Source: Sharecast
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Retailer Pets at Home posted a mixed set of full‑year results on Wednesday, with solid progress in its veterinary unit offset by continued pressure in retail. Pets at Home said group consumer revenues had edged 1% higher to £1.98bn, driven by a 5% rise in Vet Group revenue to £688m, while retail slipped 1% to £1.29bn against a subdued market backdrop. Underlying group pre-tax profits fell 30.2% to £92.8m, reflecting lower retail profitability and a 270‑basis‑point margin decline, while statutory pre-tax profits declined 28.3% to £86.5m.
Food producer Greencore hailed a strong first-half performance on Wednesday and said the integration of recently acquired Bakkavor was progressing well. In the six months ended 27 March, Greencore said adjusted operating profits rose 62.2% year-on-year to £73.3m, with reported revenues up 43% to £1.3bn. Greencore also announced it was exploring a sale of its US business.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
Households will face the steepest summer rise in energy charges in four years after months of soaring market prices caused the government's energy price cap for Great Britain to climb by 13%. Under the cap the average gas and electricity bill will increase to the equivalent of £1,862 a year from July until the end of September to take account of the rise in global energy market prices caused by the war on Iran. – Guardian
The police criminal inquiry into the Post Office Horizon IT scandal faces a five-year delay unless it is handed millions in extra funding and nearly 100 more staff, according to the chief officer in charge. The Metropolitan police commander Stephen Clayman said he needed to nearly double the number of investigators to 210 to meet a deadline of late next year or early 2028 for submitting files to prosecutors. – Guardian
The UK has issued fresh sanctions targeting crypto networks as Vladimir Putin increasingly turns to digital currencies to fund his war in Ukraine. Yvette Cooper, the Foreign Secretary, has sanctioned 18 companies, exchanges and individuals linked to Russia's A7 crypto network, which helps the country buy weapons and sell oil without getting caught by Western sanctions on Russian banks and financial transactions. – Telegraph
The chief executive of Oxford University's spin-out fund has said that UK pension funds are still "way off the pace" when it comes to investing in high-growth tech companies despite years of government-led reform efforts. The comments reflect frustration with the lack of speed of programmes such as the Mansion House accord, in which domestic pension funds voluntarily committed to invest a share of their assets in private and high-growth companies. – The Times
The owner of Poundland has bought Radley in a move that will lead to job losses at the British handbag maker. Gordon Brothers, a firm specialising in distressed retail investing, has taken over Radley through a fast-track form of insolvency that will lead to the loss of 42 jobs. – The Times
US CLOSE
Major indices finished mostly higher on Tuesday on the back of strong gains in the tech sector, propelling the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to yet more all-time highs, while the Dow pulled back from its recent peak.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.23% at 50,461.68, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.61% to 7,519.12 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.19% firmer at 26,656.18.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com