Broker Upgrades and Downgrades & Key UK Corporate Snapshots 29 July 2015

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3i Group Plc (III.L) Announced, in its FY2016 Q1 performance update, that it made a positive start to the year with good portfolio performance and realisations. Value growth from the Private Equity portfolio and 3iN resulted in an increase in diluted NAV per share to 400p (31 March 2015: 396p). Market conditions continued to create opportunities to realise a number of smaller investments at attractive valuations and 3i generated total cash proceeds in the quarter of £229 million. Further, the company announced two new investments in Private Equity. The portfolio continues to perform well with Action and 3i Infrastructure plc in particular supporting good unrealised value growth. Fee income remained strong in the quarter, with the majority of the funds continuing to pay both senior and subordinated fees and the FY2015 fund launches adding to total fee income. The Group’s balance sheet remains strong. Gross debt and liquidity are stable and were £812 million and £1,376 million respectively at 30 June 2015.

AFH Fin Group Plc (AFHP.L) Announced, in its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 April 2015, that its reported revenue stood at £8.2 million, compared to £7.3 million in the preceding period. Profit after tax was £0.42 million compared to £0.43 million. The company’s diluted earnings per share was 2.0p, compared to 2.29p.

Antofagasta Plc (ANTO.L) Announced, in its Q2 2015 production report, that copper production in Q2 2015 was 157,000 tonnes, a 7.2% increase compared with the previous quarter, reflecting primarily the impact of the protests at Los Pelambres and the heavy rains at Centinela Concentrates in Q1. Copper sales for the half year were 290,100 tonnes as bad weather delayed shipments over the period end which have normalised in July. Meanwhile, Gold production was 112,500 ounces in H1 2015, a 9.1% decrease on H1 2014 due to lower production at Los Pelambres. Molybdenum production was 23.8% higher at 2,600 tonnes in Q2 2015 compared with Q1 2015 and 42.4% higher in H1 2015 compared with the previous year, principally due to a higher molybdenum-grade zone being mined during Q2 2015. Cash costs before by-product credits in Q2 2015 were $1.93/lb, 5.5% higher than in Q1 2015. This increase is mainly related to lower grades at Los Pelambres combined with lower production and grades at Centinela. Expected first production at Antucoya has been delayed until the end of Q3 due to issues with the commissioning of the crusher circuit. The company also completed the sale of its water division for approximately $960 million to Empresas Públicas de Medellín on 2 June 2015.

Atkins (WS) Plc (ATK.L) Announced its first quarter trading update for the period from 1 April 2015 to date. The Group has traded in line with expectations and the outlook for the full year remains positive.

Barclays Plc (BARC.L) Announced, in its unaudited results for the six months ended 30 June 2015, that total income stood at £12,009 million, compared to £12,246 million in the same period last year. Profit after tax was £2,652 million, compared to £2,240 million. Basic earnings per share stood at 2.0p, compared to 2.0p.

Brewin Dolphin Holdings Plc (BRW.L) Announced, in its interim management statement for the 3 months ended 30 June 2015, that the total Discretionary Funds under Management stood at £25.6 billion (H1 2015: £26.2 billion, FY 2014: £24.0 billion). The total income was seen at £73.0 million (Q3 2014: £73.1 million) while the core income was seen at £66.9 million compared to £67.0 million last year. Fee income stood at £47.4 million (Q3 2014: £46.1 million) while the commission income was £19.5 million (Q3 2014: £20.9 millon). 84% of core income was from Discretionary service which stood at £56.1 million (Q3 2014: £54.8 million). Annualised rate of net inflow in Discretionary Funds under Management was 3% in Q3 2015, 5% YTD, in line with its target of 5% per annum, with £0.9 billion of net inflows into the service YTD.

British American Tobacco Plc (BATS.L) Announced, in its half year report to 30 June 2015, that revenue stood at £6,398 million, compared to £6,798 million in the same period last year. Operating profit stood at £2,347 million, compared to £2,458 million. Profit after tax was £2,784 million, compared to £1,886 million. Diluted earnings per share stood at 142.1p, compared to 93.1p.

British Land Co Plc (BLND.L) Announced that it has exchanged contracts for the sale of 39 Victoria Street, SW1 to Singaporean property company Ho Bee Land for a gross purchase price of £144 million (net price of c. £139 million after deduction of rent free top up). This transaction is in line with its capital recycling strategy and comes three months after the acquisition of One Sheldon Square at Paddington Central, where we are on site at 4 Kingdom Street and progressing our plans to improve the public realm.

