UK stocks closed lower on Friday after a weak opening in the US caused by a fall in banking shares following mixed fourth quarter earnings reports, while weaker than expected US retail sales also dampened market sentiment.

JP Morgan dropped 5% despite beating estimates as investors were disappointed by the performance of its trading division.

Citigroup fell 2% after reporting a 28% drop in earnings and asset manager Blackrock fell 2.5% after missing quarterly revenue expectations. Going in the other direction were shares in Wells Fargo which gained 3.5% after the company beat profit expectations.

At the close the FTSE 100 was down 0.3% to 7,543 points with banks and builders making gains while industrial and export-oriented stocks eased due to the strength of the pound.

COMPANY NEWS

Luxury sports car maker Aston Martin Lagonda (AML) announced it had poached Doug Lafferty from Vivo Energy (VVO) to be its chief financial officer later this year.

Mr Lafferty was previously chief financial officer at the Williams grand prix team, giving him experience of the world of Formula One. Aston Martin shares dropped 2% to £13.93 while Vivo Energy shares were flat at 131p.

Media and events group Bonhill Group (BONH) posted a mixed trading update. Due to the impact of Covid, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) for 2021 will be significantly lower than expected at just £0.2 million.

On the other hand, bookings for this year are higher than at the same stage last year thanks to ‘significant new business in US digital and strong support for its UK financial services events’. The shares surged 12.3% to 9.8p.

Shares in Cineworld (CINE) moved up 4% to 40.4p thanks to a strong pick-up in box office revenues in December in the UK and US on the back of the latest Spiderman film, which was the first to gross more than $1.5 billion since the start of the pandemic.

Chief executive Mooky Greidinger was also upbeat about the slate of films coming this year including the delayed Top Gun: Maverick, Mission Impossible 7 and Avatar 2.

Electricals retailer Currys (CURY) fell 6.9% to 104.7p after it lowered its full year pre-tax profit guidance from £160 million to £155 million after what it described as a ‘challenging Christmas with uneven customer demand and supply disruption’.

Over the peak trading period, that is the 10 weeks to 8 January, the group posted a 5% fall in sales compared with 2020 due to a 6% drop in UK sales as tech sales remained subdued, although sales of games and virtual reality gear were a bright spot.

Information services firm Experian (EXPN) painted a much rosier picture after third quarter revenues topped expectations, leading it to raise its full year like for like revenue growth forecast to between 12% and 13% along with ‘strong EBIT margin accretion’. However, the shares dopped 2.4% to £30.77 due to its large US dollar exposure.

Shares in convenience store chain McColl’s Retail (MCLS) dropped 13% to 10p after it revealed chief commercial officer Richard Crampton was stepping down with immediate effect to take up a senior role at supermarket group Sainsbury’s (SBRY).

Shares in fashion brand Quiz (QUIZ:AIM) jumped 10.7% to 17.4p following its strong December trading update. Group revenues during the key Christmas period were up 20% thanks to a 64% surge in in-store sales, more than offsetting a drop in online activity due to the termination of certain third-party agreements.

Clinical data specialist Sensyne Health (SENS) was a major faller, dropping 71% to 22p following news that its formal sales process had yet to identify a buyer and it was running out of money fast.

Although meetings were held last month with corporates and financial sponsors, there was no guarantee a buyer could be found or an offer would be made.

Meanwhile, the firm is owed a substantial amount from one of its customers and has had to go to institutions and its broker to borrow money to keep the lights on. Without a deal, the company said it was ‘unlikely to be able to continue to trade beyond early February’.

FOR A LIST OF FTSE 100 RISERS AND FALLERS SEE HERE

Find out how to deal online from £1.50 in a SIPP, ISA or Dealing account. AJ Bell logo

Issue Date: 14 Jan 2022