Articles by Northern Financial Review



CMA to investigate Sainsbury’s-Asda merger

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Thursday it has launched a formal investigation into the proposed merger between J Sainsbury and Asda Group. Sainsbury’s…


Persimmon first-half revenue up 5% to £1.8bn

York-based Persimmon, the UK’s second-largest house builder, said on Tuesday its profit before tax increased 13% to £516.3 million and revenue was up 5% to £1.84 billion in the…




Asda reports growth ahead of Sainsbury’s deal

Walmart’s Leeds-based subsidiary Asda — currently preparing to be taken over by Sainsbury’s — has reported a fifth quarter of positive growth in the period from April 1 to…





Sheffield’s Sumo buys The Chinese Room

Sheffield-based video gaming giant Sumo Group plc said it acquired Brighton-based game development studio The Chinese Room Ltd for a total consideration of £2.2 million…








Pets At Home Q1 revenue up 8% to £277m

Chesire-based Pets At Home, the retailer of pet food, accessories and veterinary services, reported revenue growth of 8.1% to £277.4 million for the 16 week period…



Yorkshire Building Society assets up to £42.3bn

Bradford-based Yorkshire Building Society’s recent interim results showed its core operating profit rose to £86.3 million for the first six months of the year compared to £84.2 million…


Sage confident of achieving revenue guidance

Newcastle-based software giant Sage Group, the UK’s largest tech company, said on Thursday it remains confident of achieving its full year guidance on “organic” revenue…





Greggs first-half sales up 5% to £476m

Shares of Greggs, the Newcastle-based bakery and “food-on-the-go” retailer, rose about 8% after it said its sales rose 5.2% to £476 million in the 26 weeks…






Bodycote expects results to beat consensus

Macclesfield-based engineering and thermal processing giant Bodycote said it expects its full year results to “be marginally ahead of current consensus.” Bodycote said that for the…




Cussons profit falls amid Nigeria slump

Manchester-based soaps and consumer products company PZ Cussons said its adjusted profit before tax fell 21.5% to £80.1 million for the year to May 31, 2018, “largely due to…


Outages hurt Drax H1 earnings; shares down 7%

Shares of Selby, North Yorkshire-based power company Drax Group fell about 5% after it said its first-half earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) fell to…











DFS Furniture warns earnings will fall

Doncaster-based DFS Furniture warned in a trading update that its full-year earnings will fall below last year, blaming “exceptionally hot weather” and “disruption outside of our…



Begbies Traynor revenue tops £52m

Manchester-based Begbies Traynor Group plc, the business recovery, financial advisory and property services consultancy, said its revenue from continuing operations in the year ended April 30, 2018,…


Tour de Yorkshire injects £98m into economy

The 2018 Tour de Yorkshire boosted the county’s economy by about £98 million, according to an economic impact study conducted by independent research company GRASP and…



Stobart Group boardroom battle rages on

The battle for control of the board at Carlisle-based aviation, energy and transport firm Stobart Group continues to rage on despite former CEO Andrew Tinkler failing narrowly…


Co-op Bank hires ex-Lloyds executive as new CEO

Manchester-based Co-operative Bank announced on Monday the appointment of former Lloyds Banking Group executive Andrew Bester as its new chief executive officer. Co-operative Bank said in…


Stobart CFO quits amid boardroom vote delay

Carlisle-based aviation, energy and transport firm Stobart Group late on Friday delayed the results of its contentious AGM shareholder vote on the future of chairman Ian Ferguson. Ferguson has…








Regulator probes KPMG over Conviviality audit

The UK’s Financial Reporting Council has launched an investigation into auditor KPMG’s work for Conviviality, the Crewe-based alcohol wholesaler which owned Bargain Booze and Wine…





SIG to sell VJ Technology for £30m

Sheffield-based European building products supplier SIG plc said it agreed to sell VJ Technology (VJT) to UK private equity investment firm Primary Capital for about £29.7 million….






Footasylum shares fall 50% amid growth warning

Shares of recently-floated Rochdale youth footwear and apparel retailer Footasylum plunged almost 50% after it warned its current financial year “is likely to show more modest growth” than the…




Manchester law firm DWF mulls £1bn IPO

Manchester-headquartered international law firm DWF is considering an IPO on the London Stock Exchange that could value the firm at up to £1 billion. In response to…