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FTSE 100 continues its rebound but is held back by BP and sterling
StockMarketWire.com
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By midday the FTSE 100 was steady and more or less holding on to its earlier gains, up 0.4% to 6,492.32.
The advance for the index lagged that seen in European markets thanks to strength in sterling and weakness in index heavyweight BP.
Oil major BP fell 3.3% to 258.4p after it booked a 96% drop in fourth-quarter profit as the pandemic sapped demand for oil and gas.
BP's underlying replacement-cost profit, a measure closely watched by analysts, slumped to £115 million, down from £2.57 billion year-on-year. Full-year losses amounted to an eye-watering £5.69 billion.
Power utility SSE was flat at £15.12, having stuck to its full-year earnings guidance after a rise in gas-fired production offset lower generation from renewable sources.
SSE said it still expected adjusted earnings per share for the year through March of between 85p and 90p, and to pay a full-year dividend of 80p per share plus the retail price index.
Marketing and support services group DCC rallied 1% to £57.70 after guiding for better-than-expected annual earnings.
DCC said acquisitions completed in the prior year had boosted organic growth in the third quarter.
Banking group Virgin Money UK gained 6.2% to 140.1p on announcing that it had returned to profit in the first quarter, without giving a specific number, while reiterating its full-year margin guidance.
Virgin Money UK said is first-quarter net interest margin was stable at 152 basis points and was expected to rise in the second quarter and be 'broadly flat' for the full year.
Waste and climate management group Polypipe gained 2.8% to 528.5p following news that it had acquired underfloor heating supplier Nu-Heat for £27 million.
Polypipe also said trading continued to recover through December, with its annual underlying operating profit expected to be 'slightly ahead' of previous guidance of around £40 million.
Property investor Capital & Counties shed 2.3% to 132.7p, having collected 42% of December rents, which it said was was broadly in line with collection rates at the same point in the previous quarter.
Collection levels for previous periods, meanwhile, had continued to increase, to 50%, 44% and 51% for the second, third and fourth quarters of 2020, respectively.
Budget carrier Ryanair added 3.7%, even as it announced that it carried 88% less passengers during the month of January, owing to pandemic-related travel restrictions.
Mining focused engineering company Weir edged up 0.2% to £19.12 after it completed the planned $405 million sale of its oil and gas division to Caterpillar.
Specialist fuel, food and animal feed distributor NWF shed 0.4% to 189.2p as it booked a 17% fall in first-half profit, citing Brexit uncertainty and the ongoing challenge of Covid-19.
Story provided by StockMarketWire.com
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