M&B H1 meeting, insolvencies, Premier Foods, WF Home, income etc.:

A DAY IN THE LIFE:

I read somewhere that magpies are one of the few birds that can remember human faces.

For the rest, we’re just a homogenous mush, apparently.

But, if the above is true, then the ones in and around our garden must really hate me because they fly away shrieking and cawing whenever they see me whilst they seem able to tolerate other members of the family, visitors, postal workers and the rest.

And they even put up with the dog, but one hint of me putting on my wellies and they’ll abandon their feasts of dog poo, bugs, mud, long dead invertebrates and whatever rubbish might be lying around and they’re off.

For me, though, I don’t mind them. On to the news:

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MITCHELLS & BUTLERS – ANALYSTS’ MEETING:

M&B has held its H1 analysts’ meeting and our comments are set out below: Headline figures: M&B reports H1 revenue up 10.6% to £1.282bn, up from £1.159bn in the prior year. Operating profit is £100m (H1’22: £120m), delivering an operating margin of 7.8%, down from last year’s 10.3% as government support tapered off and cost pressures loomed. PBT is down to £41m from £56m in the prior year. EPS is 5.5p (H1’22: 7.6p) and there is no dividend (FY22: nil).

Trading: LfL sales are outperforming the market, up 8.5%. Guest review scores are at record highs with the M&B stating that these scores have a clear correlation with LfL sales. M&B said that it has increased prices by 7-7.5% YoY and 5% since the start of the financial year. It indicated that the start of the next financial (September/October) year would be the next opportunity to take price.

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PREMIER FOODS – FULL YEAR NUMBERS:

Premier Foods has reported full year numbers today and, as it was a ‘beneficiary’ of lockdowns, its performance has often been in contrast to the hospitality industry. Nonetheless, the company has used its Covid trading boost to reduce debt and pension ‘liabilities’ are down.

Premier Foods reports revenue up 11.8% at £1.006bn. Trading profit is up 11.5% at £157.5m and adjusted PBT is up 13.0% at £137.2m. Adjusted EPS is up by 12.7% and the dividend per share has been raised by 20% to 1.44p. PFD reports net debt has been reduced to 1.5x EBITDA from 1.7x in the prior year.

We are off our patch here but, if you would like a copy of this morning’s brief note, please drop us a line.

PUBS & RESTAURANTS:

Working from home:

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has suggested that the ‘default’ location for workers should be in the office unless there is a good reason to work from home….

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Consumers’ disposable incomes:

Bus fares. In a boost to disposable incomes, the fare cap on most local buses, allowing passengers to travel for £2 a trip, will be extended until the end of October and then for another 13 months at £2.50 for a single journey…

Taxes. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has said the government is currently not “in a position to know whether we’re going to have any headroom at all” to cut taxes in the run up to the next election…

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Trading:

Lumina Intelligence reports that out-of-home eating & drinking penetration has increased by 1.7% YoY in the 13 weeks to 27 March 2023…

Other news:

Brexit. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said that Brexit is working by citing cheaper beer and sanitary products. He said household incomes were “hugely outperforming” expectations. The PM says ‘we reformed the alcohol duties that mean this summer you will be able to get cheaper beer in pubs. These are all very tangible benefits of Brexit that I’ve already delivered.’

Greedflation debunked. The CMA has said that “global factors” have been “the main driver of grocery price increases”…

COMPANY NEWS:

The Guardian reports that Pizza Express staff have protested as waiters’ hours are being cut and managers are being told to do more in store…

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Tillery Valley Foods Limited, an Abertillery-based food supplier with 250 employees, is reported to have been placed into administration.

MeatLiquor is set to expand across delivery-only kitchens, driven by its partnership with food brand growth platform Sessions….

Jamie Barber and Ed Standring of The Hush Collection have announced the sale of Haché Burgers in Shoreditch, shortly following on from the sale of their Haché Burger site in Clapham. The duo have relaunched their central Holborn site as a Haché Brasserie. The first Haché Brasserie was launched at the group’s flagship riverside location in Kingston in April.

OTHER LEISURE:

Floods in Italy have led to the cancellation of the Emilia-Romagna Formula 1 Grand Prix at Imola this weekend.

FINANCE & MARKETS:

Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey, who infamously said that inflation would be ‘transient’ and that people shouldn’t ask for pay-rises in order to compensate for it, is now saying that the risks are on the upside, that inflation is sticky and that it will be slow to come down…

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Stallantis, which owns Vauxhall, Citroen, Peugeot and Fiat, has said that Britain needs to change its Brexit deal if it is to secure investment. Sir Keir Starmer has told Sky News the UK needs an “improved” Brexit deal….

Sterling mixed at $1.2474 and €1.1513. Oil up at $76.72. UK 10yr gilt yield up 4bps at 3.84%. world markets heading better yesterday and London set to open up around 39pts as at 6.30am.

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