PPHE profits jump, EU approval for GSK's RSV vaccine expands

Stocks to watch

Hotels group PPHE posted a jump in half-yearly profits and held guidance despite supply chain issues holding up full openings of new art’hotel properties in London and Rome, delaying meaningful earnings contributions. EBITDA for the six months to June rose 6.7% to £48.3m as revenue hit a record £191m, up 6.1%. However revenue per available room – a key industry metric – fell 2.2% to £107.8 as prices normalised after the Covid pandemic.

GSK announced on Thursday that the European Commission has approved Arexvy, the first respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine, for adults aged 50 to 59 at increased risk due to underlying medical conditions. The FTSE 100 pharmaceuticals giant said the approval expanded the vaccine's indication, which was previously authorised for adults aged 60 and over, and aimed to protect the estimated 20 million at-risk adults in the age group across Europe ahead of the RSV season. It was also approved in the US, with additional approvals expected in other countries, including Japan, later in the year.

Ofgem has closed its probe into the biomass profiling data of Drax after investigating whether or not the power station group failed to meet sustainability criteria of so-called Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs). Drax chief executive Will Gardiner said the news was “welcome” but said management “recognise[d] the importance of maintaining a strong evidence base and are continuing to invest to improve confidence in our future reporting”.

Newspaper round-up

Ministers have committed to help households struggling with their gas and electricity bills this winter after energy industry bosses warned that consumer debt had climbed to more than £3bn. With Labour under fire for scrapping universal winter fuel payments to pensioners, ministers met energy industry bosses on Wednesday to discuss ways of supporting struggling households through the coming colder months. – Guardian

Qantas Airways has posted a $2.1bn annual underlying profit – down 16% from last year’s record result – amid a surge in demand for budget Jetstar fares and mounting public anger at its service and ticket policies. Australia’s biggest airline said bookings and travel demand remained stable across its flying brands, although moderating air fares had eroded profits, especially on international flights. – Guardian

A City whistleblower has been awarded more than half a million pounds after he was fired for exposing an alleged Chinese spy. An employment tribunal has awarded Bharat Bhagani, a former compliance officer at Goldenway Global Investments, nearly £565,000 in compensation, according to a ruling published earlier this week. – Telegraph

The Savoy hotel in central London is facing an increasingly competitive luxury hotel market on the back of a host of openings by rivals. According to the hotel’s accounts, filed this week, at least 15 new luxury hotels with a total of 2,677 rooms are opening across the capital over the 2023-2025 period. – The Times

CrowdStrike has cut its annual sales and profit forecast as demand for its cybersecurity products is hit by the global Windows outage caused by a faulty update from the company. The outage last month hit 8.5 million Microsoft Windows devices, interrupting internet services and leaving thousands of people stranded at airports after mass flight cancellations. – The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks closed lower on Wednesday as market participants awaited earnings from AI-darling Nvidia after the close.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.39% at 41,091.42, while the S&P 500 lost 0.60% to 5,592.18 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.12% weaker at 17,556.03.

The Dow closed 159.08 points lower on Wednesday, reversing modest gains recorded so far this week that helped the blue-chip index eke out yet another record high.

Wednesday's primary focus was the latest batch of quarterly earnings from Nvidia, with traders hoping to gauge the sustainability of the broader tech and AI sector.

The semiconductor giant reported earnings per share of $0.68 and quarterly revenues of $30.04bn, ahead of estimates of $0.64 per share and $28.7bn.