FTSE 100 movers: Coca-Cola provides fizz; Shire warning disappoints
Coca-Cola livened up the FTSE 100 on Wednesday as the shares led the risers and helped pull the index into positive territory.
Coca-Cola HBC reported full year earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) of €621m, a rise of 20% on net sales revenue of £6.5bn, up 4.9%.
Revenue was helped by the stronger Russian rouble. On a constant currency basis, revenue per case was up 3.6%, with positive contributions from price, category and package mix, Coca-Cola said.Profit before tax rose to €301.7m from €266.9m.
Sky and BT were both on the front foot as they picked up the rights to the Premier League for £4.46bn.
Engineer GKN, which is currently fighting off a hostile bid from turnaround specialist Melrose Industries, was in the black after saying it is targeting a cash return of up to £2.5bn to shareholders over the next three years.
Shares in specialty biopharmaceutical group Shire were lower as the company posted a 33% jump in full-year revenues but warned that earnings growth would be weaker than revenue growth this year.
In the year to the end of December 2017, total revenues rose to $15.2bn from the previous year, including a full year of legacy Baxalta sales, while diluted earnings per American depositary share surged to $14.05 from $1.27 in 2016 mostly due to a higher tax benefit last year driven by the US tax reform and higher operating income.
Shares in sector peer Reckett Benckiser fell in sympathy.
TUI led the fallers as investors took profits on the back of gains earlier in the week.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,205.40 0.52%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,410.30 0.47%
techMARK (TASX) 3,259.07 0.47%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 2,398.00p 7.25%
WPP (WPP) 1,381.00p 3.41%
ITV (ITV) 165.60p 3.08%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 6,262.00p 2.82%
Old Mutual (OML) 238.80p 2.75%
Sky (SKY) 1,086.00p 2.36%
Bunzl (BNZL) 2,053.00p 2.34%
Pearson (PSON) 667.80p 2.27%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,657.00p 2.17%
HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 750.40p 2.12%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 1,549.50p -4.00%
Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) 390.20p -2.16%
Shire Plc (SHP) 3,121.50p -1.87%
CRH (CRH) 2,434.00p -1.02%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 820.60p -0.80%
NMC Health (NMC) 3,246.00p -0.67%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 6,343.00p -0.64%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 548.00p -0.54%
Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 2,275.00p -0.42%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 245.70p -0.36%