Capita Plc (CPI.L) Announced, in its half year results for the 6 months ended 30 June 2015, that its total revenue stood at £2,288.9 million, compared to £2,071.0 million in the preceding period. Profit after tax was £118.7 million compared to £124.7 million. The company’s diluted earnings per share was 17.59p, compared to 18.43p.

Capital & Counties Properties Plc (CAPC.L) Announced, in its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2015, that revenue fell marginally to £52.0 million from £54.2 million posted in the same period last year. The company’s profit before tax stood at £277.3 million, compared to a profit of £139.8 million reported in the previous year. The basic earnings per share stood at 31.4p compared to earnings of 17.8p reported in the previous year. The company further stated that the board have proposed an interim dividend per ordinary share of 0.5p payable on 25 September 2015

Compass Group Plc (CPG.L) Announced, in its third quarter update that the group continues to have a good year, with organic revenue growth of 5.5% for the nine months to 30 June 2015. Organic revenue growth in the third quarter was 5.1% reflecting strong net new business in North America, an acceleration of growth in our Europe & Japan region, and a more subdued environment in both Fast Growing & Emerging and Offshore & Remote. There has been no material change to its financial position in the period. The £500 million share buyback programme announced in November 2013 is almost complete with around £475 million spent as at 28 July 2015. Compass had a good third quarter and maintains its positive revenue expectations for the full year.

Coral Products Plc (CRU.L) Announced, in its final results for the half year ended 30 April 2015, that revenues rose to £17.4 million from £17.2 million recorded in the previous year. Profit after tax stood at £0.2 million compared to a loss of £0.9 million. The board announced a 40% increase in total dividend for the year of 0.7p (2014: 0.5p).

Dignity Plc (DTY.L) Announced, in its unaudited interim results for the 26 week period ended 26 June 2015, that its total revenue stood at £158.7 million, compared to £133.1 million in the preceding period. Profit after tax was £35.0 million compared to £24.2 million. The company’s diluted earnings per share was 70.9p, compared to 45.1p.

Foxtons Group Plc (FOXT.L) Announced its financial results for the half year ended 30 June 2015. The company delivered Group revenue of £71.1 million in H1 2015, just 2.3% lower than last year. PBT of £18.1 million (2014: £23.1 million) fell by 21.4%. Due to the continued strong cash generation of the Group, the Board has decided to pay an interim and special dividend totalling 4.77pps which is a 5% increase on prior year (2014: 4.54pps). Payment will be made on 25 September 2015 to shareholders on the register at close of business on 4 September 2015. The shares will be quoted ex-dividend on 3 September 2015. Assuming current activity levels in the market continue, the company expects to deliver stronger sales performance in the latter part of the year with full year 2015 Adjusted EBITDA in line with market expectations.

Greggs Plc (GRG.L) Announced, in its interim results for the 26 weeks ended 4 July 2015, that revenue rose to £398.4 million from £374.4 million posted in the for 26 weeks ended 28 June 2014. The company’s profit before tax stood at £25.6 million, compared to a profit of £8.7 million reported in the previous year. The basic earnings per share stood at 20.0p compared to earnings of 6.2p reported in the previous year. The company further stated that a special dividend was announced on 29 April 2015 for the year 2015 and was paid on 17 July 2015. The liability of £20.1 million in respect of this dividend is recorded in the balance sheet at 4 July 2015. The proposed interim dividend is not payable until 2 October 2015 and the associated ex-dividend date is 3 September 2015. As both of these dates fall after the balance sheet date, the interim dividend has not been included as a liability in the accounts at 4 July 2015.

Indivior Plc (INDV.L) Announced, in its second quarter results for the period ended 30 June 2015, that revenue stood at $266 million, compared to $293 million in the same period last year. Operating profit stood at $115 million, compared to $162 million. Profit after tax was $66 million, compared to $114 million. Diluted earnings per share stood at 9c, compared to 16c. Additionally, the company also announced that the New Drug Application (NDA) for naloxone nasal spray was accepted and received Priority Review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of opioid overdose. This naloxone nasal spray comes as a pre-filled device that contains naloxone specially formulated for optimal absorption into the nasal mucosa.1 The device has been designed to require minimal training so individuals may be better equipped to help an opioid overdose victim.

International Personal Finance Plc (IPF.L) Announced, in its unaudited half year results for the 6 months ended 30 June 2015, that its total revenue stood at £372.9 million, compared to £394.1 million in the preceding period. Profit after tax was £26.9 million compared to £15.8 million. The company’s diluted earnings per share was 11.3p, compared to 6.4p.

