Persimmon PLC, Darktrace PLC and US jobs the stand-outs of another

Another big week for company results kicks off on Monday with Bunzl but company statements are likely to be overshadowed by the crisis in Ukraine and the US non-farm payroll job numbers on Friday

Monday 28 February

All eyes will be on margin as Bunzl PLC (LSE:BNZL) reports its full-year results on Monday.

The margin figure will effectively signal whether the company is still earning enough from PPE orders and if the company sees spiking oil/plastic/pulp prices continuing through the first quarter.

Tuesday 1 March

Place your bets. Who is faring best out of Entain PLC (LSE:ENT), owner of Ladbrokes and Coral, and Flutter Entertainment PLC (LSE:FLTR), owner of Paddy Power and Betfair?

Flutter is first out of the traps on Tuesday and analysts are expecting the bookie to report turnover of £5.97bn for 2021, up 35% on 2020, and pre-tax profit of £628mln, up 530%, while underlying earnings are expected to rise 145% to £1.01bn.

“We expect the focus to be on the latest developments in the US and the path to profitability there, any potential update on the arbitration process with FOX and the UK’s review of the Gambling Act,” according to UBS.

Dividends have been suspended since the dark days of April 2020 when the pandemic caused the cancellation of thousands of sporting events but the time must be fast approaching when the divi will be reinstated.

Builders merchant Travis Perkins (LSE:TPK) should report a near 26% rise in like-for-like sales for the year just ended, brokers predict, with fourth-quarter revenues up 10%.

Materials for home building are seeing strong demand despite inflationary pressures which in any case are being passed on to customers.

Now shorn of Wickes, broker forecasts are for the building merchant to achieve £361mln of underlying profits.

Wednesday 2 March

Housebuilding companies Persimmon and Vistry’s full-year results will reflect strong demand in 2021 but uncertainties lie ahead.

Persimmon’s sales should be up 10% in 2021, with profit before tax up 12%, as home building recovered from disrupted seasonal patterns of 2020 brought on by Covid restrictions.

Vistry’s sales increase will be around 33%, according to the consensus forecast, with profits before tax growth of 141%, and a 5 percentage point increase to the company’s EBIT margin.

Looking at the bigger picture, house prices are still rising but the interest rate cycle has turned and this might threaten the stability of the home builders.

There have been two rate hikes already this year and two more are expected shortly though the fall-out from the situation in Ukraine will have some bearing on this.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors forecasts house price growth in 2022 between 3% and 5%, compared with 10.8% in 2021.

Rising costs are another headwind with Persimmon already flagging the issue, though so far it has been able to absorb these through…