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Proactive news snapshot: Greencoat UK Wind, AfriTin Mining, Real Good Food...
A glance at some of the day's highlights from the Proactive Investors newswire
Company
SSE PLC
LON:SSE
SSE PLC, formerly Scottish and Southern Energy PLC, is a holding company. The company is involved in the generation, transmission, distribution and supply of electricity; the production, storage, distribution and supply of gas, and the provision of other energy-related services.
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Bank of England's 'Super Thursday' and slew of corporate earnings eyed as Chinese New Year begins
The week ahead includes updates from Thomas Cook, Superdry, Ryanair and Tate & Lyle, among others.
Npower to slash 900 jobs in wake of collapsed deal to merge with SSE's retail arm
Npower said it would make significant losses this year even with the savings from the job cuts
Greencoat UK Wind to acquire 35.5% stake in Stronelairg and Dunmaglass wind farms from SSE
The renewable energy investor said it would acquire a 49.9% stake in each of the wind farms in partnership with a major UK pension fund
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 finishes lower as uncertainty continues to be the watchword
The UK's premier share index finished down over 27 points at 6,834
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Whatever the UK government no-confidence vote outcome, investors will have plenty to chew over on Thursday
The Day Ahead will bring updates from the likes of Primark-owner Associated British Foods, a caffeine-free Whitbread, credit checker Experian, and software firm Sage
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SSE shares could slump if a UK general election is called
That’s according to UBS, which reckons investors are taking the risk of a general election “too lightly”
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Brexit, UK inflation the main focus but retail and housebuilder updates continue to flow
Aside from the Brexit merry-go-round, the Week Ahead will bring UK inflation and retail sales numbers, plus updates from the likes of AB Foods, Persimmon, Bovis Homes, and Whitbread
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SSE raises £380mln in cash to cut debt from sale of a 50% share in its SSE Enterprise Telecoms business
The FTSE 100-listed utility, which at the start of this week abandoned a proposed merger of its energy services business with German-owned Npower due to competition issues, said proceeds will be used to reduce its net debt
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SSE calls off Npower merger amid worries about price cap and competition
SSE believes its consumer energy supply unit would be "best positioned" outside the rest of the group
Centrica shares knocked as Deutsche Bank cuts target price for British Gas owner in review of European utilities
The German bank repeated a ‘sell’ rating on the FTSE 100-listed firm and reduced its target to 115p from 135p, leading the shares to shed nearly 4% at 134.10p in late morning trading
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SSE investors reassured by dividend hike but rocky road continues as it attempts to shelter earnings from vagaries of regulator and weather
George Salmon, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown said: “SSE has an enviable track record of dividend increases, but investors might be worried about the group’s next five year plan"
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SSE looking to spin-off renewable energy assets in UK and Ireland as it confirms big drop in first-half profit
The FTSE 100-listed firm said SSE Renewables will comprise around 4 gigawatts of SSE's existing renewable assets such as hydropower, onshore wind and several stakes in offshore wind projects
FTSE 100 closes lower ahead of Prime Minister's Brexit statement
The UK blue-chip index closed down 19.97 at 7,033, while FTSE 250 shed over 75 points at 18,910
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Investors hoping UK inflation will continue to retreat as wage growth goes in the opposite direction
Aside from the latest consumer price index data, the Day Ahead will also bring updates from the likes of British Land, SSE, Cobham, Smiths Group, and flyBe
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SSE merger with Npower hangs in the balance as parties renegotiate terms
An update on their progress will be provided by mid-December. SSE does not intend to provide further comment on the discussions until that update
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SSE PLC's planned merger of retail unit with Npower cleared by UK regulator
The CMA's final report confirms the findings of its provisional review
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 closes firmly in red as Italy causes jitters
In the currency markets, sterling is around flat against the Euro and down 0.43% against the US dollar.
