Johnson Matthey, up 1.0%, announced that it has appointed Andrew Cosslett as Non-Executive Chair of the Board, with effect from the conclusion of today's Annual General Meeting (AGM). Andrew will succeed Patrick Thomas who will step down from the Board at the end of the AGM.
Hilton Food Group, up 2.7%, announced that it has secured a £22m strategic investment from the Apax Global Impact Fund in its supplier management platform, Foods Connected. Following the deal, Hilton will retain a 26% stake. The investment aims to accelerate Foods Connected’s growth by leveraging Apax’s technology expertise.
Science Group, up 0.9%, announced that Panmure Liberum Limited has been appointed as the Nominated Adviser and sole Broker, with effect from 15 July 2025. Further, the company announced that its interim results are expected to be released on 28 July 2025.
Dialight, up 3.6%, announced that its annual general meeting (AGM) would be held on 01 September 2025 at 9.30am at Investec, 30 Gresham Street, London EC2V 7QP.
Xaar, up 2.0%, announced that it expects to release the group's unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2025 on 12 August 2025.
CyanConnode, unchanged at 8.1p, today, announced that its smart metering project in Goa is now fully funded without further capital from the group.
Creightons, down 5.4%, in its final results for the year ended 31 March 2025, announced that revenues rose to £54.07m from £53.19m recorded in the previous year. Profit before tax stood at £3.50m compared to a loss of £3.28m. The company proposed a final dividend of 0.50p per ordinary share for FY25 (2024: 0.45p).
Tristel, down 4.8%, announced that it has appointed Anna Wasyl as Chief Financial Officer (CFO), with effect from 01 September 2025.
Deutsche Bank downgraded its rating on the stock to ‘Hold’ from ‘Buy’ and raised its target price to 400.0p from 385.0p.
SDI Group, down 1.1%, today, announced that it would release its final results for the year ended 30 April 2025 on 30 July 2025.
UK markets ended higher last week, amid optimism surrounding a Bank of England (BoE) rate cut. On the data front, the UK consumer price index unexpectedly advanced to the highest level since January 2024 in June, due to higher transport and food costs, while the nation’s BRC like-for-like retail sales rose more than expected in June. Meanwhile, the UK ILO unemployment rate unexpectedly rose in the three months to May. The FTSE 100 index advanced 0.6% to settle at 8,992.1, while the FTSE AIM 100 index rose 0.1% to close at 3,730.1. Additionally, the FTSE techMARK 100 index gained 2.1% to end at 7,594.2.
US markets ended mixed in the previous week. On the macro front, the US consumer price index rose as expected in June, while the nation’s retail sales climbed more than anticipated in June. Moreover, the US building permits unexpectedly advanced in June, while the nation’s housing starts rose more than expected in June. Also, the US Michigan consumer sentiment index rose to a five-month high in July. Additionally, the US weekly jobless claims unexpectedly dropped to a three-month low in the week ended 11 July 2025, while the nation’s Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index unexpectedly climbed in July. Meanwhile, the US producer price index advanced less than expected in June. Separately, the US Beige Book reported that economic activity picked up in recent weeks; however, the outlook remained "neutral to slightly pessimistic" as businesses noted that rising import tariffs were exerting upward pressure on prices. The DJIA index fell 0.1% to end at 44,342.2, while the NASDAQ index gained 1.5% to close at 20,895.7.
