Thursday preview: US data, Johnson Matthey in focus

The focus in financial markets on Thursday will be on the US, where a slew of economic indicators are scheduled for release.

In particular, investors will be waiting on the latest weekly unemployment claims data and a preliminary reading for durable goods orders covering the month of April.

They will also likely be scrutinising a second reading for US gross domestic product in the first quarter.

On home shores, the only economic report of any relevance due out is that for car and engine manufacturing in April.

Across the Channel meanwhile, a raft of consumer confidence surveys are due out including for Germany in June and for Sweden and Italy in May.

Euro area consumer and industrial confidence figures for May are also due out.

Further afield, rate-setters in Seoul are expected to keep their seven-day repurchase rate unchanged at 0.50%.

For Johnson Matthey's second half numbers, UBS analyst Andrew Stott is forecasting sales of £2.47bn for earnings before interest and taxes of £358m (consensus: £343m).

To take note of, guidance from the firm issued on 8 April already implied EBIT of £351m, the analyst said.

At the time, the company also guided towards net debt "below £850m".

In particular, Stott said that the "more influential" comments of the day would be around any guidance for the firm's Clean Air division and any update on its battery materials project.

For the 2022 financial year, the analyst had penciled in EBIT of £582m versus the consensus on £600m.

Consensus had pegged the budget for capital expenditures for the year ahead at £486m and for FY2023 at £474m.

In the same research note sent to clients, Stott reminded them that the Swiss broker had a 'sell' recommendation on the stock due to the long-term risks to its return on capital employed as it shifted away from the ICE-related technologies - with sales from hydrogen likely to be loaded towards the latter half of the 2020s.

Thursday 27 May

INTERIMS

Daily Mail and General Trust A (Non.V), Impax Asset Management Group, Residential Secure Income, Tharisa (DI)

INTERIM DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Northamber

INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Antofagasta 5% Cum Prf, Barings Emerging Emea Opportunities , Britvic, Cardiff Property, Cerillion , Croda International 5.9% Cumulative Preference 1, Croda International 6.6% Cumulative Preference 1, Diploma, Euromoney Institutional Investor, Fuller Smith and Turner 6% 1st Cumulative Preference 1, Grainger, REA Holdings 9% Cum. Prf. #1, Rotork 9.5% Cum Prf. #1, Sage Group, Stock Spirits Group , Town Centre Securities

QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE

Tetragon Financial Group Limited

QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE

BlackRock World Mining Trust, Diversified Energy Company , HICL Infrastructure , Regional REIT Limited, Tritax Eurobox (EUR), Tritax Eurobox (GBP)

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS

Continuing Claims (US) (13:30)

Durable Goods Orders (US) (13:30)

GDP (Preliminary) (US) (13:30)

Initial Jobless Claims (US) (13:30)

Pending Homes Sales (US) (15:00)

FINALS

Caledonia Investments, Invinity Energy Systems , Johnson Matthey, LondonMetric Property, Pets at Home Group , Picton Property Income Ltd, Ted Baker, United Utilities Group

SPECIAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

Highcroft Investment

SPECIAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Games Workshop Group

AGMS

Albion Technology & General VCT, Belvoir Group, BMO Private Equity Trust, Bodycote, Bonhill Group, Brave Bison Group, Cambridge Cognition Holdings, Curtis Banks Group, Deltex Medical Group, Ferrexpo, Glenveagh Properties (CDI), Global Ports Investments GDR (REG S), Great Western Mining Corporation (CDI), Inchcape, Independent Inv Trust, Instem, International Public Partnerships Ltd., Nucleus Financial Group , OSB Group , Oxford Biomedica, Public Joint Stock Company Polyus (REG S) , Resolute Mining Limited NPV (DI), Restore, Strix Group , Valirx, Vectura Group, Xeros Technology Group , XLMedia, Yu Group

TRADING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Aviva, Johnson Matthey

FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE

AVI Japan Opportunity Trust , Highcroft Investment, Legal & General Group, One Media IP Group

FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE

Advanced Medical Solutions Group, Andrews Sykes Group, Burford Capital NPV (DI), DCC (CDI), Fuller Smith and Turner 8% 2nd Cumulative Preference 1, Great Portland Estates, Intertek Group, James Halstead 5.5% Cumulative Preference 1, Mckay Securities, Mincon Group (CDI), Ra International Group, Severn Trent, STM Group, Vivo Energy

Q1

AB Ignitis Grupe GDR (Reg S), PJSC RusHydro ADR , Public Joint Stock Company Polyus (REG S)