58 2GM Saturday December 4 2021 | the timesBusiness
5Jessica Newman Market report
Fresh mix made at the
top of East Imperial
East Imperial, the premium
mixers drinks group that floated
in July, has bowed to pressure
from Andrew Regan to appoint a
new chairman and a non-
executive director after it became
clear that shareholders supported
the entrepreneur’s proposal.
Regan, the original backer of
Asos, and Taylor Partners, had
requisitioned an extraordinary
general meeting to appoint
Alistair McGeorge and Colin
Henry, saying that he was
proposing the changes on the
grounds that the board, chaired
by Rob Soni, 53, was “lacking
cohesiveness [and] requisite PLC
experience”. East Imperial said
yesterday that the EGM
requisition had been withdrawn
and that McGeorge, 62, had
replaced Soni as chairman, with
Henry also joining the board.
Shares of East Imperial, which
floated at 10p, jumped by 2¾p, or
26.2 per cent, to 13¼p.Evergrande hit with
$260m demand
China Evergrande Group warned
that it may be unable to meet a
repayment that has been
demanded under a $260 million
guarantee obligation. Repayment
dates under certain other
agreements may be pulled
forward if it is unable to meet the
obligation, the struggling Chinese
developer added in a filing to the
stock exchange in Hong Kong.
Evergrande has already failed to
pay coupons totalling
$82.5 million that were due on
November 6. It has more than
$300 billion in liabilities. It said
that the government of
Guangdong province, where the
company is based, had
summoned Xu Jiayin, its
chairman, to a meeting. The
Guangdong government said that
it would, at Evergrande’s request,
send a working group to oversee
risk management and strengthen
internal controls.Wickes forecasts profit
building up to £83m
Wickes expects to nearly double
profits this year as Britons spend
more time in their homes and
continue to invest in new
kitchens, bathrooms and home
offices. The home improvements
retailer, which operates from 230
outlets and employs 8,500 people,
said that it would make profits
before one-off items of not less
than £83 million this year —
significantly higher than the
£71 million to £75 million guidance
that Wickes was pushing as
recently as October. Wickes told
investors that sales in “do-it-for-
me”, work that is beyond the
abilities of consumers, continued
to strengthen and that it
increased profit margins. Since its
demerger from Travis Perkins in
the spring, its shares have
dribbled down from 250p to a low
of 210p. Yesterday they rose 24¼p,
or 11.2 per cent, to 239¼p, valuing
the company at £615 million.Company Change
Vivo Energy Benefits from rebound in oil prices 3.2%
AJ Bell Analysts at Jefferies lift target price 2.7%
TBC Bank Recovers some losses 2.6%
Kingfisher Benefits from peer upgrading profit forecasts 2.5%
JP Morgan Japanese Investment Trust Finds buyers after last week’s sell-off 2.4%
Oxford BioMedica Extends recent losses -3.4%
Molten Ventures Shares retreat after Monday’s rally -3.4%
discoverIE Investors remain unconvinced after recent results -4.6%
Future Rally runs out of steam -5.6%
John Wood Positive sentiment grinds to a halt -6.4%The day’s biggest movers
A
prediction by JP Morgan
that Rotork is set fair for
next year — and an
upgrade from “neutral” to
“overweight” — made thespecialist engineer an investors’
favourite yesterday.
The American investment bank
acknowledged that the Bath-based
maker of valve actuators had beenValves are open for Rotork after
analysts anticipate flow of cash
affected disproportionately by supply
chain challenges, but it added that in
its view the disruption had reached its
peak. This meant that the FTSE 250
company was well positioned to step
up growth.
Lifting their price target from 335p
to 355p, the analysts at JP Morgan
said: “We see risk to numbers to the
upside as we move into 2022 and
2023, especially given the trust wehave in management to translate this
to higher margins and strong cash.”
They reckon that the accelerated
recovery of the oil and gas sector,
which represents 50 per cent of the
group’s sales, and its strong balance
sheet could lead to investors enjoying
more buybacks. Shares in Rotork rose
by nearly 4 per cent at one stage
thanks to the bullish note, although
by the close they were up by a more
modest 4¾p, or 1.4 per cent, at 352½p.
The FTSE 100, which has been on
something of a rollercoaster since the
emergence of the Omicron variant of
Covid-19, finished the day down
6.89 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 7,122.32,
but taken over the course of the week
it was up 66.62 points, or 1 per cent.
The more UK-biased FTSE 250 fell
38.76 points, or 0.2 per cent, to
22,646.08 yesterday, but it, too, was
ahead of Monday’s opening, rising by
87.89 points, or 0.4 per cent.
Shares in oil majors such as Royal
Dutch Shell and BP advanced,
tracking rising oil prices. Brent crude,
the international benchmark, had
added about 1.3 per cent to $70.75 a
barrel last night after Opec+, the
alliance of the Opec cartel and other
leading producers, said that it would
make “immediate adjustments” to its
output levels if required. Shell’s “B”
shares rose 17½p, or 1.1 per cent, to
£16.46½, while BP, which received
another boost when Deutsche Banktipped clients to buy the stock, rose by
4¼p, or 1.3 per cent, to 340¾p.
Berkeley Group was among the
biggest risers on the FTSE 100,
gaining 90p, or 2 per cent, to £45.49
ahead of its interim results next week,
while Kingfisher, the owner of B&Q,
put on 8p, or 2.5 per cent, to 331p as a
positive update from Wickes boosted
sentiment in the retailer. AJ Bell
clawed back some of the losses that
followed its disappointing full-year
results on Thursday after Jefferies
raised its price target on the stock.
The shares ended the day up 9¾p, or
2.7 per cent, at 371p.
Elsewhere, BHP fell 57½p, or 2.7 per
cent, to £20.41½ after the miner
extended the deadline for its offer to
acquire Noront Resources.
An Aim-listed company that
distributes cannabidiol and is backed
by David Beckham fell after it said
that it had made no revenue in the
past year. Cellular Goods, which
dropped ½p, or 4.6 per cent, to 7¾p,
blamed the £3.3 million loss it made in
the year to August on listing and
start-up costs.Wall Street report
A sell-off in technology stocks
pulled indices lower amid fears
about inflation, the Omicron variant
and poor jobs data. The Dow Jones
industrial average fell 59.71 points,
or 0.2 per cent, to 34,580.08, taking
it down 1 per cent on the week.