Source: Sharecast
STOCKS TO WATCH
Watches of Switzerland said it did not expect any material impact from US tariffs in the first half of fiscal 2026 as brand partners increased inventories. In a Wednesday trading update, the company maintained its guidance despite US president Donald Trump imposing a shock 39% tariff on Swiss exports. WoS said trading had been consistently strong in the 18 weeks to 31 August.
Food manufacturer Hilton Food said on Wednesday that it had delivered a "robust performance and further strategic progress" in the six months ended 29 June, despite "challenging" market conditions. Hilton Food posted a 7.6% increase in interim revenue to £2.09bn, partly due to a 2.5% volume increase, while pre-tax profits ticked up 0.3% to £33.6m. However, Hilton reported an adjusted free cash outflow of £30.8m, compared to a £30m inflow in H124, and net bank debt increased from £131.4m at year-end to £202.4m.
M&G reported steady first-half profits on Wednesday, though the investment manager saw strong net flows from open business. Adjusted operating pre-tax profits came in at £378m for the six months to 30 June, more or less unchanged from £375m the year before, as growth was held back by an £8m FX loss in asset management. However, net flows from open business totalled £2.1bn, a £3.2bn swing from the £1.1bn of outflows reported last year, helped by £2.6bn of net inflows from external clients in asset management.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
Thames Water customers are set to get less bang for their buck if a consortium of creditors wins approval for its rescue plan. The development was revealed in the outline of a business plan – without some key spending details – published on Wednesday by the investors who hold much of the company's debts. The consortium is called London & Valley Water. – Guardian
Model aeroplane enthusiasts have gone to war with Amazon over the company's plans to launch Britain's first drone delivery service. Amazon has been warned by a local flying club in Darlington, County Durham – where it is planning drone deliveries later this year – that the tech giant faces a campaign of disruption from the group. They fear Amazon's deliveries will disrupt local hobbyists. – Telegraph
John Lewis has hired a former Tesco executive as managing director of Waitrose. The appointment comes as the group's new chairman seeks to press ahead with a turnaround. Tom Denyard, who worked at Tesco for almost a decade, will lead Waitrose from next January. - Telegraph
A US federal judge has ordered a major makeover of Google's search engine in a crackdown aimed at addressing the damaging effects of monopolistic practices. In an effort to curb Google's influence, Washington DC Judge Amit Mehta has introduced new limitations on how the company directs traffic to its search engine. – Sky News
US CLOSE
Major indices delivered a losing performance on Tuesday as investors reassessed the likelihood of a Federal Reserve rate cut later this month.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.55% at 45,295.81, while the S&P 500 shed 0.69% to 6,415.54 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.82% weaker at 21,279.63.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com