and energy gels once Britain leaves the EU. The sports nutrition firm, which supplies Manchester United FC, has imported an extra £200,000 of ingredients to its UK factory. Chief executive Stephen Moon said: “Around 60% of our ingredients come from continental Europe, so we have upped inventory to be prepared in the event of any border delays once the UK leaves the EU.” His comments came as Science in Sport said 2018 pretax losses widened to £6 million from a £3.9 million loss, following costs linked with expanding in Asia and America.

Shares in FTSE 250 satellite communications group Inmarsat (ISAT) FOLLOW rocketed after it said it is considering a £2.5billion takeover bid. The stock surged by 17% following Tuesday night’s announcement that it had received an approach from an investor group led by private equity firms Apax and Warburg Pincus. Inmarsat said the consortium tabled the cash proposal offering 545p a share on January 31 – around 24% higher than Tuesday’s closing price of 437.8p a share and 47p per share higher than when the approach was made. Inmarsat said the proposed offer remains ‘under discussion’. As well as UK group Apax and US-based Warburg Pincus, the consortium also includes the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board. The group is required to make a firm offer by April 16 under UK Takeover Panel rules, according to Inmarsat.

Good Energy bucks market gloom as companies go green. Good Energy Group (GOOD) FOLLOW has defied the gloom of the UK’s energy market by selling more green energy to a growing number of companies with green sustainability targets. The renewable energy company more than doubled annual profits despite a record number of suppliers collapsed under the pressure of rising energy costs last year. Good Energy said it offset the fierce competition in the household energy market by increasing its green energy sales to businesses by almost a quarter. As a result profits climbed to £1.6m, from £700,000 the year before, as eight rivals collapsed and others deepened their losses in the face of rising costs and competition

Kier plunges to £35m losses after bins saga. Kier Group (KIE) FOLLOW has been plunged into the red as a result of major losses on the redevelopment of the Broadmoor psychiatric hospital and on the contract to clear the bins in Cheshire. The company has become latest public services provider to fall into crisis following the insolvencies at Carillion and Interserve. Today Kier reported losses of £35 million in the first half of its financial year to December 31. In the same period a year earlier the company made a £34 million profit. Taking out one-off losses and costs, Kier’s underlying profits from continuing business at £39 million still came in 20% worse even though revenues were marginally higher at £2 billion.

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