Vodafone
Full year results from Vodafone this morning show revenues and dividends coming in just a shade above expectations – news which should be welcomed by investors. The bigger news however seems to be that the company is getting itself a new boss, with the CEO stepping down in October and the current CFO taking the helm. The incumbent – Vittorio Colao – has spent a decade in the role, during which time Vodafone has been through some significant change. In 2013, the company sold its stake in Verizon for $130 billion, whilst just last week it struck a deal to buy the cable TV assets of Liberty Global in Eastern Europe for a rather more modest $25 billion or so. The incoming boss – Nick Read – has been instrumental in the strategy so the transition should be as close to seamless as they come. Markets however often wobble in the face of news like this.
easyJet
There’s a half year report out from easyJet this morning and again it should be providing a lift for shareholders. Key metrics have improved across the board and the loss for the winter period is the lowest ever recorded at just £8m. Two key factors helped here – a drop in capacity from competitors and the busy Easter travel period falling partially in the first half of the year. Load factors ticked up by almost a percentage point and the company is laying out plans to continue investing in holiday packages and the business travel market.
Premier Foods
From Oxo stock cubes to Mr Kipling cakes, we have full year results from their owner Premier Foods this morning. Revenues have come in over £10 million higher than forecast, whilst earnings per share were exceedingly good too, coming in above the top end of analyst expectations. The company is a shadow of what it was before the credit crisis hit a decade ago, but today’s number should give the market something fresh to get its teeth stuck into.
