Royal Bank of Scotland Group [LSE: RBS]
RBS has posted its numbers this morning and there’s a full year profit being reported for the first time in a decade. It’s a modest £752m, which is a mere fraction of the numbers we’ve seen posted by peers, but reverses the near £10 billion loss from 2016. However the bank – which is still majority owned by the UK taxpayer – continues to face the threat of punitive legal action in the US over the alleged miss-selling of risky, mortgage backed products from before the financial crisis.
Pearson [LSE: PSON]
Full year numbers from the educational publisher Pearson are out this morning, too, and although the company seems to have bounced back from the run of poor results it had been sporting, the question will be whether this growth can be sustained. Earnings per share are still 8% lower than last year, whilst the full year dividend drops from 52p to 17p. Worse exchange rates took a toll on the company’s profits, but at the same time, changes to US tax law provided an £8m boost to profits. It seems fair to say that the corner still hasn’t been turned for Pearson.
Rightmove [LSE: RMV]
We’ve heard plenty from the housebuilders of late, but this morning it’s the turn of estate agents with Rightmove tabling full year figures. Rising new property prices clearly read across into the secondary market and the company is evidently defending its position well. Profits are up by 11%, earnings per share are up 14% and the cash returned to shareholders has risen 7%. It’s all looking good for now – bracing for a change in the pace of the market as interest rates are poised to rise could be the key play.
