Company Diary: Lloyds, Unilever, Tesla

Our regular look at the FTSE 350 and other companies reporting from 20 – 24 October.

• Elon Musk’s comments on the future will be in focus for Tesla
• Unilever eyeing stronger sales growth in the second half
• Lloyds looks to draw a line under the motor finance investigation

Tesla, Q3 Results, Wednesday 22 October

Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown: Tesla NASDAQ:TSLA heads into third quarter results off the back of a strong delivery print a couple of weeks ago. Earnings expectations have risen as a result, but there are still some tricky quarters ahead for the core business. Investors are expecting continued margin pressure as a competitive pricing environment and rising research costs remain headwinds.

As always, the earnings call will matter more than the numbers – the Tesla story is about looking forward, not back. Last time, Elon Musk warned of tough quarters ahead; this time, analysts expect a more upbeat tone with an important shareholder vote on his pay coming up.

Progress on Robotaxi and the rollout of the latest self-driving software will be key to sustaining momentum. There’s been little chatter recently, which might be a good sign, but investors will want clarity on expansion plans and when Tesla expects to ditch safety drivers. There’s also the chance of a curveball, in the form of a more detailed update on Optimus, Tesla’s humanoid robot.

Unilever, Q3 Trading Statement, Thursday 23 October 

Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown: Unilever LON:ULVR had a steady first-half, with underlying sales growth and profits slightly surpassing market expectations. All business units contributed positively during the period, supported by a balanced mix of price increases and volume growth.

Looking ahead to the second half, the group expects underlying sales growth to ramp up beyond first-half levels, despite the subdued market conditions. Markets are forecasting underlying sales growth of 3.7% to €14.8 billion in next week’s third-quarter update, with the uplift largely driven by recent price increases.

Investors are also keen to get updates on the ice-cream business, which has been operating as a standalone entity since the start of the third quarter. Its spin-off into a separately listed company is pencilled in for mid-November, but with Unilever set to retain a stake of up to 20%, investors are eager to hear that the separation process hasn’t brought about too much disruption.

Lloyds, Q3 Results, Thursday 23 October

Matt Britzman: It’s been a busy few weeks for Lloyds LON:LLOY, and next week’s third quarter results are expected to see £800 million added to its car finance provision, taking the total close to £2 billion. The move follows the Financial Conduct Authority’s consultation on compensation, with Lloyds pushing back on parts of the proposal. While the extra cost isn’t ideal, £2 billion as a total cost is better than many had feared just a few months ago and signals that the bank is getting closer to drawing a line under the issue.

Sentiment toward UK banks has been strong this year, and Lloyds is expected to keep its streak of net interest income growth intact. Credit quality will be a key watchpoint, with provisions for bad loans expected to land at around £314 million. Borrowers have remained resilient so far, so another better-than-expected outcome wouldn’t be surprising.

For the current week’s reporting diary see our Company Diary page here.

This article has been brought to you in association with Hargreaves Lansdown. All opinions expressed in this article are from the analysts and do not necessarily represent the opinions of The Armchair Trader.

FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and selected other companies scheduled to report