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Trainline (TRN) shares slumped 4 per cent this morning despite a strong showing from the online rail ticket provider, as fears about railway nationalisation and the imminent departure of chief executive Jody Ford weighed on sentiment.

In a trading update, the group signalled it was on track to hit its upgraded guidance of 10 to 13 per cent adjusted Ebitda growth for FY2026, and reported revenue of Ā£453mn ā€“ a 2 per cent increase that falls within its guidance range of 0 to 3 per cent growth for the year.

However, this failed to cheer investors after Trainline made the surprise announcement in late February that Ford would step aside. He spent six years in the top job. 

The move comes as Trainline grapples with longer-term concerns about ā€˜Great British Railwaysā€™, a new government rail board which will set ticket prices in the UK. This has been a drag on the shares, pushing the price down by more than 40 per cent over the past 12 months. 

The company will announce final results on 6 May.

James Fisherā€™s (FSJ) revenues fell nearly 10 per cent due to disposals, but progress on its multi-year turnaround plan began to reflect in the bottom line.

Underlying operating profit surged by 56.3 per cent to Ā£28.6mn, well ahead of market expectations. On a like-for-like basis, revenue rose 4.3 per cent to Ā£377mn, helped by a double-digit surge in the defence division. The 250 basis-point improvement in the operating margin to 7.6 per cent was driven by cost-cutting, portfolio simplification and a recovery in previously underperforming units.

Net debt was slashed to Ā£54.4mn, with covenant leverage now at a more comfortable 1.3 times Ebitda. Return on capital improved by 250 bps to 8.6 per cent, moving closer to the companyā€™s 15 per cent medium-term target.

Management said trading in the first months of 2026 was in line with expectations, but warned short-term oil and gas market conditions remain subject to volatility and geopolitical uncertainty.

Still, the group reiterated its 10 per cent adjusted operating margin medium-term target.

Oil and gas producer Energean (ENOG) has made good on its plan to look further afield than the Mediterranean for new assets, buying into two offshore blocks in Angola.

The $260mn (Ā£194mn) acquisition includes Chevronā€™s (US:CVX) 31 per cent operated interest in Block 14 and 15.5 per cent non-operated stake in Block 14K. The larger field, 14, has total production of 42,000 barrels of oil per day (b/d), Energeanā€™s stake would be 13,000b/d. 

The companyā€™s main asset is the Karish field, offshore Israel, where production has been suspended since the conflict between the US, Israel and Iran began.

The $260mn will partly come from ā€œnon-recourse debt financing on the acquired assetsā€, the company said. Energean debt levels remain high for its size, with net debt at $3.3bn at the end of 2025.

ā€œGiven the poor track record of project delivery we remain concerned that the balance sheet will get more stretched over 2026,ā€ Panmure Liberum analyst Ashley Kelty said last month on the release of some 2025 results. 

Energean said the Angola assets would be ā€œimmediately cash flow accretiveā€. 

Angola has become a dealmaking hub in recent years, as the government has pushed for higher oil production. Companies such as Afentra (AET) see the offshore fields as ripe for cheap production increases due to a lack of investment.

Informa (INF) has laid out plans to increase its 2026 share buyback programme by Ā£50mn to Ā£250mn to take advantage of what management described as a ā€œdepressedā€ share price.

The move follows a double-digit surge in revenue and adjusted operating profit last year. On an underlying basis, revenue rose 6.3 per cent to just over Ā£4bn in 2025, while adjusted operating profit was up 8.7 per cent to Ā£1.1bn.

Business-to-business (B2B) live events remain Informaā€™s star performer, contributing Ā£3bn in revenue with a 9.5 per cent increase in underlying growth. Taylor & Francis, its academic markets division, grew 3.6 per cent when excluding non-recurring licensing contracts with AI models.

Informa TechTarget fell 1.7 per cent, and the unit was hit by a non-cash impairment charge of Ā£484mn. That meant the division widened its statutory operating loss significantly, lowering the groupā€™s reported operating profit by 74 per cent to Ā£142mn.

Free cash flow stood at Ā£885mn, ahead of expectations and 9 per cent higher than the previous year. Net debt fell to just over Ā£3bn, pushing leverage down from 2.9 times adjusted Ebitda to 2.4 times. In addition to the increased buyback, the dividend was hiked by 10 per cent to 22p per share.

Despite the recent escalation in the Middle East, Informa has maintained its 2026 growth targets. Management confirmed that no major events were scheduled in the most affected countries in the region during March due to Ramadan.

FTSE 100 life insurance and asset management group M&G (MNG) saw net flows in 2025, helped by its new partnership with Japanese insurer Dai-ichi Life.

Net flows from open business were Ā£7.8bn last year, compared with an outflow of Ā£1.9bn in 2024. Institutional and wholesale asset management delivered Ā£7bn of the result, with the rest flowing in from life segment clients. M&Gā€™s flagship PruFund multi-asset funds pivoted to a net inflow position in the second half.

Assets under management and administration (AUMA) rose 9 per cent to Ā£376bn, driven by positive market movements.

M&Gā€™s partnership with Dai-ichi, announced last May, delivered net inflows of Ā£400mn. Management expects this to deliver $6bn of new business over five years.

Dai-ichi grew its stake in M&G to 9.6 per cent in 2025 and plans to raise this to 15 per cent.

Shares in Computacenter (CCC) slumped 5 per cent as the IT services group warned of potential hardware shortages in 2026.

Revenue at the FTSE 250 company did rise significantly as demand for AI-related infrastructure increased over the year to 31 December. Technology sourcing income leapt 38 per cent to Ā£11.3bn. However, statutory pre-tax profit declined by 2.5 per cent thanks to one-off acquisition costs and impairment charges, totalling Ā£20.2mn.

The results otherwise contained few surprises, given the group had already provided preliminary numbers in January. Investor focus was therefore on the forward outlook.

The company said it had a record backlog of already committed orders worth Ā£7.1bn, and is entering 2026 ā€œwell placed to deliver profitable growth and sustained cash generationā€, despite an ā€œuncertainā€ macro and political backdrop. The board raised the dividend by 5 per cent.

Savills (SVS) is to buy US real estate investment bank Eastdil Secured for Ā£685mn. The London-headquartered estate agent will fund the acquisition through a combination of cash (Ā£411mn) and shares (Ā£274mn), increasing its share count by 16 per cent.

Savills said the acquisition would enhance its global real estate investment banking offering, which generates higher margins than the rest of the business and has historically lagged larger US peers CBRE (US:CBRE) and JLL (US:JLL). Eastdilā€™s current leadership will stay on board and it will remain a separate business.

Savills has guided for the acquisition to deliver low-to-mid teens underlying EPS accretion in 2027 (before synergies).

ā€œThe improved breadth of our services and enhanced global footprint will create significant growth opportunities,ā€ said Savills chief executive Simon Shaw. 

The company also announced full-year results this morning, reporting underlying profit before tax of Ā£145mn on revenues of Ā£2.6bn, up 11 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively, versus the prior year. The total dividend rose 12 per cent to 34p.

The company did not issue specific 2026 guidance, but noted it had seen ā€œcontinued momentum across global real estate markets during the first couple of months of 2026ā€.

Shares fell 5 per cent in early trading.