Pub operator JD Wetherspoon issued interim results this morning and whilst sales continue to outperform the wider market, the company is continuing to battle against rising costs. Increased wage bills, new environmental levies and higher input costs are all taking a toll and whilst the company appears to be absorbing most of those extras to manage a fragile consumer outlook that’s taking a toll on profitability. The H1 metric was down almost 20% year on year and the note cautions that the full year profits may be below current expectations. The JD Wetherspoon share price was 10% lower in early trade.
The private hospitals operator saw its share price jump significantly higher this morning following media reports last night that the proposed offer for the company from Bridgepoint had taken another step forward. Sky News announced that a bid of around 230p per share was being considered, although with the “put up or shut up” deadline currently set to expire at the weekend an extension will be required. At the time of writing there was no official market notification of the news but the Spire share price was up more than 8%.
Discount retailer The Works has this morning provided an update for the market, advising that it will suspend online trading operations with immediate effect, reverting back to a traditional bricks and mortar store proposition. That’s going to come with £2m worth of costs but management are confident that the new trading model will result in higher profitability with the FY27 forecast being upped from £12.7m to £15m. Further store expansion is planned and The Works share price was up 18% by 8.45am. The assumption would be that a formal change to the company’s name will now follow…
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