Jupiter Fund Management Plc (JUP.L) Announced half year results for the six months ended 30 June 2015. Net revenue for the period was £169.4 million (2014 H1: £148.5 million), a 14% increase on 2014 H1. Profit before tax for the period increased to £84.0 million (2014 H1: £48.4 million). The Board has declared an increased interim dividend of 4.0p (2014 H1: 3.7p). Chief Executive Maarten Slendebroek said “The first half of 2015 has seen continued strong delivery on behalf of all our stakeholders, validating our strategy to focus on investment outperformance, organic net flow growth and a scalable business model. We have seen encouraging progress with our conscious diversification by product, client type and geography and made key hires in our investment, distribution and support functions which contribute to our ability to achieve further scalable growth in periods to come.”

Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE.L) Announced, in its second quarter results for the period ended 30 June 2015, that revenue stood at $152.6 million, compared to $195.8 million in the same period last year. Operating profit stood at $40 million, compared to $48.5 million. Profit after tax was $38.9 million, compared to $44.8 million. Diluted earnings per share stood at $0.19, compared to $0.23.

Man Group Plc (EMG.L) Announced, in its unaudited interim results for the 6 months ended 30 June 2015, that its revenue stood at $625.0 million, compared to $500 million in the preceding period. Profit after tax was $130.0 million compared to $90.0 million. The company’s diluted earnings per share was 7.5c, compared to 5.0c.

Mitchells & Butlers Plc (MAB.L) Announced its third quarter trading update. Total sales growth in the third quarter was 5.0%, bringing growth in the first 43 weeks to 8.2%. Like-for-like sales continued to grow over the third quarter, with strong food sales offsetting a softer drinks performance. As previously reported, operating margins are below last year reflecting the lower margin of Orchid ahead of full integration and sales growth being driven by food volumes. Chief Executive, Alistair Darby said “This year we have continued to successfully grow our food volumes and our like-for-like sales ahead of a subdued market, in addition to integrating and converting the Orchid business as planned. These initial conversions are trading well and in line with our expectations.”

Mwana Africa Plc (MWA.L) Announced its audited financial results for the year to 31 March 2015. The Group reported revenue for the year of $152.3 million (2014: $142.5 million) and an EBITDA for the year of $18.8 million (2014: $25.0 million). The net profit for the year is $7.0 (2014: $50.6 million). In view of current trading volumes and lower commodity prices, the company expects that profits for H1 FY2016 will be lower than the previous half year, being H2 FY2015.

National Express Group Plc (NEX.L) Announced, in its results for the six months ended 30 June 2015, that the total revenue plunged to £960.2 million from £1867.4 million posted in the same period preceding year. The company’s profit before tax stood at £54.3 million, compared to a profit of £66.5 million reported in the previous year. The basic earnings per share stood at 8.5p compared to earnings of 11.6p reported in the previous year. The company further stated that the board has proposed ordinary interim dividend of 3.685p per share for the period.

Paragon Group Of Companies Plc (PAG.L) Announced its trading update based on business performance from 1 October 2014 to date, together with a commentary on the unaudited financial information from 1 October 2014 to 30 June 2015. The Group’s financial performance continues to run in line with management’s expectations. Operating profit (before fair value items) of £98.0 million for the nine months to 30 June 2015 compares with £88.3 million for the corresponding period in the previous year, representing an 11% increase. Pre-tax profits, after a charge of £0.5 million for fair value hedging items, were £97.5 million for the period (2014: £88.8 million). The Group is well placed to generate further growth in each of its target markets. At 30 June 2015, the pipeline of buy-to-let business (including Paragon Bank) stood at £864.9 million, compared to £352.7 million at the same point in 2014, and this is expected to lead to strong growth for 2015. The Group intends to announce its results for the year to 30 September 2015 on 24 November 2015.

Pets at Home Group Plc (PETS.L) Announced a Q1 FY16 trading update for the 16 week period from 27th March 2015 to 16th July 2015. Like-for-like revenue growth stood at 1.7% driven by Advanced Nutrition, VIP club, Services and Omnichannel, partially offset by a poor season for Health & Hygiene products and very hot weather in July. The company recorded total revenue growth of 6.4% to £224.2 million. CEO Nick Wood said “We expect new store and services openings to remain second half weighted and are confident in our rollout targets for the full year. Our full year outlook remains in-line with market expectations.”

