Weekly review
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Friday 18 Sep 2026
(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 100 ended down 1.5% at 10,659.13 on Friday.
Equity view
Airtel Money's owners are reportedly considering raising less money than previously sought in the company's initial public offering. According to Bloomberg, which cited people familiar with the matter, the money transfer and payments company's IPO is now expected to raise at least $800m, down from a previously targeted size of $1.5bn to $2bn as reported by Bloomberg in April. Sources said that Airtel Money is now considering a valuation of $8bn to $9bn to align with technology stock valuations, lower than the $10bn sought previously. The firm's valuation in the offering was reduced following feedback from investors, according to Bloomberg. Airtel Money is part of Airtel Africa, with Qatar Holdings and Mastercard among the minority investors.
Banking and wealth management group Investec said on Friday that it expects to deliver interim results in line with guidance, with its stable year‑to‑date performance supported by disciplined execution, strong client activity and continued balance‑sheet growth. For the six months ended 30 September, Investec guided to adjusted earnings per share between 41.7p to 43.3p, up between 3% to 7% on the prior period, while headline earnings per share were expected to come in between 38.1p and 39.7p, and basic earnings per share were set to rise by between 1% and 5% year-on-year.
Energy generation firm Drax lifted its full-year outlook on Thursday after a stronger second‑half performance and the completion of its £561m acquisition of Bluefield Solar Income Fund. Drax said adjusted underlying earnings for 2026 were now expected to come in around the top end of consensus estimates of £680m to £711m, supported by solid operational delivery through the summer and the addition of BSIF from 1 August. Drax also highlighted further cost savings, mainly in warehousing.
Bytes Technology lifted its FY27 outlook on Thursday following a better-than-expected performance in the first half of the year. In an update for the year to the end of August, the software, security, AI and cloud services specialist said the momentum from the second half of 2026 had carried over into the first half of FY27.
Galliford Try announced the launch of a £15m share buyback on Thursday as it hailed a strong full-year performance, with profit ahead of market expectations. In the year to 30 June, adjusted pre-tax profit rose 24.2% to £55.9m, with revenue up 3% at £1.9bn. Galliford said revenue was driven by a strong performance in Highways and a successful transition to AMP8 in Environment.
Retailer Next delivered a materially better‑than‑expected first half on Thursday, prompting a £12m upgrade to its full‑year profit guidance and reinforcing confidence in its margin trajectory. Next said full‑price sales rose 7.7% in the six months ended 1 August, taking total sales to £3.28bn, while total sales including markdowns climbed 8.9% to £3.54bn. Pre‑tax profits climbed 10.5% to £569m, with net margins improving 0.3ppt to 16.1%, helped by higher bought‑in gross margins, warehousing efficiencies and profitable digital marketing.
Online greeting cards and gifts retailer Moonpig reaffirmed its full-year outlook on Wednesday as it said trading has been in line with its expectations since the start of the year. The company said revenue growth at Moonpig is being driven by both orders and average order value. Order growth reflects the continued expansion of the active customer base, while average order value is increasing through product upsell and modest growth in gift attach rate.
UK homebuilder Barratt Redrow reported a solid full-year operational performance on Wednesday, delivering 17,667 home completions, up 5% on the prior year and near the top end of guidance, while statutory pre-tax profits jumped 48.2% to £363.5m. Barratt Redrow said the surge in statutory pre-tax profits was a result of further Redrow‑related integration and a reduction in PPA costs. Adjusted operating profits before PPA effects edged 0.6% higher to £598.1m, but adjusted pre-tax profits fell 7.1% to £572.8m.
WH Smith said full‑year pre-tax profit was expected to be around £75m, at the lower end of guidance, reflecting lower trading margins from increased discounts and reduced brand marketing, partly offset by cost and interest savings. The retailer reported solid fourth‑quarter revenue during peak summer trading, with strong performances across at UK airports, hospitals and train stations.
Babcock said trading for the first five months of the fiscal year was in line with expectations, with strong nuclear and aviation performance and its full‑year outlook unchanged. The defence group highlighted recent contract wins across Canada, France, the UK, Australia and Poland, alongside progress on nuclear support work and expanding energy‑security partnerships as countries ramp up military spending.
Trustpilot posted a rise in first-half profit and revenue on Tuesday and said it was on track to meet full-year guidance, but shares slid as the online review website acknowledged a couple of accounting issues. In the six months to the end of June, pre-tax profit rose 32% to $4.3m, with revenue up 23% at $151.4m and bookings 22% higher at $171.2m. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were up 46% to a record $26.3m.
