All City & finance articles – Page 482
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NewsOcado makes first quarterly profit as it bids to grow range
Online grocer Ocado has promised to focus on value, range and quality after it reported its first pre-tax profit of £300,000 in its fourth quarter.
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NewsBuyers size up HMV
Entertainment retailer back on private equity’s radar after poor trading raises prospect of a break-up
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NewsJD says chains will stay separate if talks with JJB are successful
JD Sports Fashion executive chairman Peter Cowgill has said that he plans to continue to run JJB Sports as a separate chain if he buys the business, and believes the JD management team can offer expertise to the struggling retailer.
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NewsNomura kicks off food coverage with Tesco tip
Broker Nomura has begun coverage of food retailers with Tesco as a key stock pick.
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OpinionInvestors see value in retail’s ugly ducklings
The City tends to see things in a very black and white way. And if the stock market continues to price established businesses at levels that assume they won’t exist much longer, then eventually someone else is going to see opportunity in them.
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OpinionInflation hides a multitude of sins
“Lies, damned lies and retailers’ Christmas trading statements.” As a retail analyst I always hated January and its seemingly never ending stream of sales updates.
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OpinionThe like-for-like masquerade
A focus on short-term figures simply damages retailers’ prospects in the long run, says Neil Gillis
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NewsTakeover talks reflect tough week for stores
Plunging consumer confidence, signs of slowing trading at bellwether department store group John Lewis and a Carpetright profit warning meant general retailers were left on the shelf by investors.
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OpinionBolland spreads M&S’s wings
M&S boss Marc Bolland started to make his presence felt with last week’s rejig of the general merchandise senior management structure. The rationale for the changes was to create the right framework for delivery of M&S’s business plan.
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NewsCarpetright warns on profits as sales plunge
Carpetright has warned on profits as sales plunged in the UK and Ireland.
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NewsPrimark records a 12% Christmas sales increase
Value fashion giant Primark shrugged off the effect of the snow before Christmas to record a 12% increase in sales, but warned that EBITDA margins will fall during the second half.
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NewsHomestyle profits drop 19% but Reid acquisition boosts turnover
Homestyle, the furniture retailer that operates chains including Harveys and Bensons for Beds, has revealed a 19% fall in profits in the year to June 26, while turnover increased.
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NewsMulberry celebrates rocketing festive sales
Sales at luxury brand and retailer Mulberry soared over the festive period, showing consumer appetite for ‘It Bags’ is yet to be sated.
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NewsSnow takes edge off M and M’s Christmas
Sales at home shopping group M and M Direct jumped 15% in the six weeks to January 2, despite the loss of £2.5m of sales due to snow.
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NewsDirectors leave Comet in the wake of dire trading update
Two Comet directors are to exit the business and redundancy consultations have begun with other head office staff as the electricals specialist battles to recover after disastrous Christmas trading.
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NewsDouble-dip fears hit general retail stocks
Retail stocks were hit as the economy went into reverse, renewing fears of a double-dip recession, and Bank of England governor Mervyn King warned of plunging living standards.
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NewsHamleys up for sale
Frozen food chain Iceland also up for sale as Landsbanki sells off assets as part of winding up process
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NewsWHSmith sales slip over key period but margin improves
Bookseller and stationer WHSmith pleased analysts with improved margin despite a worse-than-expected sales decline during the peak period.
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NewsBeales narrows losses by a third
Beales, the independent department store chain, has reduced its full year losses for the third year running.
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NewsWH Smith AGM blow
WH Smith suffered a blow at its AGM yesterday when nearly a third of its shareholders who voted refused to back the remuneration report.