Premier Farnell Plc (PFL.L) Announced, in its trading update, that following first quarter (Q1) trading update in June, group sales per day momentum has slowed significantly, particularly in North American and UK markets. Group sales growth per day in the second quarter is now expected to be 1.2% versus the 5.4% delivered in the first quarter. Excluding Raspberry Pi, Group sales per day growth is expected to be 0.8% in the second quarter, compared to 1.9% in the first quarter. Reflecting the trading performance and the impact of current exchange rates, now expects adjusted operating profit in the first half to be down approximately 10% on the first half of last year. This excludes the impact of a circa £2.0 million provision release relating to the successful outcome of a potential legal action. Including the provision release, adjusted operating profit is expected to be approximately 6% down year on year. The group’s interim results will be published on 17th September 2015.

Quartix Holdings Plc (QTX.L) Announced, in its interim results for the half year ended 30 June 2015, that revenue stood at £9.19 million, compared to £7.40 million in the same period last year. Operating profit stood at £2.72 million, compared to £2.51 million. Profit after tax was £2.22 million, compared to £2.50 million. Diluted earnings per share stood at 4.67p, compared to 5.26p.

Renishaw Plc (RSW.L) Announced results for the year ended 30th June 2015. Revenue for the year ended 30th June 2015 was £494.7 million, compared with £355.5 million for last year, an increase of 39%. The Group’s profit before tax for the year more than doubled to £144.2 million, compared with an adjusted £70.1 million last year. Statutory profit before tax for last year was £96.4 million, which included the exceptional gain of £26.3 million on the disposal of our shareholding in Delcam plc. A final dividend of 34.0p net per share will be paid on 19th October 2015, to shareholders on the register on 18th September 2015, giving a total dividend of 46.5p for the year, an increase of 13% over last year’s 41.2p. Directors remain confident in the long-term prospects for the Group. At this early stage in the current financial year, the company anticipate that revenue for this year will be in the range of £460 million to £485 million and profit before tax will be in the range of £85 million to £105 million.

Rightmove Plc (RMV.L) Announced half year results for the six months ended 30 June 2015. Revenue grew to £93.1 million (2014: £80.4 million) up 16% on the previous year. Underlying operating profit increased by 18% to £70.3 million (2014: £59.6 million) with underlying operating margin increasing to 75.5% (2014: 74.1%). Underlying earnings per share rose 24% to 58.9p (2014: 47.5p), reflecting the strong growth in profits and the benefit of ongoing share buyback programme. The Board has announced an interim dividend of 16p (2014: 13.0p), an increase of 23%, as part of its commitment to a progressive dividend policy. The interim dividend will be paid on 6 November 2015 to members on the register on 9 October 2015. Rightmove’s trading in July has been in line with the first half of the year and with the visibility provided by our subscription model the Board is confident of delivering its expectations for the year. Next reporting date will be the 26th February 2016 when we will announce our results for the year ending 31 December 2015.

Riverstone Energy Limited (RSE.L) Announced, in its final results for the half year ended 30 June 2015, that investment gain stood at $5.9 million compared to a loss of $1.0 million. Profit after tax stood at $4.1 million compared to a loss of $2.4 million. Diluted earnings stood at 5.33 cents, compared to a loss of 3.94 cents. As of 30 June 2015, REL had a NAV per share of $16.36, representing an increase of 2.25% versus NAV per share at 30 June 2014.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBS.L) Announced that it has finalised the price of the offering of shares in Citizens Financial Group. The offering comprises 86 million shares or 16.0% of Citizens common stock at a public offering price of $26.0 per share. It has also granted a 15% over-allotment option, under which the underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase an additional 12.9 million shares at the public offering price, less the underwriting discount. If the underwriters exercise this option in full, the total offering size, including the shares pursuant to the over-allotment option, would comprise 98.9 million shares, or 18.4% of Citizens common stock.

Share Plc (SHRE.L) Announced, in its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2015, that revenue fell marginally to £7.4 million from £7.9 million posted in the same period preceding year. The company’s profit before tax stood at £0.014 million, compared to a profit of £0.076 million reported in the previous year. The basic earnings per share stood at 0.1p compared to earnings of 0.4p reported in the previous year. Cash and cash balances stood at £12.1 million compared to £13.2 million last year.

Sky Plc (SKY.L) Announced, in its results for the twelve months ended 30 June 2015, that revenue stood at £9,989 million, compared to £7,450 million in the same period last year. Operating profit stood at £972 million, compared to £1,104 million. Profit after tax was £1,332 million, compared to £820 million. Diluted earnings per share from continuing operations stood at 78.2p, compared to 52.0p.

