Edison Investment Research

GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK): Shingrix approved in Europe and Japan

Stock up 3.94% to 1,324p at 08:08

The European Commission and the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare have approved Shingrix for the prevention of shingles. Shingrix was approved in the US and Canada in October 2017. Shingles affects approximately 1.7 million Europeans annually and approximately 600,000 new cases are reported in Japan each year. More than 99 percent of those over 50 years old are infected with VZV and it is estimated that around one in three people will develop shingles in their lifetime.

Stobart Group Ltd (STOB): Will not make an offer for Flybe Group.

Stock up 0.2% at 08:02

Stobart Group and Flybe have been unable to reach agreement on satisfactory terms and so Stobart does not intend to make an offer.

Bezant Resources PLC (BZT): Strategic review and issue of equity

Bezant will focus on its copper-gold exploration assets and development portfolio in the Philippines and Argentina as the Board believes copper has very strong fundamentals in the medium to long term. In an effort to preserve current cash resources, Bezant is issuing £139,250 of equity to pay for certain expenses

De La Rue PLC (DLAR): HMPO does not award UK passport design and production to DLAR

Stock down 2.4% at 08:02

Her Majesty’s Passport Office has decided not to award De La Rue the contract to design and produce the UK passport when its existing contract expires in July 2019. The current ten-year contract has a total value of c£400m. 2017 annual revenues were £461.7m; assuming a straight-line revenue recognition policy and that the renewal would be worth £400m, this amounts to a reduction in annual revenues of 8.7% for the next ten years.

ULTRA ELECTRONICS (ULE): Appointment of Chief Executive Officer

Stock up 1.2% at 08:02

Ultra appoints Simon Pryce as Chief Executive Officer, effective 18 June 2018. Mr Price led BBA Aviation from 2007 to 2017 to become the world’s leading business and general aviation service provider.

Regional REIT Ltd (RGL): 2017 final results

Stock up 1.4% at 08:02

The gross investment property portfolio grew 46.8% to £737.3m as acquisitions of £228.1m throughout 2017 were made at an average net initial yield of c.7.9%. Like-for-like property values increased by 2.6%. EPRA EPS grew 5.2% to 8.1p and the total dividend grew 2.6% to 7.85p. RGL’s year-end cost of debt was 3.8% with a weighted average maturity of 6 years. Net LTV was 45% and will be managed down to the long-term target of 40%.

Secure Trust BankPLC (STB): 2017 final results

Stock up 1.6% at 08:02

STB finished 2017 with a strong funding position, record pipeline and a focus on growing exposure to SME lending, residential mortgages and consumer finance, having exited sub-prime motor finance and unsecured personal loans. Total assets grew 31.3% to £1.89bn, profit before tax from continuing operations grew 28.9% to £25.0m and the dividend per share was raised 5.3% to 79p.

Some way to go for FAR in FAN

FAR has today released independently assessed resource figures for the FAN deepwater basin discovery offshore Senegal. RISC assigns 2C recoverable resources of 198mmbbls, based on data from the FAN-1 discovery well, drilled in 2014. Given that the well encountered thin reservoir sands of disappointing quality, the JV has since focused on appraising and developing the more attractive SNE field that sits nearby in shallower water on the shelf.

Social Media’s Dieselgate?

The risks include fines, increased regulation and a change in consumer preferences

The recent controversy over social media and the use of its user data is likely to persist. Many users may not understand that researchers can accurately profile individuals on something as simple as their Facebook “likes”. The potential for influencing in subtle ways both consumption and more controversially political behaviours through targeted advertising should be clear. Multiple investigations across jurisdictions may now cast a harsh light on business practices which may otherwise have continued under the radar. Global digital titans which have become in effect brokers of user data are therefore under threat on another front, in addition to a recently proposed digital revenue tax.

Amur Minerals Corp (AMC): 50% Mineral Resource Increase at Kun-Manie

Stock up 24.32% at 08:22

MRE update results in expansion of the Kun-Manie resource base by 50%, standing at 155.1m tonnes with an in-situ value in the order of $21.3b using March 2018 prices.