Shares in newspaper publisher Reach jumped by more than 20pc on their best day for 14 years as it raised its profits forecasts for the year.
The company, which owns the Daily Mirror and Express newspapers as well as the Daily Star and a raft of regional titles, said trading in the fourth quarter of 2024 was ‘strong’.
‘As a result, we now expect to deliver results ahead of current market expectations for the full year,’ it added.
Analysts had pencilled in profits of £97.8million for 2024, up from £96.5million in 2023.
But with this figure set to be exceeded, Reach shares rose 20.8 per cent, or 15p, to 87p.
While the US stock markets were closed for Martin Luther King Day, all eyes were still on America for the inauguration of Donald Trump and his return to the White House.
The FTSE 100 index clocked up a record close, up 0.2 per cent, or 15.32 points, to 8520.54, having hit an all-time intra-day high of 8548.59.
The FTSE 250 slipped 0.5 per cent, or 110.68 points, to 20486.74.
Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said the London market was being buoyed by ‘renewed investor enthusiasm’.
But she added that whatever Trump says now he is back in the Oval Office will ‘hold sway on markets’.
She said: ‘In particular, there will be intense interest in any clues as to just how punishing tariffs could be during his term, and the knock-on effect for inflation and global trade.’
British Airways and Aer Lingus owner IAG continued its recovery with shares rising another 1.6 per cent, or 5.2p, to 322.7p.
The stock is at its highest level since February 2020 when the Covid-19 outbreak sent it into freefall.
Shares have more than doubled since the start of last year as booming demand for international travel – and the lucrative transatlantic routes – boost business.
Oilfield services firm John Wood Group gained 2.9 per cent, or 1.95p, to 70.35p after it won a ‘significant’ contract with Esso Australia to maintain onshore and offshore assets in Gippsland Basin, Victoria.
The shares have gained 40 per cent since their November lows but remain down nearly 70 per cent since July. Pharmaceuticals giant GSK said its Jemperli treatment for endometrial cancer has been approved in the EU.
But shares lost 0.4 per cent, or 5p, to 1354p after analysts at Jefferies cut their target price on the stock to 1450p from 1525p.
Rival Astrazeneca and its partner Daiichi won approval in the US for a breast cancer treatment.
But Jefferies also cut the price target on this stock to 10,900p from 11,400p and the shares dipped 1.3 per cent, or 144p, to 10794p.
Kenmare Resources was flat at 310p despite reporting a strong performance for 2024. Berenberg analysts raised their target price to 350p from 340p.
Scientific instruments group Judges Scientific said results for 2024 will be in line with expectations despite a ‘difficult year’. Shares rose 3.8 per cent, or 280p, to 7640p.
Stock Watch – Sanderson Design
Upmarket interiors firm Sanderson Design has warned over tumbling profits amid weak demand from shoppers.
The company, which received a royal warrant last month,
said profits for the year are set to fall by more than half as a result. Sanderson told shareholders a ‘recent worsening of trading conditions’ has hit
business. It said the ‘downturn in consumer confidence’ was ‘most significant in the UK’, its largest market. Shares dipped 12 per cent, or 6.5p, to 47.5p.
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