SSE Plc (SSE.L) Announced that it has entered into an agreement with Total E&P UK Limited to acquire: a 20% interest in the four gas fields and surrounding exploration acreage approximately 125 km north west of the Shetland Islands, collectively known as the Greater Laggan Area; and a 20% interest in the new Shetland Gas Plant. The value of the transaction will comprise consideration of £565 million for the assets (which reflects their value based on an effective economic date of 1 January 2015, including associated UK capital allowances) plus additional forecast investment of £350 million in the period to 2018 to complete the entire development.

St. James’s Place Plc (STJ.L) Announced, in its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2015, that its net income stood at £2,039.2 million, compared to £1,755.7 million in the preceding period. Profit after tax was £67.0 million compared to £82.4 million. The company’s diluted earnings per share was 10.3p, compared to 12.7p.

Sylvania Platinum Limited (SLP.L) Announced, in its results for the quarter ended 30 June 2015, that Sylvania Dump Operations (“SDO”) PGM ounce production increased 5% to 13,468 ounces for the quarter (Q3 FY2015: 12,778 ounces). Full year production at record level for Sylvania of 57,587 ounces, an increase of 7% on the previous year’s production (FY2014: 53,808 ounces), exceeding the revised upward guidance of between 55,000 and 57,000 ounces for the financial year. The group reported cash balance of $8.4 million at 30 June 2015 (5% decrease on Q3 FY2015 of $8.8 million) and 58% increase year-on-year (FY2014: $5.3 million) in spite of poor metal pricing environment.

Tate & Lyle Plc (TATE.L) Announced, in its trading statement for the period from 1 April 2015 to 30 June 2015, that the group’s trading performance in the first quarter was in line with expectations and guidance for the full year remains unchanged. Net debt was slightly lower than the position at 31 March 2015 aided by the translation effects of a stronger sterling. Following the quarter end, on 21 July 2015, the company priced a $400 million debt private placement with notes to be issued maturing in 8, 10 and 12 years, extending the average maturity of our debt by approximately 2 years. The transaction is expected to complete on 29 October 2015. Overall, before the impact of exchange rate movements1 and the final timing of the completion of the Eaststarch transaction, expectations for the group’s full year performance remain unchanged from our guidance in May. Guidance assumed exchange rate of £1.00:$1.54.

Taylor Wimpey Plc (TW..L) Announced, in its interim results for the six months ended 28 June 2015, that revenues rose to £1,335.3 million from £1,190.1 million recorded in the same period a year ago. Profit after tax widened to £189.7 million from £155.0 million. Diluted earnings per share stood at 5.8p, up from 4.7p. The board has declared a 2015 interim maintenance dividend of 0.49p per share to be paid on 2 October 2015. As at 26 July 2015, it was approximately 90% forward sold for private completions for 2015 with a total order book of £1,994 million (2014 equivalent period: £1,644 million), giving good visibility and security for 2015 and beyond. It anticipates underlying build costs to increase by approximately 5% year on year during 2015.

Teathers Financial Plc (TEA) Announced, in its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 April 2015, that the group reported nil revenues during the year. Loss after tax stood at £0.16 million compared to a profit of £0.20 million.

TeleCity Group Plc (TCY.L) Announced, in its half year results for the 6 months ended 30 June 2015, that its total revenue stood at £173.5 million, compared to £174.1 million in the preceding period. Profit after tax was £3.9 million compared to £38.1 million. The company’s diluted earnings per share was 1.9p, compared to 18.7p.

Tullow Oil Plc (TLW.L) Announced, in its half year results for six months ended 30 June 2015, that revenue stood at $819.6 million, compared to $1,264.6 million in the same period last year. Operating profit stood at $96.5 million, compared to $36.3 million. Loss after tax was $67.7 million, compared to a loss of $95.1 million. Diluted loss per share from continuing operations stood at 7.5c, compared to a loss of 8.3c.

Tyman Plc (TYMN.L) Announced, in its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2015, that revenue grew to £175.4 million from £166.9 million posted in the same period preceding year. The company’s profit before tax stood at £7.6 million, compared to a profit of £4.9 million reported in the previous year. The basic earnings per share stood at 7.76p compared to earnings of 7.32p reported in the previous year. The company further stated that an interim dividend for the 2015 year of 2.66p per share (H1 2014: 2.00p per share) will be paid on 3 September 2015 to shareholders on the register at close of business on 7 August 2015.)

Wizz Air Holdings Plc (WIZZ.L) Announced, in its interim management statement for the 3 months ended 30 June 2015, that revenue rose to €332.5 million from €295.2 million posted in the same period last year. The company’s profit before tax stood at €34.4 million, compared to a profit of €31.0 million reported in the previous year. The cash at the end stood at €651 million compared to €571 million last year.