Welcome to the week ahead, our summary of the forthcoming key company announcements. Companies are no longer obliged to notify the London Stock Exchange (LSE) of results and trading updates, so this list does not claim to be comprehensive. You can read company announcements at http://announce.ft.com and our daily online news summaries record all key company announcements and business press headlines.
Monday 2 September
Interims: Biome Technologies, Michelmersh Brick
Trading statement: Berkeley Group
AGMs: Berkeley Group, Consort Medical, Mortice
Economics: Hometrack housing survey, Purchasing managers' index - manufacturing
Tuesday 3 September
Interims: @UK, Goals Soccer Centres, Hydro International, Johnson Service Group, Total Produce
Finals: Alumasc, Dechra Pharmaceuticals, McBride
Trading statement: Smith (DS)
AGMs: Avarae Global Coins, Creston, Greene King, Smith (DS), Thor Mining
Economics: British Retail Consortium - year-on-year sales figures, Purchasing managers' index - construction
Veterinary products specialist Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) announces its full-year figures on Tuesday and investors may be looking for early signs of the anticipated benefits from having sold its veterinary services unit. The £87.5m disposal last month of that fairly low-margin operation should boost the group's return on capital employed to something closer to 22 per cent by 2014, from around 13 per cent or so last year. Crucially, however, it should also help management to improve and focus the pharmaceuticals operation - which manufactures such products as Vetoryl, for Cushing's disease in dogs and horses. The shares, at 709p, are up on our recent buy tip (682p, 12 Jul 2012) and the potential from the disposal leaves us reiterating that advice. There's a fairly solid 2.2 per cent prospective yield, too. Broker Investec Securities expects pre-tax profit for the end of June 2013 of £44.8m, giving EPS of 38.4p.
Wednesday 4 September
Interims: Abbey Protection, Smart Metering Systems, SQS Software Quality Systems, Staffline Recruitment
Finals: Hargreaves Lansdown, Kofax, Mucklow (A&J)
Trading statements: Ashtead Group, Safestore Holdings
AGMs: Ashtead Group, Mulberry Group
Economics: British Retail Consortium - shop price index, Purchasing managers' index - services, official reserves data
Thursday 5 September
Finals: Go-Ahead Group, Monitise
Interim: Mail.ru
Trading statements: Aer Lingus, Betfair, Dixons Retail, easyJet, Spirit Pub Company, SuperGroup
AGMs: ACM Shipping, Betfair, Carclo, Carpetright, Dart Group, Dixons Retail, Equatorial Palm Oil, Independent News & Media, Ortac Resources
EGM: Lancashire Holdings
Economics: Bank of England interest rate announcement, Bank of England asset purchase target, new car registrations data
Following Go-Ahead's (GOG) trading update in June, full-year figures from the rail and bus operator on Thursday are unlikely to serve up any significant surprises. The group's bus division is still performing well - the regulated London bus business, for example, is expected to deliver 12.5 per cent revenue growth (after factoring in acquisitions and the boost from last year's Olympics). Indeed, management reckons that the bus business is on track to organically grow operating profit to £100m by 2015-16. But it's a different story at the rail business. True, management is expecting full-year total passenger revenue to grow 5 per cent at the Southern franchise, 8 per cent at Southeastern and 12 per cent at London Midland. But higher than expected costs in the fourth quarter are still set to hit the rail unit's profits. That rail weakness leaves the shares - at 1,495p, and trading on a not so cheap 11 times broker Panmure Gordon & Co's 2013 full-year EPS estimate of 132.2p - looking up with events; despite a fat 5.4 per cent dividend yield. Hold.
Friday 6 September
Interim: Belgravium Technologies
Trading statement: SThree
AGMs: Centurian Resources, DQ Entertainment, Hayward Tyler, Latchways, Powerhouse Energy
EGMs: Powerhouse Energy, Synety Group
Economics: Industrial production data, manufacturing production data, Bank of England/GfK - inflation data for the next 12 months, trade figures, National Institute of Social & Economic Research - GDP estimate (August)
Shares going ex-dividend on 4 September
| Company | Dividend (p) | Payment |
| ACM Shipping Group ord 1p | 7 | 4 Oct |
| Aggreko Group ord 20p | 9.11 | 4 Oct |
| Albion Development VCT | 2.5 | 30 Sep |
| Amino Technologies ord 1p | 1 | 20 Sep |
| Amlin ord 25p | 7.8 | 3 Oct |
| Arbuthnot Banking ord 1p | 11 | 4 Oct |
| Arm Holdings Ord 0.05p | 2.1 | 4 Oct |
| Avare Global Coins ord 1p | 0.18 | 27 Sep |
| Avesco Group ord 10p | 1 | 1 Oct |
| Betfair Group | 9 | 2 Oct |
| BHP Billiton ord $0.50 | 37.82 | 25 Sep |
| Capital & Regional Properties ord 10p | 0.2 | 27 Sep |
| Cineworld Group ord 1p | 4.1 | 4 Oct |
| Croda International ord 10p | 29 | 3 Oct |
| Downing Distribution VCT 1 | 2.5 | 30 Sep |
| Elementis ord 5p | 1.6687 | 4 Oct |
| Esure Group ord 0.08333p | 2.5 | 18 Oct |
| Greggs ord 20p | 6 | 4 Oct |
| Hikma Pharmaceutical (special) | 1.9 | 7 Oct |
| Hikma Pharmaceutical | 4.5 | 7 Oct |
| Holders Technology ord 10p | 1 | 3 Oct |
| IMI ord 25p | 12.8 | 11 Oct |
| International Personal Finance ord 10p | 3.8 | 4 Oct |
| Intertek Group ord 1p | 15 | 15 Oct |
| Jardine Lloyd Thompson ord 5p | 10.1 | 1 Oct |
| JPM American IT ord 25p | 5 | 9 Oct |
| Michael Page International ord 1p | 3.25 | 4 Oct |
| Micro Focus International | 17.9 | 2 Oct |
| Mid Wynd International Inv Tst ord 25p | 2.1 | 11 Oct |
| National Express Group ord 5p | 3.25 | 20 Sep |
| Novae | 6 | 2 Oct |
| Personal Assets Trust ord £12.5 | 140 | 18 Oct |
| Phoenix Group Holdings | 26.7 | 3 Oct |
| Pinewood Shepperton ord 10p | 1.5 | 7 Oct |
| Portmeirion Group ord 5p | 5 | 1 Oct |
| Real Estate Credit Investments | 0.23 | 27 Sep |
| Resolution ord NPV | 7.05 | 4 Oct |
| Robert Walters ord 20p | 1.54 | 18 Oct |
| Segro | 4.9 | 4 Oct |
| Shire | 1.95 | 3 Oct |
| TUI Travel ord 10p | 3.75 | 4 Oct |
| UK Select Trust ord 10p | 1.8 | 5 Nov |
| Victoria ord 25p | 6 | 3 Oct |
| Volex | 1.985 | 17 Oct |
| XP Power ord 1p | 12 | 10 Oct |
The ex-dividend date is the first day on which it is no longer possible to buy the shares and qualify for the dividend. Ex-days are almost always a Wednesday. The record date is usually two days after the ex-date. The payment day is the day on which the funds are transferred to shareholders.
