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FTSE 100 rallies, JD shares stage recovery
Nvidia’s forecast-beating results have given a lift to stock market sentiment in Europe, with the FTSE 100 index up by 46.35 points at 7366.88.
Ocado, the grocery warehouse technology company, is among the best performing stocks in London after its shares rallied 3% or 17.6p to 755.2p.
It was also a better session for JD Sports Fashion, which rallied 3.85p to 137p after suffering earlier in the week due to the read-across from poor trading updates by other US retailers.
The possibility that interest rates are near their peak also lifted housebuilding stocks for the second day in the row, with Taylor Wimpey up 2.35p to 113.6p and Persimmon 14.5p higher at 1017p.
The FTSE 250 index improved 157.77 points to 18,384.26, with the UK and US-focused publisher Future among those on the risers board after a gain of 3%.
Market snapshot: Tech hopes lift FTSE
The FTSE 100 has risen higher this morning amid tech optimism after Nvdia’s blockbuster results last night.
Take a look at our full market snapshot below:
Record night in London for Travelodge as concertgoers and sports fans help profits soar
Travelodge had its best night ever in London this summer, revealed as revenue at the budget hotel chain rose by over a fifth.
A spectacular run of events in the capital in early July, over the first weekend of Wimbledon, drew the crowds. There was Bruce Springsteen at Hyde Park and Blur at Wembley as well as Iron Maiden at the 02 and the Weeknd at the Olympic Park.
It also pointed to the return of face-to-face business meetings after the end of Covid restrictions. It expects the biggest networking event of the year to be the upcoming Defence and Security Equipment International at the ExCeL centre in Docklands next month.
For the first half of the year, the operator of over 80 London hotels reported revenue of £478 million, up over 22%, and earnings up almost a half to £104 million.
Nationwide, strong bookings for events including the Grand National and the Six Nations rugby helped drive demand for nights at its 580 venues.
Nvidia delivers ‘another stunning quarter’
Nvidia’s guidance for current quarter revenues of $16 billion (£12.6 billion) is significantly higher than Wall Street elevated expectations at closer to $12.5 billion (£9.8 billion).
The latest upgrade comes three months after Nvidia delivered the semiconductor industry’s largest increase to guidance for a single quarter.
Deutsche Bank called last night’s update “another stunning quarter” as demand for AI remains as robust as ever, particularly from data center customers.
The bank said: “Importantly, Nvidia somewhat dispelled investor concerns on supply bottlenecks, expecting supply to grow each quarter through next year.
“Overall, there is very little to pick at after such a strong report and guide, and our 2025/26 earnings per share estimates rise by about 60% as a result.”
Nvidia shares topped $500 last night following a 7% rise in after-hours trading.
Deutsche Bank has raised its price target to $560 but maintains its “Hold” rating, awaiting a more favourable entry point. It has also embedded a “degree of cyclical conservatism” into estimates as data center customers will need to digest purchases at some point.
PureGym ups its game as membership ahead of expectations
PureGym today posted a bumper boost in sales as it cheered membership growth which came in ahead of expectations.
Revenue in the first six months of the year grew by 17% to £272m driven by growth in membership and increased
average revenue per member, while the company said membership growth in new UK gyms was of plan as consumers flocked to low-cost gyms amid the cost-of-living crisis.
But the firm continued to make a loss of £25.5 million, which was down from the £45.4 million loss it made in the same period last year.
CEO Humphrey Cobbold, said: “Whilst we had hoped that operating conditions following the pandemic would be easier, the reality is that the business environment has remained very difficult on multiple dimensions.
“[But] Demand for our low cost, flexible gym memberships remains strong and I am particularly pleased with the join up rates at our new sites.”
Nvidia results boost markets, FTSE 100 seen higher
Asia markets have rallied and Europe is set for a positive session after semiconductor giant Nvidia’s latest forecast-busting results.
The California-based firm’s shares jumped 7% after Wall Street’s closing bell as quarterly revenues of $13.5 billion (£10.6 billion) came in more than doubled the previous year’s $6.7 billion.
It also upgraded its expectations for the current quarter to $16 billion (£12.6 billion) amid a massive shift in spending towards artificial intelligence. Second quarter net income of $6.74 billion (£5.3 billion) was up from $1.28 billion a year ago.
Chief executive Jensen Huang said: “A new computing era has begun. Companies worldwide are transitioning from general-purpose to accelerated computing and generative AI.”
The update more than delivered on Wall Street’s lofty expectations after a 200%-plus jump for Nvidia shares to this week’s record high.
Nasdaq futures are 0.9% higher and the S&P 500 index up 0.5% as US markets look set to build on yesterday’s strong session.
CMC Markets expects the FTSE 100 index to open 24 points higher at 7344, having improved 0.7% yesterday on the back of hopes that UK interest rates are near their peak.
The Hang Seng index is also in recovery mode after putting on more than 2% in today’s session. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 stands 0.8% higher.
Morning update
Good morning from the City desk of the Evening Standard. The FTSE 100 is expected to open around half a percentage point higher today after gaining yesterday as weak PMI data suggested a lower peak to interest rates.
Here are some of yesterday’s top stories:
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