FTSE 100 finishes in negative territory; Royal Mail slumps - again
FTSE 100 was on the losing team all day and closed down over 21 points at 7,474
West of Shetland discoveries point to new growth for offshore UK
The narrative around the North Sea’s demise is both exaggerated and premature, but, the 'blue sky' very much remains in the West of Shetland region
Investments and investor services
Market movers: N4 Pharma gets boost from the Men (and women) from EUNCL; Zinc Media surges after bagging several commissions
A look at the day's movers and shakers, featuring N4 Pharma, Zin Media, Rurelec, Trinity Exploration, Hurricane Energy, Thomas Cook, Gama Aviation, CyanConnode and Mosman
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SSE is oversold, says Deutsche Bank
"We see the profit warning reaction as a buying opportunity," Deutsche Bank said
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 closes higher as trade fears ebb; Kingfisher leads the laggards
The FTSE 100 closed nearly 31 points higher at 7,331, while FTSE 250 added over 42 at 20,500
FTSE 100 closes lower after lacklustre day; trade fears weigh
FTSE 100 closed down nearly two points on the day at 7,302
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SSE and Innogy name Martin Read as chairman of their new UK energy firm
SSE says that the new company remains on course to be formed and listed by the end of Q1 2019
FTSE 100 closes higher as traders come back to equities
It was around that level most of the day and closed at 7,304 - that's up around 0.37% on the week
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SSE pledge over dividend provides floor for energy provider’s stock after profit warning slide
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell said: “The commitment to maintaining a dividend growth streak that dates back to 1992 may persuade some investors to look afresh at the stock today"
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SSE warns of halving first-half adjusted operating profit due to warm summer, high gas prices
The FTSE 100-listed company said the relatively dry, still and warm weather has continued to impact on the group as have persistently high gas prices resulting in a higher cost of energy than expected
FTSE 100 closes higher with pound volatile, as tobacco stocks fire up on FDA move
The UK blue chip index rose 34 points to 7,308 around 3.40pm
Centrica and SSE shares gain as Ofgem energy price cap removes uncertainty
Ofgem said the planned energy price cap would save 11 million households on default deals about £75 on average
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 closes lower again as traders flee from risk
The UK blue chip index was about 10 points lower at 7,373, above the session low of 7,357.09 but below the morning peak of 7,397.74
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SSE “pleased” UK regulator has provisionally cleared planned merger of its energy retail business with Npower
The merger will create Britain's second-largest retail power provider and reduce the ‘Big Six’ dominating the market to five companies as they face political scrutiny over tarriffs
FTSE 100 keeps head above water at close: Facebook in focus
The Nasdaq on Wall Street is down over 88 points at the time of writing, at 7,420.
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Blue-chip deluge on Thursday with Royal Dutch Shell, AstraZeneca and Diageo (and more) set to report
Three of the 10 largest London-listed companies (by capitalisation) are updating the market on Thursday. A dozen or more other household names are also expected to report.
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SSE weak as it loses more customers, sees profit hit as warm weather reduces domestic gas demand
In a trading update released ahead of today’s annual general meeting, the FTSE 100-listed firm said its total customer accounts fell to 7.45mln as of 30 June 2018, down from 7.77mln a year earlier
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 closes marginally higher but European peers and US stocks lag
Footsie closed up around seven points, or 0.10% at 7,683 on Thursday
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Sports Direct to deliver improved annual results as investors hope for World Cup boost
The day ahead includes full year results from Sports Direct, a first quarter trading update from SSE and UK retail sales data
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SSE pays £190,000 to compensate customers for delayed switch
The UK energy regulator Ofgem said suppliers have 49 days to move customers onto another tariff, but SSE took almost six months, with some customers losing savings because of the delayed switch
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RBC Capital downgrades SSE to ‘perform’ from ‘outperform’
The analysts said its earnings per share (EPS) estimates have been cut by approximately 10%-15% across its forecast horizon and show no long-term growth
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Germany’s E.ON to raise prices for UK customers taking both gas and electricity by 4.8% from August 16
The German firm noted that wholesale energy costs have increased more than 20% since March, largely due to the impact of extremely cold temperatures earlier this year depleting European gas storage
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Utilities under pressure: SSE and Thames Water pay the penalty after regulatory investigations
Energy supplier SSE PLC has agreed to pay £1mln to Ofgem’s consumer redress fund after providing some pre-payment meter customers with inaccurate and misleading information in annual statements
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SSE to raise gas and electricity prices by £76 a year
The changes will come into effect on 11 July 2018 and will affect 2.36mln customers of SSE Energy Services and M&S Energy
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SSE expects challenging year ahead as it merges UK energy supply arm with npower
SSE said it lost 430,000 customer accounts in its retail division while the government's energy price caps for vulnerable customers also hit profits
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FTSE 100 closes higher but gives up gains; sterling hit on Brexit worries
Both the US and UK are heading towards a three-day weekend and, to be honest, it kind of feels like the break has already begun...
