Typically, early summer is when cider sales begin to increase as drinkers try to quench their thirst.
But for the Bulmers and Magners salesman this season could be unforgettable.
Today, the company’s shares plummeted after its CEO resigned following revelations of a series of accounting errors.
Dublin-based FTSE 250-listed drinks company C&C, which also makes Scottish beer Tennent’s, revealed it had recorded a £14.5m charge on its balance sheet relating to “discrepancies” over the past three years. .
Chief executive Patrick McMahon was chief financial officer at the time of the “discrepancies”, before taking over as chief executive in May last year.
Bad taste: For the Bulmers and Magners salesman this season could be one to forget
McMahon has accepted responsibility for what the firm described as “accounting and judgment errors.” The shares sank 7.6 per cent, or 12.8 pence, to 156.4 pence. The update came alongside the group’s publication of its unaudited annual results which showed revenue fell 2 per cent to £1.4bn.
The company also suffered a loss of £94m, after making a profit of £44m the previous year.
The FTSE 100 fell 0.5 per cent, or 39.97 points, to 8,245.37 and the FTSE 250 lost 0.8 per cent, or 160.51 points, to 20,555.37.
London’s blue-chip index posted a fourth consecutive week of losses for the first time since late 2020. In the Middle East, oil giant Saudi Aramco sold shares at the lower end of its expectations. The state-owned company dumped £8.8bn worth of shares at 570p.
Such funds will help Saudi Arabia – which remains Aramco’s largest shareholder with more than 90 percent of the shares – in its quest to transform its economy.
Back in London, computer maker Raspberry Pi will list its shares at the top end of its price range when it goes public next week.
The shares are expected to be priced between 260p and 280p, which would value them at £540m.
Housebuilder Bellway is optimistic about the British housing market after it reported stronger trading activity in the spring.
The company’s private reserve rate rose 6.9 percent between Feb. 1 and June 2 as customers benefited from greater affordability as mortgage rates decline and wages rise. Bellway added that it is “on track” to build 7,500 homes over the course of its financial year.
The shares fell 0.7 per cent, or 18p, to 2,764p.
Bidders hoping to buy two London-listed companies are running out of time.
Advertising agency Brave Bison has until Monday to announce whether it wants to make a firm offer to buy rival The Mission Group or walk away.
The suitor had its improved offer rejected earlier this week, leaving the deal up for grabs. Shares in The Mission Group fell 3.6 per cent, or 1p, to 27p. Brave Bison shares were steady at 2.45p.
IT services provider Redcentric will continue to list in London, at least for now, after Italian rival Wiit stopped bidding on Thursday. The shares fell 2.6 per cent, or 3.75 pence, to 142 pence.