Market News - Page 775

Hammerson plc (“Hammerson”) has exchanged contracts for the sale of two retail parks, Imperial Retail Park, Bristol and Fife Central Retail Park, Kirkcaldy, for a total consideration of £164m to Capreon. This transaction brings Hammerson's total proceeds from disposals in 2018 to £300m….

On 19 April 2018, Unilever PLC and Unilever N.V. announced their intention to buy back shares with an aggregate market value equivalent of up to €6 billion, in line with the Group's objective of targeting a net debt to EBITDA ratio of 2.0x and our intention to return the expected after-tax proceeds upon completion of the Spreads disposal to shareholders, unless more value-creating acquisition alternatives arise. On 2 July 2018, the Group announced the completion of the Spreads disposal and on 19 July 2018, the Group announced its intention to complete the €6 billion share buyback programme before the end of this year….

Highlights:
The overall return, which is the increase in NAV during the half year plus the dividend paid, is minus 4.1 per cent.
Unaudited Net Asset Value (NAV) is 264.2p per share (31 December 2017: 284.8p, 30 June 2017: 268.7p), a decrease of 7.2 per cent for the half year and a decrease of 1.7 per cent over the past year.
Gross Revenue increased by 12.5 per cent to £141,907 compared with the half year ended 30 June 2017 of £126,098 (full year to 31 December 2017 £238,832).
Revenue return per ordinary share was 5.8p (31 December 2017: 9.6p, 30 June 2017: 5.1p).
A final dividend of 8.9p was paid in April 2018 (2017: final dividend 8.6p).

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Rio Tinto plc (the “Company”) announces that Oyu Tolgoi LLC, an entity in which the Company has a 33.5% indirect ownership interest, has today entered into agreements with three Chinese EPC contractors, each of which potentially creates a smaller related party transaction for the purposes of the UK Listing Rules. …

SSE plc's Annual General Meeting takes place today (19 July) in Perth, followed by a General Meeting in respect of the proposed demerger of SSE Energy Services and combination of that business with npower Group Limited. …

A SOLID, ALL-ROUND PERFORMANCE WITH SOME CHALLENGING MARKETS…

The Directors of the Company have declared that an interim dividend of 1.5p per share will be payable to holders of Ordinary Shares as follows in respect of the three month period ended 30 June 2018:…

Issue of Shares in connection with the payment of Investment Adviser fees…