ITV is on the rise after it says No Deal to Endemol
THERE will be No Deal between ITV and media company Endemol Shine.
ITV has ruled itself out as a buyer of the Deal or No Deal creator, which relieved shareholders’ worries about how the broadcaster would raise the cash to pay for Endemol.
Shares in ITV, sinking over recent weeks, hit their highest level since August yesterday, climbing 3.8pc, or 5.9p, to 162.3p.
Endemol Shine creates a host of hit programmes, including MasterChef and Big Brother, but has been on the block for months as its owners 21st Century Fox and private equity giant Apollo want to cash in on it. They were hoping it would attract significant buyer interest, from traditional broadcasters looking to gain competitive advantages in their efforts to ward off newcomers such as Netflix and Amazon.
A precedent was set when US broadcaster Comcast coughed up a massive £30bn for Sky but ITV did not take the bait. Just last month, chief executive Carolyn McCall said ITV would not grow just for growth’s sake but would instead ensure shareholder returns by being ‘incredibly disciplined’ about acquisitions.
It will look to focus on its own subscription streaming service – including a premium version of its catch-up service ITV Hub, which is rumoured to be a collaboration with the BBC and Channel 4. Speculation that B&Q owner
Kingfisher might be ripe for an activist investor to swoop caused the shares to creep up 3pc, or 7.6p, to 261.2p. Analysts at Northern Trust Capital Markets said splitting up the firm, which also owns Screwfix, would boost its value even if the French businesses and B&Q were valued at zero.
Kingfisher has little to show for its long-running turnaround, and pressure is piling up.
The FTSE 100 rose 0.48pc, or 35.73 points, to 7510.28. A hefty 8.6pc slide from Tesco, which fell 20.2p to 215p, failed to drag the blue-chip index into the red.
At the smaller end of the London Stock Exchange, Topps Tiles surprised investors with a remarkably upbeat trading update.
The UK’s largest tile retailer said revenues for the year would be up around 1.5pc at £215m, while likefor-like revenues would be flat compared to the previous year.
In 2017, by contrast, like-for-like revenues fell by 2.9pc. Just this April it was buffeted by bad weather and a ‘challenging’ market, and in July it warned sales were still falling. But this time, Topps said it had outperformed competitors as a turnaround paid off. Pre-tax profits will be slightly ahead of expectations.
The business has launched more than 25 ranges over the past 12 months, and redeveloped some of its stores to draw in DIY customers as well as professionals.
Companies like Topps are often seen as a bellwether for households’ willingness to spend on bigticket items like kitchen and bathroom refurbishments.
Its shares shot up by 9.6pc, or 6p, to 68.7p.
On London’s junior market, gaming technology company Nektan announced another record quarter for the first three months of its 2019 financial year.
Net gaming revenue, from the online sites which it operates around the world, rocketed 64.6pc to £6.4m compared to the first quarter of last year.
Shares reciprocated, rising 7.5pc, or 1.5p, to 21.5p. Colombian oil company Amerisur Resources also impressed investors, saying it had achieved a flow of 590 barrels per day from its Pintadillo-1 discovery.
Chief executive John Wardle called the result ‘exciting and very positive’, as shares soared 13.2pc, or 1.5p, to 13p.