Pets At Home H1 Total Group Revenue Up 5.1%

Pets At Home Group (PETS.L) reported a 5.1% growth in first-half group revenue that amounted to £574.4 million compared to £546.3 million last year. Like-for-like revenue grew 5.3%.

Underlying gross margin declined by 136 bps to 47.7% from 49.0% last year, with Group statutory gross margin also at 47.7% compared to 47.6% prior year.

Profit for the period increased to £31 million from £25.6 million reported in the prior year period. On a per share basis, earnings rose to 6.1p from 5.1p earned a year ago.

Peter Pritchard, Group Chief Executive Officer, said, “In spite of the ongoing and wide-ranging impact of COVID-19, there is much to be optimistic about… There is much to be proud of over the last six months and much to look forward to in equal measure. While we will continue to remain focused and agile in our execution, we are, more than ever, confident in the resilience and longevity of our pet care platform”.

Lakshmi Vilas Bank stock tanks over 53% in 6 days

The government has placed LVB under one-month moratorium.

Shares of Lakshmi Vilas Bank continued to face selling pressure for the sixth consecutive day and have tanked over 53% during the period amid negative reports around the company.

On Tuesday, the stock plunged 9.88% to ₹ 7.30 — its lower circuit limit as well as one year low — on BSE.

At NSE, it plummeted 9.88% to ₹ 7.30 — its lowest trading permissible limit for the day.

Since last Tuesday (November 17), the stock has tanked 53.35% on the BSE.

The government has placed Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB) under one-month moratorium, superseded its board and capped withdrawals at ₹ 25,000 per depositor.

The Hindu Explains | What is a bank moratorium, and when does it come into play?

The step was taken on the advice of the Reserve Bank of India, in view of the declining financial health of the private sector lender.

LVB is the third bank to be placed under moratorium since September last year after the cooperative bank PMC in 2019 and private sector lender Yes Bank this March. While Yes bank has successfully been revived under the guidance of State Bank, the PMC resolution is still a far cry.

Tesla’s Musk becomes world’s second richest person: report

Analyst sets Tesla stock price target at $578

New Street Research managing partner Pierre Ferragu provides insight into Tesla’s profitability, stock and future.

Elon Musk’s personal wealth seems like it’s flying higher than a SpaceX rocket.

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Bloomberg reported Monday that Musk, the CEO of Telsa, surpassed Bill Gates to become the world’s second richest person behind Jeff Bezos.

LAS VEGAS CASINO RECOVERY THREATENED BY NEW CALIFORNIA CORONAVIRUS LOCKDOWNS

The report said a rally by Tesla on Monday earned Musk about $7.2 billion, bringing his new net worth to $127.9 billion.

The report said that Gates’ net worth would be higher but he has donated vast sums of money to charities over the year, including $27 billion to his Gates Foundation.

Last week, it was reported that Tesla will be added to the S&P 500 index on Dec. 21. Tesla shares jumped nearly 14% in after-hours trading after the announcement.

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Tesla shares have soared 387.8% this year as the company is finally making money on a consistent basis after years of losses and continues to hit milestones for deliveries of its vehicles. Tesla earned $331 million in the third quarter on revenue of $8.77 billion.

Tesla shares could double as global electric vehicle demand ramps up over the next five years, according to one Wall Street analyst.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

China tells Britain to curb double standards on six-monthly Hong Kong reports

BEIJING (Reuters) – China urged Britain on Tuesday to curb its colonial mindset, hypocrisy and double standards, in a response to its series of six-monthly reports on the former colony of Hong Kong.

The remarks were made by foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian at a news conference in the Chinese capital of Beijing.

Phoenix Group Seeks Strategic Options For European Businesses – Quick Facts

Phoenix Group Holdings PLC (PHNX.L), in response to recent press speculation, confirms that it is assessing a range of strategic options for its European businesses, Phoenix Europe.

The company also revealed the receipt of recent expressions of interest from third parties for European business.

Phoenix Europe is an established participant in the European life insurance market, with operations across Ireland, Germany and the UK offshore savings market.

Phoenix said it will make further announcement in due course if appropriate.

Russian online retailer Ozon prices IPO at $30 per ADS, above target

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian online retailer Ozon priced its New York initial public offering (IPO) at $30 per American depositary share (ADS), above its target range, raising $990 million, the company said on Tuesday.

Ozon last week said it planned to issue 30 million American depositary shares at between $22.50 and $27.50 each.

Pennon Group HY Profit From Cont. Opns Down

Pennon Group (PNN.L) reported that its profit from continuing operations for the first half of 2020/21 declined to 50.4 million pounds from 93.9 million pounds in the prior year.

Profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent was 1.77 billion pounds or 418.8 pence per share compared to 126.6 million pounds or 30.0 pence per share in the previous year. The latest-period results included the profit from the sale of Viridor and non-underlying charges in discontinued operations resulting from the restructuring of debt that was drawn to fund Viridor’s growth program.

Underlying profit before tax was 86.7 million pounds compared to 101.4 million pounds in the previous year. Continuing Group underlying earnings per share down 10.9% to 17.9 pence.

Underlying EBITDA lower at 174.5 million pounds from 191.5 million pounds reflecting the K7 revenue reset and the impact of COVID-19, including reduced developer activity during lockdown.

Revenue for the period was 299.2 million pounds, down from 325.8 million pounds in the prior year.

Underlying revenue declined to 319.7 million pounds from last year’s 325.8 million pounds, due to the impact of the K7 revenue reset, a reduction in water usage and other services by non-household customers as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown, partially offset by high household demand and contract wins for Pennon Water Services.

For the first-half of 2020/21, the company has declared an interim dividend of 6.77 pence for the Continuing Group. The interim dividend will be paid on 1 April 2021 to shareholders on the register on 29 January 2021.