City looks for proof that HSBC turnaround is on the right track
Today
Despite a 19pc slide in pre-tax profits, HSBC’S first quarter results were cheered by investors as the halt in revenue decline sparked hopes that its turnaround was bearing fruit. Although profits were subdued in 2016, the bank’s shares have risen 51pc since the EU referendum. The results will go some way to showing whether such a rise is justified.
Tomorrow
With housebuilders Persimmon and Barratt Developments batting away election uncertainty to post strong half-yearly results, expectations are that peer Taylor Wimpey will follow suit. Buoyant results in the sector have been driven by low interest rates and the Government’s Help to Buy scheme.
However, Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Danny Cox cautioned that the issue of unfair ground rents could rear its head again to take the gloss off the housebuilder’s latest results.
Wednesday
The odds are always supposed to be stacked with the bookmaker but industry headwinds could make William Hill a gamble for investors.
The company told shareholders in May that performance remained in line with market expectations but analysts expect punter-friendly results to weigh on the bookie’s latest earnings.
However, unfavourable results and a tough comparison with last year’s Euros football tournament are issues dwarfed by the tougher regulatory environment that looms on the horizon.
Thursday
Investors will be closely watching aerospace and defence company Cobham on Thursday to see whether the early stages in the struggling FTSE 250 constituent’s turnaround are on track.
Following a string of profit warnings culminating in a fifth in February, the company said that it is now conducting a review of its portfolio and will outline its future in its latest interim results.
Friday
With the Royal Bank of Scotland reporting its first quarterly profit since 2015 in April, the outlook is beginning to brighten for the troubled bank. RBS still expects to make a loss this year but Laith Khalaf, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, believes that the bank “could start to make some real progress on profitability” if headwinds subside. One more small step on RBS’S long path to redemption was completed last week when the European Commission said that the troubled taxpayerowned bank was likely to avoid having to sell its Williams & Glyn branches.