Below are the key morning press headlines, featuring the The Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail & more - see the full Press section here.
Regulators must ensure that Heathrow passengers do not end up paying for a third runway that is “unlikely to ever actually be built”, Willie Walsh, chief executive of International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) , has said. Mr Walsh says the Civil Aviation Authority needs to be much tougher with Heathrow, which he fears will try to pass on the cost of drawing up plans and building the runway through higher landing charges. Heathrow has insisted that this will not be the case.
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) , Britain’s biggest investment platform, has shrugged off the furore caused by the Woodford affair and warned that Brexit and the trade war between America and China are knocking investor confidence. They made no mention of the Woodford controversy in a trading update yesterday, which showed the business attracted a net 35,000 new clients between the start of July and the end of September, taking its total to 1.26 million active customers. While Hargreaves faced questions from investors about the debacle at the group’s annual shareholder meeting in Bristol yesterday, City analysts were more concerned by signs that the investment platform’s growth was faltering, a slowdown the company blamed on Brexit and global trade tensions.
Sponsorship of ITV show This Morning helped boost sales of cushions, blinds and sofas at Dunelm Group (DNLM) . The retailer, which is now seen as one of the more resilient names on the high street, sold £255.6m of stock in the three months to September at stores open more than a year – up 6.4% on a year earlier. Despite this, the City was spooked by the news that sales have suffered in the final month of the period, raising questions over a possible wider high street slowdown as nervy consumer shun big purchases ahead of Brexit. Dunelm added that the progress it has made in boosting its profit margins during the first six months of this year could be hit by currency movements.
Sensyne Health (SENS) is facing renewed questions over undisclosed executive bonuses worth £1 million after it emerged that they were proposed by the company’s chairman, who is not independent. The company has come under scrutiny after it revealed a week ago that it had paid post-flotation bonuses of £850,000 to Lord Drayson, 59, the founder and chief executive, and £200,000 to Lorrie Headley, the chief financial officer, in December without informing Peel Hunt, its nominated adviser, and its investors. Sensyne paid the bonuses despite Peel Hunt having warned that shareholders were unlikely to react favourably to the payments. Peel Hunt discovered the bonuses had been paid as part of preparations for Sensyne’s annual report and advised that they should have been disclosed ten months previously.
Persimmon (PSN) is heading for a bitter showdown with families who claim the housebuilder mis-sold them homes on toxic leasehold deals. Hundreds of its customers bought leasehold houses and now claim they are trapped by ratcheting rent bills that have made it impossible to sell. But the company is playing hardball and has told desperate customers that it ‘does not accept’ their complaints. An inquiry by MPs earlier this year found that many leaseholders did not appear to have fully understood the deal. In a recent row with Cardiff council, Persimmon was accused of mis-selling leasehold homes. It offered residents the freeholds to their properties at no charge as part of an out-of-court settlement. Campaigners now argue all its leasehold customers across the country should receive similar compensation. But in a letter sent to customers and seen by the Mail, the company rejected claims householders were misled.
OnTheMarket plc (OTMP) saw half-year losses widen as it warned that estate agents listing their properties on its website were holding back from signing long-term contracts amid continued Brexit uncertainty. The company, which is backed by thousands of estate agents, said that woes in the wider housing market had ‘undoubtedly’ slowed their business. However, it also said that the introduction of lower-cost, shorter contracts was proving more appealing to estate agents, which have been struggling as buyers and sellers stay put.
Brown (N.) Group (BWNG) , the online fashion retailer behind Jacamo and Simply Be reported a return to profit in the first half of the year as it shut all of its shops to focus on online sales. The group posted a 169% jump in profit to £31.8 million for the six months to the end of August, compared with a loss of £27.1 million the year before. Sales dropped 5.4% to £432.9 million but N Brown said online revenue now accounts for 84% of its business, up from 80% in the previous financial year. Analysts at Peel Hunt advised investors to buy the shares, adding: “The group is market leader in its space, benefiting from a strong niche and largely digital business model.” Jefferies said: “The sales drag should continue, but there are some encouraging signs to watch.”
Falling prices and rising costs helped to reduce profits at Mondi (MNDI) by 18% in the third quarter, the company said in a trading statement. The company recorded earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of €383 million, down from €466 million in the same period last year. Mondi estimates that planned mill closures during the three months from June 30 to September 30 hit underlying profits by about €40 million, up €10 million on the year. The group maintained its estimate that mill maintenance shutdowns would affect underlying profits by about €150 million over the full year. The company put the fall in underlying profits down to weaker demand and lower prices for important paper grades compared with the first half.
Low & Bonar (LWB) has warned that there is a “significant risk” it will be unable to meet its financial agreements if they are tested in May as the troubled materials producer battles tough trading conditions. The company said it is talking to lenders as it attempts to move forward with plans for a £107 million takeover by FV Beteiligungs-GmbH, a German business. Lenders have agreed to waive financial deals due next month to help Low & Bonar overcome challenging trading, a deteriorating market outlook and less flexibility in managing supplier credit terms. It will have to endure a covenant test on May 31, 2020, if the German deal falls through. “There is a significant risk that should the financial covenants be tested, the company would not be able to comply,” it said in a statement.