Northern Financial Review

FirstGroup plc has submitted the first phase of an application for a new “open access” rail service between Rochdale and London to the Office of…

Asda announced a 6.6% increase in total revenues (excluding fuel) to £5.3 billion and 1.4% growth in like-for-like sales. The Leeds-based supermarket said growth was…

Manchester industrial chain and power transmission firm Renold announced that it has renewed its partnership with British Cycling for a further three years. The deal…

The Bank of England — the UK’s central bank — said it is set to increase its presence in Leeds for an expanded and permanent…

Harrogate-based IT firm Redcentric plc said its revenue rose 15.1% to £163.1 million in the year to March 31, 2024 — but the firm said…

Newcastle-headquartered Grainger plc — the UK’s largest listed residential landlord — reported 11% growth in net rental income to £53.2 million for the six months ended March…

Sage Group plc, the Newcastle-based FTSE 100 global software business, said its revenue rose 6% to £1.152 billion for the six months to March 31,…

Warrington-based water giant United Utilities said its revenue revenue rose by £145 million or 8.1% to £1.95 billion in the year to March 31, 2024, “largely…

ULEMCo, a Liverpool-based company that converts commercial vehicles to run on hydrogen fuel, has raised over £5 million in a funding round led by Mercia…

Henry Boot, the Sheffield-based property investment group, announced that its construction business has been appointed by Rotherham Council to deliver the £36 million redevelopment of Rotherham…

Marshalls plc, the Elland, West Yorkshire-based stone and landscaping firm, published a trading update for the four months to April 30, 2024, showing revenue during the…

Gateshead-based Vertu Motors plc said its revenue rose 17.6% to £4.7 billion and profit before tax rose 6.5% to £34.6 million in the year to February 29,…

Leeds-based engineering services group Renew Holdings said its order book has grown about £8 million to £898 million over the past year. Reporting results for the…

Newcastle-based Greggs said it performed well in the first 19 weeks of 2024, with like-for-like (LFL) sales in company-managed shops growing 7.4% “with delivery sales,…

Shares of Manchester-based holiday retailer On the Beach Group plc (OTB) fell as much as 14% after it said its “value market remains more challenging, reflecting…

Leeds-based supermarket giant Asda has unveiled plans for a mixed-use redevelopment of its 10-acre Park Royal site in North West London. The retailer has partnered with…

Liverpool-based online retail and financial services firm The Very Group, owned by the Barclay family, said it has appointed former UK chancellor Nadhim Zahawi as…

The UK Government has ordered a “best value” inspection into Warrington Borough Council amid its huge level of debt. The inspection will be conducted under…

The UK government has announced funding of £196 million for Urenco to support the building of an advanced nuclear fuels facility at its Capenhurst enrichment…

Leeds City Council’s chief executive Tom Riordan has announced his intention to leave at the end of the year to “explore new opportunities” after 14 years…

Liverpool City Council announced that is to have all of its powers returned to it in June 2024, with the ending of the UK Government…

Manchester-based online fashion firm Boohoo Group plc said its revenue fell 17% to £1.461 billion and its loss before tax widened to £159.9 million from…

SmartCraft ASA of Norway is expanding into the UK market through the acquisition of Houghton Le Spring construction Software as a Service (SaaS) firm Clixifix…

Newly re-elected Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, has made tackling the city-region’s housing crisis a top priority for his third term. Burnham has unveiled…

The University of Manchester said it has signed a landmark new deal that will see up to 65% of its electricity demand supplied through a…

The board of Blackburn-based toilet roll and tissue maker Accrol Group said it has agreed to an increased “and final” offer to be acquired by…

Leeds-based supermarket giant Asda announced on Friday that it has refinanced more than £3.2 billion of its debt. Blackburn-based billionaire brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa…

Chester-based price comparison website Moneysupermarket.com Group plc announced it will change its corporate holding company name to MONY Group plc, with effect from May 20,…

Shares of Liverpool-based supercar brake disc maker Surface Transforms fell another 65% to a mere 1p after the firm conditionally raised £6.5 million via a share…

Manchester-based Co-op Bank published a first-quarter trading update on Thursday saying that discussions regarding the potential acquisition of the bank by mutually-owned Coventry Building Society…

SIG plc, the Sheffield-based international building materials supplier, said its group like-for-like (LFL) sales fell 6% year-on-year to £873 million in the period from January 1…

Shares of Runcorn-based workwear and textile firm Johnson Service Group (JSG) rose as much as 14% after it published an AGM statement and “updated positive energy outlook.” JSG)…

Manchester industrial chain and power transmission firm Renold plc announced that Renold Couplings, part of the company’s Torque Transmission division, has been awarded a contract to…

York-based house building giant Persimmon plc said that Shirine Khoury-Haq will step down as an independent non-executive director on September 30, 2024, to focus on her…

Salford-based investment platform AJ Bell announce that Julie Chakraverty has been appointed to its board of directors as an independent non-executive director with effect from…

HSS Hire Group plc, the Manchester-based tool and equipment rental firm, said its 2023 revenue grew 4.9% to £349.1 million but adjusted profit before tax fell…