Kier Group said on Tuesday that its 2027 earnings were set to be at the top end of the board's expectations, as it announced it will not be making any more investments in new property developments as it focuses on its core businesses of infrastructure and construction. In the year to 30 June, adjusted pre-tax profit rose 8.8% to £136.4m on revenue of £4.4bn, up 7.5% on the previous year and reflecting "significant" momentum in the core infrastructure and construction divisions. Adjusted operating profit was 6.7% higher at £169.8m and the full-year dividend was lifted 8% to 7.8p a share.
Drugmaker GSK said on Tuesday that it would pay up to $750m to acquire full global rights to a trispecific T‑cell engager for multiple myeloma from privately held biotechnology company Chimagen Biosciences. GSK stated the agreement includes an upfront payment and further development and commercial milestones, with the programme expected to enter phase I trials in 2027.
DIY chain Wickes said it was on track to meet expectations of a 10% jump in adjusted annual profit despite an uncertain consumer environment, sending its shares up 10% on Tuesday. The company posted a 1.1% rise in earnings to £27.6m for the six months to June 27. Like for like sales rose 0.7%.
Shares in GlobalData plunged on Monday after the data and analytics group warned that full-year profits would fall short of market expectations as weaker-than-expected revenue growth and increased investment pressured margins. GlobalData said underlying revenue growth had been "more muted than expected" in the first half, and now expects full-year revenues to come in towards the lower end of the current analyst consensus range of £325.3m to £335.7m.
Cerillion tumbled on Monday after it warned that full-year revenue would miss market expectations as some anticipated new and existing customer orders have been delayed or deferred. The billing, charging and customer relationship management software solutions provider said that while the second-half results will be "significantly" ahead of the first half, the year's outturn will be behind consensus market forecasts for revenue of £52.80m and an adjusted EBITDA margin of 45.2%.
Economic news
UK retail sales unexpectedly bounced back in August, helped along by the warm weather, according to figures released on Friday by the Office for National Statistics. Sales rose 0.5% on the month following a 0.5% decline in July, beating expectations for a 0.2% fall. On the year, sales were 2.4% higher in August.
UK inflation rose in line with expectations in August amid higher fuel prices, according to figures released on Wednesday by the Office for National Statistics. The consumer prices index ticked up to 3.1% year-on-year last month from 2.9% in July. The ONS said transport, particularly motor fuels, made the largest upward contribution to the change in CPI. Fuel prices rose 23% in the 12 months to August, compared with a 15.5% increase the previous month.
UK house-price inflation slowed for a third consecutive month in July, with falling prices in London and weakness in the South West weighing on the national rate, official data showed on Wednesday. According to the Office for National Statistics, average UK house prices were 1.4% higher than last year at £273,000 in July, easing from a revised 1.5% increase in June. That represented the lowest rate of house price inflation since March, when prices were unchanged year on year.
The UK unemployment rate was steady in August, while vacancies continued to fall, according to data released on Tuesday by the Office for National Statistics. The unemployment rate remained at 4.9% in the three months to July, versus expectations for an uptick to 5%. Meanwhile, the number of payrolled employees fell by 26,000 between July and August and by 145,000 on the year, to 30.2m.
UK grocery price inflation edged higher in the four weeks to 6 September, although it remained relatively subdued, according to the latest figures from Worldpanel by Numerator. Like-for-like grocery price inflation rose to 2.3%, picking up from the month before but "significantly lower than the levels we saw earlier in the year, giving households some welcome breathing room", according to Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel by Numerator.
International events
The Bank of Japan on Friday raised its key interest rate for the second time in three months, pushing borrowing costs to their highest level in more than three decades. As expected, the central bank lifted its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 1.25%, its highest since 1995, and suggested that more hikes were on the way.
Industrial production in the eurozone edged lower in July, official data showed on Wednesday, as a sharp decline in non-durable consumer goods output offset growth elsewhere. According to Eurostat, seasonally adjusted industrial production fell 0.1% month-on-month in July, matching the 0.1% decline recorded in June, though not as steep as the -0.2% expected.
German investor sentiment improved less than expected in September, according to a survey released on Tuesday by the ZEW Center for European Economic Research in Mannheim. The ZEW economic expectations index ticked up to 34.7 from 34.2 in August, but this was below expectations for a reading of 40.0.
The eurozone's trade surplus with the rest of the world reached its highest level in nine months in July, according to figures out on Tuesday from Eurostat, as exports jumped to their steepest in over a year. The trade balance rose to €14.2bn, up from €7.3bn in June and €10.7bn a year earlier, Eurostat reported.
Hugo Boss's chairman has agreed to part ways with the German fashion brand amid growing pressure from major shareholder Frasers Group, as the British retail group seeks greater boardroom control ahead of a formal takeover. The companies announced on Monday that Hugo Boss chair Stephan Sturm and Frasers "mutually agreed" that he should leave as soon as possible, and his last day will be 15 October.
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