Shares in Haleon rose after the Sensodyne toothpaste maker unveiled plans to return £500million to investors this year.
The FTSE 100 company’s bumper share buyback programme came as sales of its Otrivine nasal drops and cough mixtures flew off the shelves amid a heavy cold and flu season.
Following a 6 per cent rise in the final three months of last year, revenues increased 8 per cent to £11.3billion in 2023 while profits slightly increased to £1.63billion.
Haleon reported strong sales in central and eastern Europe and Otrivine did well in the Middle East and Africa. It expects group revenues to grow between 4 per cent and 6 per cent this year.
Debt has fallen by more than £2billion since it was spun out of GSK and Pfizer’s merged consumer healthcare business 18 months ago.
Shares up: Haleon’s bumper buyback programme came as sales of its Otrivin nasal drops and cough mixtures flew off the shelves amid a heavy cold and flu season
To cut costs it offloaded an anti-fungal medication brand last year and sold its lip balm brand Chapstick for £340million in January.
It said: ‘Selling these allows us to accelerate growth.’ Derren Nathan, at Hargreaves Lansdown’, said that a ‘defensive portfolio’ of painkillers and toothpaste are ‘less susceptible to wobbles in the economy than more discretionary categories’.
Haleon, which is also behind Advil painkillers, floated at 330p in July 2022. Yesterday, it rose 5.6 per cent, or 17.5p, to 331.45p.
Prior to listing, it was a joint business with 68 per cent owned by GSK and the rest controlled by the pharma giant Pfizer.
Now, the pair hold 4.2 per cent and 32 per cent respectively.
GSK shared some good news after it avoided another day in court by agreeing a confidential settlement for a case that alleged its discontinued heartburn drug zantac caused cancer.
The pharma major said the settlement reflects its ‘desire to avoid the distraction related to protracted litigation ’, adding that it ‘does not admit any liability in this settlement’. Shares fell 0.3 per cent, or 5.2p, to 1664.6p.
Stock Watch – ADF
ADF, which rents out costume and make-up trailers to the UK film and TV industry is feeling the impact of strikes between May and November by US writers and actors.
ADF, which supported the making of Netflix hit The Crown’s final season, said that producers are rushing to reorganise their schedules at short notice.
It is expecting revenues to rise 11 per cent to £34.8million in 2023 while profits should plunge nearly 80 per cent to £1.1million. Shares fell 8.5 per cent, or 4.5p, to 48.5p.
On the wider market, the FTSE 100 inched up 0.07 per cent, or 5.04 points, to 7630.02 and the FTSE 250 was up by 0.22 per cent, or 41.29 points, to close at 19,054.87.
Hopes of interest rate cuts remained on the cards after inflation in the United States rose 0.3pc in January.
And bitcoin, which is the world’s largest cryptocurrency, continued to close in on the record $69,000 (£54,600) that it reached in November 2021.
Energean steamed ahead 4.1 per cent, or 40.5p, to 1020p after the energy firm started production at its fourth well in Israel and signed a 15-year gas contract that will add around £1.6billion in revenues.
There were also big gains for the energy services provider Hunting after it swung back into profit of £4million in 2023, having made a £1.9million loss the year before.
Revenues soared 28 per cent to £736million, boosting shares 11.5 per cent, or 34.5p, to 334.5p.
Another riser was Howden Joinery after the kitchen supplier’s sales last year were roughly in line with a record 2022.
Its shares gained 7 per cent, or 54.4p, to 827p.
Hammerson, the owner of the Birmingham Bullring and Brent Cross shopping centres, posted a solid results for 2023 as shoppers flocked back to stores. Shares rose 2.5 per cent, or 0.62p, to 25.4p.
Demand for immigration services such as running removal centres and managing accommodation in the UK and Europe sent Serco up 4.5 per cent, or 8.1p, to 187.3p.
The outsourcing giant also outlined plans to launch a £140million share buyback.
By contrast, the London Stock Exchange Group sank 0.4 per cent, or 36p, to 8876p after profits dipped 3.7 per cent to £1.2billion last year.
