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Next week on the stock market

What to expect from a selection of FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and selected other companies reporting next week.

Important notes

This article isn’t personal advice. If you’re not sure whether an investment is right for you please seek advice. If you choose to invest the value of your investment will rise and fall, so you could get back less than you put in.

Sophie Lund-Yates, Equity Analyst
Equity Analyst

Published on 17 January 2020

This article is more than 6 months old

It was correct at the time of publishing. Our views and any references to tax, investment and pension rules may have changed since then.

Among the companies reporting next week:

Pets at Home hopes to prove like-for-like and online sales have kept their momentum in a competitive environment
Following a difficult 2019, ASOS would like to mark the new year with a quarter of stronger sales
Fevertree will be hoping to deliver strong international sales

FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and selected other stocks reporting next week

20-Jan
BHP Group	Q2 Operational Review

21-Jan
Cairn Energy	Operational Update
Dixons Carphone*	Q3 Trading Statement
easyJet*	Q1 Trading Statement
IG Group	Half Year Results
Netflix*	Q4 Results
SSP Group	Q1 Trading Statement

22-Jan
AJ Bell	Q1 Trading Statement
Antofagasta	Q4 Production Report
Burberry*	Q3 Trading Statement
Close Brothers	Pre-Close Trading Statement
JD Wetherspoon	Q2 Trading Statement
New River REIT	Q3 Trading Statement
Pets at Home*	Q3 Trading Update
Sage	Q1 Trading Statement
WH Smith	Christmas Trading Statement

23-Jan
Anglo American	Q4 Production Report
ASOS*	Trading Statement
Computacenter	Pre-Close Trading Update
Countryside Properties	AGM and Q1 Trading Statement
Fevertree Drinks*	Trading Update
PayPoint	Q3 Trading Statement

24-Jan
No FTSE 350 reporters

*Companies on which we will be writing research

Pets at Home

Pets at Home’s shares rose at the half year, after it said full year pre-tax profit was expected to be at the top end of market expectations.

Investors will be hoping for more good news in next week’s third quarter update, and we’ll have our eye on retail like-for-like (LFL) performance in particular. Pets has seen repeat business grow well, despite the onslaught of online competition in the sector, reflecting its efforts to become a destination rather than just a shop with its vet clinics and grooming rooms. Half-year LFL revenue rose 7.8%, so the bar’s been set high.

Pets has been lowering prices to encourage sales, which means gross margins are being preserved by cost-savings. This isn’t a long-term solution, so we’d like to know if sales of higher-margin products are improving. At the moment lower-margin food items are taking precedence.

The final thing to look out for is online growth. Pets was a little late to the digital party, but online sales have grown at a strong rate – up 31.7% at the half year. We’ll be looking to see if that’s continued.

See the latest Pets at Home share price, charts and how to trade

ASOS

Poor trading in November 2018 sparked what would be a string of profit warnings last year. Weakening sales and higher than expected international expansion costs weighed on performance, but recent news has been more positive. The “majority” of the transformation is now said to be complete.

It’s particularly promising ASOS made it through the important festive months without signalling a distress call this time. And at the full year the group said there’d been a “solid” start to 2020 - we’re keen to know exactly what that means for sales growth. Excluding the impact of exchange rates, ASOS' full year revenues grew 12%, to £2.7bn. As competition in the sector remains fierce, it’s fair to wonder to what extent sales are being driven by margin-diluting discounts.

The shares still demand a fairly lofty price to earnings ratio of 53 times expected earnings. That reflects high hopes for the less-mature international business, and we’d suggest taking a look at how non-UK sales are faring. Any further disappointments here could see the share price knocked again.

See the latest ASOS share price, charts and how to trade

Fevertree Drinks

An update in November showed the UK market, still the group’s biggest, showed signs of slowing down. UK sales are now expected to rise just 2% this year. We’ll be looking to see if the group’s on track to reach this lowered target.

Sales to restaurants and hotels continue to perform well, but Fevertree sales to supermarkets and off licenses have fallen behind management’s expectations. The group blames this on the wider slowdown in consumer spending seen in the UK, and with the British Retail Consortium reporting grocery sales ended 2019 on a downbeat note, we wonder if Fevertree’s been able to buck the trend.

With growth faltering in the UK, the onus is on the international businesses to deliver longer-term growth. Those hopes underpin a price to earnings ratio of 30.6 times expected earnings, which means the share price could be sensitive to disappointment. Investors will be keen to hear if Fevertree’s able to deliver the sparkling sales growth rates it was expecting – around 34% in the USA, 19% in Europe and 35% in the Rest of World division.

See the latest Fevertree share price, charts and how to trade

Unless otherwise stated estimates are a consensus of analyst forecasts provided by Thomson Reuters. These estimates are not a reliable indicator of future performance. Past performance is not a guide to the future. Investments rise and fall in value so investors could make a loss.

This article is not advice or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any investment. No view is given on the present or future value or price of any investment, and investors should form their own view on any proposed investment. This article has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and is considered a marketing communication. Non-independent research is not subject to FCA rules prohibiting dealing ahead of research, however HL has put controls in place (including dealing restrictions, physical and information barriers) to manage potential conflicts of interest presented by such dealing. Please see our full non-independent research disclosure for more information.

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