Market Pulse
Virgin Money beats forecasts and eyes faster ROTE growth
Results from Virgin Money's first full year as a listed company impressed investors, with pre-tax profits much higher than forecast and a healthier balance sheet.
Asia report: Markets rally as sentiment improves
Asian markets came out all guns blazing on Wednesday, trading off signs of improvement in the US economy, which helped to soothe traders' fears about weakness in the global economy.
Dignity grows as death rate rises
An unforeseen jump in the death rate made for a year of growth at listed funeral business Dignity, as the company published its preliminary results on Wednesday.
FCA bans former Deutsche Bank trader for Libor-related fraud
The Financial Conduct Authority has banned former Deutsche Bank trader Michael Ross Curtler from the UK financial service industry following a criminal conviction for Libor-related fraud in the US.
Entertainment One confident of overcoming film weakness
Entertainment One said although group sales and earnings were dragged down by weakness from the film division, earnings expectations for the full year remained unchanged.
Wizz Air traffic up 22% in February; new CFO announced
Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air carried 1. 41m passengers in February, up 21. 7% on the same month last year.
Jefferies upgrades Rightmove on "robust" results
Jefferies upgraded Rightmove to ‘hold’ from ‘underperform’ and lifted the price target to 3,600p from 2,131p following “another robust set of results”.
Galliford Try to build Forbury Place phase two in Reading
Galliford Try announced a new contract win on Wednesday, having been appointed to build the second phase of the Forbury Place development in Reading by clients M&G Real Estate and Bell Hammer.
UK construction PMI unexpectedly drops in February
The pace of UK construction unexpectedly slowed in February, data released on Wednesday showed.
Polymetal expands Armenian operations with acquisition
Polymetal looked to expand its Armenian operations on Wednesday, announcing it had entered into binding agreements with Dundee Precious Metals to acquire that firm's Kapan Gold Mine project for $25m.
888 Holdings promotes Itai Frieberger to CEO
Online gambling firm 888 Holdings has promoted Itai Frieberger to chief executive officer from chief operating officer with immediate effect.
Steinhoff gatecrashes Darty takeover by FNAC
South Africa's Steinhoff International has sealed its reputation as a serial gatecrasher with a 125p offer for European electricals retailer Darty, even though it is in the midst takeover by France's FNAC.
Amec Foster Wheeler completes debt refinancing
Amec Foster Wheeler has completed a £1. 7bn refinancing of its main debt facilities.
Record earnings at Synthomer despite lower prices
Depressed commodities prices pushed revenue down at Synthomer in 2015, but a focus on tight cost control saw the firm reporting some record numbers.
Stagecoach staying on track in face of 'more challenging' market
In a brief trading update Stagecoach said although it was operating in a "more challenging" environment, it remained on track to meet full year targets.
Europe open: Basic resource stocks pace the advance
European stocks rose in early trade, taking their cue from positive sessions in the US and Asia, with basic resources pacing the advance.
Poundland CEO to be replaced by ex Dixons FD O'Byrne
Poundland have announced former Dixons and Kingfisher finance director Kevin O'Byrne will replace chief executive Jim McCarthy when he retires in July.
Laird full year profit up, confident on 2016
Electronics and technology company Laird posted a jump in underlying pre-tax profit for 2015 and said it was confident in the prospects for this year.
New investor representative on Rolls-Royce board
The largest investor in Rolls-Royce had a new representative on the board, with Bradley Singer being appointed as a non-executive director and member of the Science and Technology Committee with immediate effect on Wednesday.
Nedbank in strong position, Old Mutual reports
Old Mutual reported on the health of its majority-owned South African banking subsidiary Nedbank Group on Wednesday, with the organisation - one of the country's largest banks - showing some strong growth.