Manchester United plc said it has made two further changes to its executive leadership as the new era under co-owner Jim Ratcliffe of Ineos continues…

Shares of Wakefield-based greeting card and gift retailer Card Factory rose as much as 9% after the firm reported that its revenue rose 10.3% to £510.9…

Wetherby-based life sciences company Avacta Group announced that Christina Coughlin has been appointed as its new CEO, effective May 1, 2024, and that after 19 years as CEO, Alastair…

Shares of James Cropper plc, the Kendal-based advanced materials and paper & packaging firm, rose as much 26% to around £3.33 after it published an unaudited…

Northcoders Group plc, the provider of digital, software and coding training programmes, said its 2023 revenue rose to a record £7.1 million, increasing 27% from £5.6 million…

Bradford-based supermarket giant Morrisons said it successfully closed the sale to Motor Fuel Group (MFG) of 337 Morrisons’ petrol forecourts and more than 400 associated sites for electric…

Manchester-based household products firm McBride said on Tuesday it anticipates that its full-year adjusted operating profit will be 10% ahead of current market expectations. The company-compiled…

Chester-based GB Group (GBG), experts in digital location, identity verification and identity fraud software, announced the appointment of Michelle Senecal de Fonseca as a new…

Manchester-based clothing and footwear digital retailer N Brown Group announced that Ron McMillan will retire as chair and step down from the board with effect from April…

ITM Power, the Sheffield-based green hydrogen and energy storage firm, has announced a partnership with Oxford-based Hygen to be its preferred supplier for Proton Exchange Membrane…

York-based house building giant Persimmon plc said in an AGM statement that it traded in line with expectations during the first quarter of 2024, delivering a…

Shares of Manchester-based Genedrive rose as much as 7% after it announced it entered into a clinical trial agreement with a “leading multi-state physician organisation” in…

Croda International, the Snaith, East Yorkshire-based FTSE 100 speciality chemicals giant, said it recorded first-quarter sales of £409 million for the first three months of 2024,…

Manchester consumer products company PZ Cussons — maker of Carex and Imperial Leather — published a trading update for its third quarter ended March 2, 2024, and…

Merseyside-based Vimto and soft drinks firm Nichols plc published a trading update for the three months to March 31, 2024, to coincide with the company’s…

Shares of York-based online musical equipment retailer Gear4music rose as much as 6% after it announced a board succession plan and published a year-end trading update…

Leeds-based Jet2 plc forecast a 33% rise in annual profit and said 55% of seats were sold for the 2024 summer season amid strong forward bookings for…

Shares of Chester-based GB Group (GBG), experts in global identity and location software, rose as much as 15% after it published an update on trading…

Shares of Manchester-based consumer brands giant THG plc rose as much as 5% after it said its group continuing revenue rose 4.5% to £455.4 million…

The Port of Blyth has announced “record financial performance” for the third consecutive year. Group turnover grew to £31.5 million, with operating profit and profit…

JD Sports Fashion plc, the Bury-based FTSE 100 retailer, said it has proposed to acquire Alabama-based athletic fashion retailer Hibbett Inc for about $1.08 billion in cash….

Premium serviced office provider Gilbanks has signed a deal for 34,000 sq ft of office space at No.1 St Michael’s, the £400 million development in Manchester…

Manchester-based housing association Great Places Housing Group announced that Savills Financial Consultants has helped the group secure three new funding deals worth a total of £284…

Leeds-based supermarket giant Asda said its 2023 adjusted EBITDA after rent, its preferred profit measure, rose 24% to £1.08 billion as its total sales, excluding fuel, climbed…

Hines, the global real estate investor and manager, has agreed to forward fund the development of a £120 million 519-unit residential scheme in central Newcastle…

Mutually-owned Coventry Building Society and Manchester-based Co-operative Bank announced on Thursday afternoon that “non-binding heads of terms have been agreed for a potential acquisition of…

Shares of LBG Media plc, the Manchester-based parent of “youth publisher” Ladbible Group, rose as much as 10% after it published results for the year…

Carlisle-based agriculture and engineering firm Carr’s Group announced that it is “running a process to explore options to maximise shareholder value” for its engineering division….

AJ Bell, the Salford investment platform giant, said its customer numbers increased by 19,000 in the three months ended March 31, 2024, taking total customers through…

Shares of Liverpool-based Surface Transforms, makers of carbon fibre reinforced ceramic automotive brake discs, fell another 18% to a mere 3p after it responded to…

Shares of Severfield, the Thirsk, North Yorkshire-based steel group, rose as much as 14% as the firm published a strong trading update for the year ended…

Shares of Wilmslow-based fashion firm Sosandar plc — run by former magazine publishers Ali Hall and Julie Lavington — fell more than 10% after it published…

Warrington-based water giant United Utilities has announced board changes. The firm said that after seven years on the board, Paulette Rowe, independent non-executive director and…

James Fisher and Sons plc, the Barrow-in-Furness marine engineering firm, said its 2023 revenue grew 3.8% to £496.2 million, driven by 9.9% revenue growth in…