果冻传媒

Car dealership software specialist Pinewood Technologies (PINE) has announced its major client, Marshall Motor Group, will not be using its platform by the end of Q1 as previously guided, knocking the profit outlook for 2026.

鈥淭his process has taken longer than originally anticipated, compared with the expectations set out in the 24 September 2025 announcement, but is expected to deliver a more effective outcome for Marshalls once completed,鈥� said Pinewood.

The company said its adjusted Ebitda for 2026 would be lower as a result. The analyst consensus forecast was 拢25mn before Wednesday鈥檚 downgrade, when it dropped to 拢21mn.

Shares in the company previously known as Pendragon fell 7.5 per cent to 218p in response, taking the year-to-date drop to 38 per cent. This decline was largely due to a potential buyer withdrawing from the acquisition process after an early stage bid of 500p per share. Apax Partners said it would not make a formal offer due to 鈥減revailing challenging market conditions鈥�.

RS Group (RS1) expects like-for-like revenues for the year to 31 March to drop 0.6 per cent, against analyst expectations for a return to growth, due to a stubbornly weak European industrials market. Despite this, adjusted pre-tax profit could come in ahead of analyst expectations.

Company-compiled consensus is profits of 拢241mn, within a range of 拢230mn to 拢247mn. The prior year, RS Group reported pre-tax profit of 拢274mn.

The distributor anticipates the Europe, Middle East and Africa (Emea) region to return to 鈥渕arginal growth鈥� in the second half of 2026. The Asia Pacific region is expected to perform better too, while the Americas are forecast to decline due to difficult trading in Mexico.

鈥淲e expect the return to [like-for-like] growth in the key Emea territory to draw attention to the attractive valuation,鈥� said Peel Hunt analyst Andrew Nussey. The company鈥檚 shares trade on 14.8 times forward earnings.

Full-year results are due on 20 May. The shares fell 5.4 per cent to 555p.

Electrical products group Luceco (LUCE) reported a 12 per cent increase in revenue and a 31 per cent hike in pre-tax profit, bolstered by recent acquisitions. The company also pointed to stronger cash flows, which increased from 拢3.5mn last year to over 拢30mn.

After a good start to the year, Luceco also upgraded targets for 2026. House broker Peel Hunt increased its forecast for adjusted earnings per share forecast by 7 per cent to 15.9p and for the dividend payout by 1p to 6.5p. The company鈥檚 shares rose by 9 per cent.

Shares in Braemar (BMS) fell 6 per cent in early trading after the shipbroker confirmed its year-on-year profits and revenue would fall, despite it hitting targets for the year to 28 February.

The group expects to report a 5 per cent drop in revenue to 拢135mn in the year, with underlying operating profit before acquisition costs falling 21 per cent to 拢13mn.

As was the case for peer Clarkson (CKN), the company benefited from a recovery in the second half after US tariffs disrupted global trade earlier in the year. The forward order book, which covers revenue to be earned in future years, stood at $73mn (拢54mn) at the end of the period, down from $82mn.

Braemar鈥檚 net debt rose slightly to 拢2.9mn, but returned to a net cash position in March. Management warned that the conflict in the Middle East was creating uncertainty, with higher rates but lower volumes in some markets. Full-year results are due at the end of May.

Read more: Shipping world in chaos due to Iran conflict disruption

Asos (ASC) shares leapt 15 per cent this morning after the online fashion retailer reported a 50 per cent jump in cash profit in its first half trading update.

The company said that the rise in its adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation came despite the negative impact of tariffs, thanks to better cost management and fewer customers making returns.

The company has continued to chip away at its inventory backlog after this hit 拢1bn in 2022. As of November, Asos was still grappling with 拢402mn worth of stock. The group said this morning that its sell-through rate for autumn and winter inventory had improved by 60 basis points, 鈥渓eaving stock in a clean and healthy position鈥�.

However, gross merchandise value, which is the total value of all products sold after cancellations and returns, remains 9 per cent down year-on-year.

The shares hit a nine-month high of 330p at the end of January, but then tumbled to just 212p before this update.

Read more: The retail stocks winning by being 鈥榦nline department stores鈥�

Volex (VLX) said results for its current financial year will be 鈥渟ignificantly ahead鈥� of expectations as it continues to experience strong demand for cables used for high-speed data transmission.

The company expects to earn revenue for its March year-end of at least $1.2bn (拢910mn) and an underlying operating margin 鈥渟lightly above鈥� the top end of its guided range of 9 to 10 per cent. The company鈥檚 shares rose by 12 per cent.

Volex also became the latest sizable Aim-listed venture to announce a plan to switch to the main market. It is of a scale that would allow inclusion into the FTSE 250 index, which would 鈥渇acilitate access to deeper pools of capital and a broader range of investors鈥�, management said.

If shareholders approve the move, Volex would follow the likes of GlobalData (DATA), Gamma Communications (GAMA) and wealth manager Brooks Macdonald (BRK) in switching to the main market. Brewer Young & Co (YNGA) is also in the process of making the move, announcing on Wednesday its last day on Aim would be 27 April.

Mineral sands miner Kenmare Resources (KMR) will not pay a final dividend because of 鈥渨eak market conditions鈥� that also brought on a $301mn (拢224mn) impairment for 2025. The Mozambique company, which sells a concentrate containing titanium that is used in paints, plastics and tiles, reported sales of $312mn last year, down a fifth year on year.

The drop came from lower production and a 6 per cent fall in the price received for the heavy mineral concentrate, which is largely ilmenite. The impairment came on a poorer outlook for the market.

鈥淚n light of the challenging market conditions, we have had to make some difficult but responsible decisions, including retrenching 15 per cent of our Moma employees and suspending the 2025 final dividend,鈥� said managing director Tom Hickey.

Net debt soared in the year from $25mn to $159mn because of the capital outlay on a plant upgrade project. This will not repeat in 2026, with spending on the Wet Concentrator Plant A project falling from $156mn to $30mn.

Kenmare鈥檚 shares have slumped in recent months on uncertainty over the Mozambique government bringing in higher royalties as well as industrial uncertainty globally, and fell a further 9 per cent on Wednesday.

Shares in Crest Nicholson (CRST) jumped 12 per cent in early trading, outpacing peers by 9 percentage points, after the housebuilder said in a trading update that its full-year guidance was unchanged.

Specifically, the company has not yet seen 鈥渁ny material trading impact from the wider macroeconomic shock of recent weeks鈥�, but had experienced improving sales rates from mid-January through to 20 March.

Crest鈥檚 shares had previously shed a third of the value month to date, outpacing losses in the wider housebuilding sector, on concerns that cost inflation and worsening customer affordability will hurt margins.