There was a quarterly trading update from Pets at Home this morning, covering the all-important Christmas trading period up until January 5th. Yes, pet owners are buying their cats and dogs gifts during the festive period, and this year has been no exception. Every reported metric is ticking higher, and with group revenues up 9.6% on the same period last year, there’s plenty to cheer.
We have the first quarter trading statement from low cost airline easyJet , which continues to see steady growth in passenger numbers, although bad weather in the run up to Christmas pushed costs higher. The company has also had to bow to pay demands from staff, but again ancillary revenues – paying for seats selection, bags and car hire – keep impressing, up 20% from last year. The acquisition of some of the Air Berlin operation is also cheering sentiment in the stock.
SSP Group operates many branded catering outlets at stations and airports across the globe. Their Q1 trading update, again released this morning, is comparatively light on detail despite the healthy revenue growth as a result of recent expansion. The company shows some caution in noting that it has little control over short term economic uncertainty, but the global diversification – combined with the fact the global economy appears to be ticking higher – should provide a degree of confidence.
