AVEVA Group, up 6%, in its trading update for the six months ended 30 September 2019, announced low double-digit revenue growth on a proforma constant currency basis, following robust sales execution in Q1 2019 and benefits from early renewal of a large EPC contract. Strong revenue growth in Rental & Subscription was partly offset by lower revenues in Initial & Perpetual licences and Services, as expected. The company expects to publish its results on 12 November 2019. JP Morgan Cazenove raised its target price to 4200p from 3550p on the stock and gave an “Overweight” rating.
Cambridge Cognition Holdings, up 9.8%, announced that it intends to pursue regulatory approval for aducanumab as its first therapy to take on clinical decline in early Alzheimer's disease. Prior to this announcement they consulted with the US Food and Drug Administration, Biogen and Eisai Co. This will provide an opportunity for the company as its CANTAB assessments are sensitive to early cognitive decline during Alzheimer's disease.
Checkit, up 3.7% to 56p, in its interim results for the six months ended 31 July 2019, announced that revenues jumped to £4.4m from £1.6m posted in the same period last year. Its loss before tax widened to £3m from £2.2m reported in the previous year, whereas its basic and diluted loss per share rose to 1.7p from 1.3p in the previous year.
Netcall, down 1.8%, announced that its Annual General Meeting will be held on 21 November 2019 at the offices of Taylor Wessing LLP, 5 New Street Square, London, EC4A 3TW.
UK markets closed higher in the previous week, lifted by gains in mining and energy sector stocks, amid uncertainties surrounding the Brexit deadline extension. The UK’s BBA mortgage approvals eased in September, while the nation’s public sector net borrowing deficit widened in the same month. British lawmakers voted to reject the Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s timetable to complete the legislative process for the nation’s departure from the European Union in three days. The FTSE 100 index advanced 2.4% to settle at 7324.5, while the FTSE AIM 100 index rose 1.4% to close at 4559.1. Meanwhile, the FTSE techMARK 100 index gained 1% to end at 5305.
US markets ended in the green last week, supported by gains in industrial and energy sector stocks. On the data front, the US manufacturing PMI unexpectedly rose in October, whereas the nation’s services PMI climbed in the same month. The Michigan consumer sentiment index advanced in October, while the housing price index jumped in August. The US existing home sales declined more than expected in September, while the durable goods orders fell to a 4-month low in September. The DJIA index rose 0.7% to end at 26958.1, while the NASDAQ index gained 1.9% to close at 8243.1.