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Utilities in the spotlight as SSE and Pennon Group to release final results
Friday is going to see utility companies front and centre with final results from SSE and Pennon Group, accompanied by the reread of the UK's first quarter GDP data
M&S appoints former Dixons Carphone UK boss as non-executive director
New M&S chairman Archie Norman has been shaking up the board since joining the retailer last September
Npower to raise energy prices by £64 a year for one million customers
In a statement on its website, Npower said it is increasing a typical dual fuel annual energy bill by an average of £64 across all payment types to £1,230
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Competition and Markets Authority refers SSE and Npower merger for full investigation
Last month, the watchdog gave the two energy suppliers a chance to address concerns that the merger would reduce competition but they failed to provide any possible remedy
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UK competition watchdog to further scrutinise planned merger of SSE and Npower on worries over higher prices
The Competition and Markets Authority said the merger would be referred for a longer Phase 2 investigation unless the parties offer acceptable undertakings to address the competition concerns
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SSE and Innogy poach Dixons Carphone's head of UK & Ireland operations to head new energy supply business
The energy suppliers said the new company will be led by Bickerstaffe as it prepares for formation and listing, expected to take place in the last quarter of 2018 or the first quarter of 2019
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Time's almost up for GKN shareholders to vote on Melrose hostile takeover bid
The day ahead includes the outcome of Melrose's hostile takeover bid for GKN and trading updates from SSE and RPC
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Could price-to-sales be the key to identifying blue-chips on the recovery trail?
Since the "bombed out" virtual portfolio bit the dust, we've lacked a stock filter that identifies recovery stocks; once again drawing on the simple ideas of Michael O'Higgins ("Dogs of the Dow"), John Harrington takes a look at the price-t
FTSE 100 slides as dollar rallies on expectations of a March rate hike by the Fed
US workers' pay increased 2.9% year-on-year, compared to expectations of a 2.6% increase.
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SSE in talks with CMA over planned npower merger as it lifts earnings forecast
SSE now expects to report earnings per share of 116p to 120p, compared to a previous forecast of 116p.
FTSE 100 ends lower as pound firms; housebuilders weigh
Britain's top tier index closed around 54 points lower at 7,533
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If it's fizz you are after on Wednesday, look to Britvic rather than the Fed
It would be a major shock were the US central bank's policy-makers to opt for a rate hike
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Unilever among the quality blue chip updates scheduled, but Fed meeting and US jobs data more important
Week ahead includes updates from FTSE 100 AstraZeneca PLC, BT Group PLC, Royal Dutch Shell PLC, and Unilever PLC, plus a Federal Reserve meeting and January US jobs data
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 extends losing streak to four days; ABF top loser
The FTSE 100 closed lower on Thursday as there was no clear direction across global equities
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Royal Mail’s Christmas performance under the microscope on Thursday
As well as Royal Mail, updates are expected from Costa Coffee owner Whitbread and Associated British Foods - the parent company of Primark
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Coffee break eyed at Whitbread as retail trading updates continue to flow
Week ahead includes trading updates from Whitbread PLC, Associated British Foods PLC, Experian PLC, Royal Mail Group PLC, William Hill PLC, Burberry PLC, plus UK inflation and retail sales data
Year past and year ahead: Carillion, Lloyds, RBS and BT Group in focus
Carillion, Lloyds, RBS and BT were in the spotlight in 2017 and are likely to remain closely eyed by investors in 2018
FTSE 100 up 1% as pound takes a kicking following Brexit breakthrough
The non-farm payroll number beat consensus expectations, coming in at 228,000
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MPs call for full investigation of proposed SSE and npower merger
SSE and npower have argued that the deal will improve competition
FTSE 100 closes down, dragged lower by Centrica PLC after dismal trading update
Market was subdued as US markets were closed for Thanksgiving
FTSE 100 closes slightly higher as European stocks end in positive territory despite German political uncertainty
The FTSE 100 managed to turn away from earlier losses to edge slightly higher at the close
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Business secretary urged by union to block merger between SSE and npower
A merger of SSE and npower could reduce competition and lead to further energy price hikes, the GMB union has warned
FTSE 100 firmly in red as EU cuts growth forecasts for UK
After a bullish run over the past few months, European and US markets endured a rare off day on Thursday
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AstraZeneca's results: focus will be on the pipeline and recovery options for the MYSTIC trial
Will Astra get into the MYSTIC? The company said not all hope was lost for its lung cancer trial, which flunked in the summer
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SSE shares lose their spark as analysts raise doubts about merger with Npower
SSE said the operating environment continues to present a number of complex challenges with the government's plans to cap energy bills
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SSE in advanced talks with Innogy to create independent UK energy supplier
The new business would merge SSE’s household energy supply and services business in the UK with Innogy’s British division, Npower
Centrica and other 'Big Six' energy suppliers set to be hit by government's energy price cap
The energy price cap will apply to about 18mln accounts that use standard variable tariffs at least until 2020
HSBC trims price targets for British Gas-owner Centrica and SSE on energy price caps move
The analysts cut their target price for Centrica shares to 190p from 202p, reflecting a lower supply earnings multiple and a higher yield premium for increased political intervention, but maintained a ‘hold’ rating on the stock
FTSE 100 closes firmly in positive territory as sterling slides
The FTSE 100 rose to within a couple of points of 7,500 after US markets opened higher
Investments and investor services
Future PLC raises expectations as chairman signals intention to bow out
Peter Allen will not be going back to the Future board room after February's AGM
FTSE 100 barely changed after PM's speech; Centrica slides
Not much happening among the blue-chips but Image Scan and Future were among the big movers in the small caps sector
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SSE's dividend looks sustainable to Credit Suisse
Is the SSE dividend sustainable? Market says probably not; Credit Suisse says probably is.
