Pubs, property and printing

Wednesday 2 December 2015

The headline index opened moderately higher after Wall Street registered steady gains overnight and despite some mixed signals in Asia as traders attempt to digest an assortment of global economic data.

“Greene King’s (LSE:GNK) strong first half figures were well received by investors despite the group’s concerns that it still not seeing all the benefits from increased consumer confidence,” says AJ Bell Investment Director Russ Mould.

“Profits are up across all its divisions and it expects to outperform initial cost synergies following the takeover of its smaller rival Spirit. But people are spending more on big items rather than popping down to the pub and Greene King faces intense competition for every pound in a consumer’s pocket.

“Property portal Zoopla’s (LSE:ZPLA) shares rose after pre-tax profits increased by 17% and it hiked the proposed final dividend by 127%. The group has seen further growth in membership numbers and remains comfortable with market expectations for the 2016 financial year

“Among small caps, banknote printer De La Rue (LSE:DLAR) was an early riser after it revealed the results of its review to optimise its manufacturing footprint which, it says, demonstrates positive early progress on the delivery of the five year strategic plan.”

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