Source: Sharecast
STOCKS TO WATCH
US-based Brookfield Wealth Solutions has struck a £2.4bn deal to buy UK financial services company Just Group, the two firms said on Thursday. BWS will pay 220p per share in cash, a 75% premium to Just Group's closing price of 126p on 30 July.
Consumer goods giant Unilever reported a 3.4% rise in underlying sales for H125, driven by balanced volume and price growth, despite turnover dipping 3.2% to €30.1bn due to adverse currency movements and disposals. Underlying operating profits, on the other hand, fell 4.8% to €5.8bn, with margins down 30bps to 19.3%.
Aerospace and defence engineer Rolls-Royce has raised its full-year guidance after a strong first half, in which underlying revenues grew by double-digits and operating profits surged by 50%. The company now expects to book an full-year underlying operating profit of £3.1bn-3.2bn for 2025, up from previous guidance of £2.7bn-2.9bn, while the free cash flow target has been upped to £3.0bn-3.1bn from £2.7bn-2.9bn.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
Whether it's poaching top talent away from competitors, acquiring AI startups or proclaiming that it will build data centers the size of Manhattan, Meta has been on a spending spree to boost its artificial intelligence capabilities for months now. The massive splurge is paying off, according to Meta's chief executive. In a new memo posted on Wednesday ahead of the company's quarterly earnings report, Mark Zuckerberg, describes his ambitions for developing what he calls "superintelligence". – Guardian
Elon Musk's "retro-futuristic" Tesla Diner in Hollywood has become a new flashpoint for the "Tesla Takedown" movement, with dozens of protesters picketing the diner last weekend alongside inflatable tube figures of Musk performing a Nazi salute. The viral popularity of the new diner, which is surrounded by 80 Tesla charging stations and two giant movie screens, has sparked out-the-door lines, massive traffic jams, and two angry protests, all within its first week of operation. – Guardian
Hotel magnate Surinder Arora has unveiled a plan to build a third runway at Heathrow that he claimed would save billions of pounds compared with the airport's own blueprint. The proposals, drawn up with US civil engineering giant Bechtel, call for the construction of a 2.8km (1.7 mile) landing strip opening by 2035 at a cost of no more than £25bn. – Telegraph
Britain's main public broadcasters are paving the way for the looming switch-off of terrestrial TV as they ramp up their streaming offerings. The BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 have struck a new deal to make it easier to stream their shows on older televisions in preparation for the end of traditional TV signals. – Telegraph
Consumers caught up in the motor finance scandal risk losing up to 30% of redress by signing up to paid services they do not need, regulators have warned. In an intervention ahead of a major Supreme Court ruling on Friday, the Solicitors Regulation Authority and Financial Conduct Authority, which have become increasingly concerned, have warned law firms and claims management companies over poor practices in commission claims. – The Times
US CLOSE
Major indices delivered a mixed performance on Wednesday as market participants digested the Federal Reserve's latest interest rate decision.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.38% at 44,461.28, while the S&P 500 shed 0.12% to 6,362.90, and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.15% firmer at 21,129.67.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com