FTSE 100 finishes nearly 44 points higher after strong start on Wall Street
The UK blue chip index closed at 7,353, as concerns over the US and North Korea tensions abated
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Small cap movers: Electric vehicles boost for Pan African Minerals and Cadence
A look back at some of this week's more interesting stories from the junior market
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SSE loses energy customers in the first quarter amid fierce competition
SSE has acknowledged the significant changes across the energy sector as the government clamps down on "rip off" bills
FTSE 100 ends almost 57 higher buoyed by retailers
London markets started the day on the front foot and haven't looked back ...
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Dependably dull Unilever versus off-the-wall Sports Direct
Can the supertanker Unilever ride the crest of a wave? Can a Newcastle United owner change his stripes?
British Gas owner Centrica unfazed by regulator Ofgem's plans for price cap for most vulnerable customers
In a statement, Ofgem said options being considered include introducing a safeguard tariff for vulnerable consumers which would protect them from overpaying for their energy
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SSE plc expects earnings to fall as it warns on Theresa May's proposed energy price cap
SSE has raised its full year dividend by 2.1% after achieving growth in profits, driven by its wholesale business
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Mitchells & Butlers PLC running out of elbow room in the restaurant sector
Wednesday preview: Competition is hotting up in the pub grub sector for Mitchells & Butlers, while London house prices and lettings fees are cooling for Foxtons.
Centrica and SSE shares tumble after Theresa May confirms proposed cap on energy bills
The government's proposal for an energy price cap is expected to deliver a massive blow to the sector
FTSE 100 firm but off highs despite new intra-day records for US indices
The UK blue chip index finished 41 points higher at 7,342, retreating from the session peak of 7,359 but still well above the day’s low of 7,300
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HSBC downgrades SSE to 'hold' on concern over potential tariff caps after energy price hikes
SSE has said it will raise prices for domestic customers from 1 April 2017 by 6.9%, or £73 per year, following on from price increases by other energy providers
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SSE raises electricity prices after hikes from EDF, Eon, Npower and Scottish Power
SSE is the last of the big six energy firms to announce its changes to energy bills this year
Npower's energy price hike makes mockery of Ofgem warning
The move comes as a slap in the face to the watchdog Ofgem...
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Energy firm SSE's earnings in line with City forecasts despite customer defections
It lost around 130,000 energy customers between March and December, according to the latest figures and now 8.08mln accounts.
FTSE 100 shares close lower, tracking Dow and Donald
FTSE 100 shares closed lower on Tuesday in sympathy with declines of up to 160 points on Wall Street’s DJIA as the fallout of US President Donald Trump’s first week in office continued to take its toll
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Carpetright up against tighter comparatives
Among the big names reporting: Britvic, Carpetright, Ocado and SSE
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Week Ahead: Shell expected to announce unchanged dividend for 2017
Big names reporting this week: SSE, TalkTalk, AstraZeneca, Compass, Vedanta
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 shares drop as sterling gains
London's FTSE 100 hit reverse gear as the pound recovered a little of its mojo
Dixons Carphone sees shares drop as "uncertain times" comment offsets strong results
Dixons Carphone chief executive Seb James said "while we have still not seen any effect on consumer demand as a consequence of Brexit, we have been planning for the possibility of more uncertain times ahead."
Will someone in the City bury bad news when the world watches US vote count?
So … who’s already pencilled into the schedule for Wednesday?
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 stocks sink as US election jitters intensify and sterling surges
FTSE 100 stocks closed sharply lower on Friday – with losers topping 50% of the market for the first time this year - as US election jitters came to a head, non-farm payrolls Stateside did little to bolster global markets, and sterling rose
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SSE sells one-sixth of SGN for £621mln
SSE sold one-sixth of SGN for £621mln but was remaining coy, for now, on what it plans to do with the money
Investments and investor services
FTSE 100 dragged lower by publisher Pearson
FTSE 100 shares were dragged lower by education publisher Pearson on Monday which plunged as much as 11% after it reported falling sales amid "challenging" trading
Broker sees Centrica losing its spark
Jefferies cut Centrica and power station operator Drax to ‘underperform’