Investors in Premier Foods were delighted after the maker of Mr Kipling’s cakes raised its profit forecast for this year as business boomed.
The group, whose brands also include Ambrosia, Saxa and The Spice Tailor, said profit for the year to April 1 was expected to beat expectations at around £135m, up around 10% compared to the previous year.
He said revenue growth for the last quarter should be at least 10% up. The business was led by its grocery arm, which housed brands such as Oxo cubes and Bisto.
Premier Foods, owner of Mr Kipling, whose brands also include Ambrosia, Saxa and The Spice Tailor, said its profit for the year to April 1 is expected to be around £135million.
The upbeat figures followed those in January, when Premier Foods reported sales were up 12% in the 13 weeks to December 31 from a year earlier.
Peel Hunt analyst Charles Hall said the performance was “encouraging”. It rose 10.4%, or 12p, to 127p.
The FTSE 100 fell 0.1%, or 10.31 points, to 7919.48 while the FTSE 250 fell 0.5%, or 107.50 points, to 19956.61.
The pound fell back below $1.19 against the dollar after the US Federal Reserve warned that interest rates will have to rise more than expected, boosting the dollar.
Spirent Communications warned that its revenue for this year will be below expectations as customers cut spending.
The FTSE 250 company, which tests 5G mobile and wifi networks, fell 14.5%, or 30.5p, to 180.5p.
The slump came even as its revenue rose 5% to £506.8million in 2022, while profits rose for the sixth consecutive year.
Stock Watch – Wincanton
Wincanton has warned that its profit will be “materially lower” than expected after the tax office terminated a lucrative contract.
The logistics company signed a five-year contract in 2019 with HM Revenue and Customs to operate inbound dispatch screening sites, but HMRC decided to employ a different supplier.
He now expects profits for the 12 months to the end of March 2024 to be lower than the £63m forecast by analysts.
The shares fell 27%, or 87.5p, to 223p.
Revolution Bars suffered a loss due to transport strikes and rising costs. The group, which owns 69 bars and 21 pubs, made a loss of £100,000 in the 26 weeks to December 31.
It reported a profit of £4.3million the previous year. Sales rose 2.6% to £76m but were down 6.8% so far in the second half. Its shares fell 13.5%, or 1.2p, to 7.7p.
The mood was not helped by Reach after the Daily Mirror owner warned the trade remained difficult.
The newspaper publisher recorded a drop in revenue and profit for the year to Christmas Day after its costs jumped 40% as advertising demand weakened. It fell 14%, or 12.65p, to 78p.
At Aston Martin, the luxury car maker’s rally showed few signs of faltering. It rose 7.6%, or 20.9p, to 297p after Bernstein raised its target price to 300p from 180p. Stocks are up about 90% this year.
WPP fell 0.7%, or 7.5p, to 1025p after the advertising giant bought German health PR agency 3K Communication.
It was a momentous day for IWG after the office space provider announced its highest revenue ever. Increased demand for flexible working pushed its revenue up 24% to £3.1billion last year.
It posted a profit of £147million for 2022 after posting a loss of £87million a year earlier. The shares rose 2%, or 3.8p, to 192.05p.
Axel Springer, Purplebricks’ biggest shareholder, said his representative on the online estate agent’s board had resigned to ensure the process of finding a buyer was fair. The shares fell 12.5%, or 1.19p, to 8.31p.
Rio Tinto has agreed to pay £12.65 million to settle a US Securities and Exchange Commission investigation into contract payments made to a former consultant more than a decade ago. It slipped 1.3%, or 78p, to 5894p.
Estate agent Foxtons took advantage of rising rental prices last year but warned that rising interest rates were wreaking havoc on the housing market. The shares rose 2.2%, or 0.9p, to 42.1p.
H&T, the UK’s biggest pawnshop, saw record online sales in January, hitting £1million in a month for the first time. It slipped 0.4%, or 2p, to 449p.
Just Group jumped 11.1%, or 9.1p, to 91p after its profit of £336m last year was 35% above analysts’ expectations.
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