A profit guidance upgrade from PZ Cussons (PZC) and a landmark distribution contract win at Smiths News headlined Wednesday's pre-open news flow, while a flurry of drilling mobilisations across the critical minerals and energy exploration space underscored continued appetite for early-stage resource development. Corporate activity ranged from a £108m portfolio acquisition by Social Housing REIT to a £4m European disposal by Hays as companies continued to reshape their operational footprints.
PZ Cussons lifts FY26 profit guidance above prior upper range
PZ Cussons (PZC) upgraded its full-year profit outlook, now guiding adjusted operating profit at or slightly above the top of its previously guided £53-57m range, itself already an upgrade from the initial £48-53m guidance issued earlier in the year. The personal care brands group cited continued strong trading as the driver of the revision, offering investors a third successive upward step in expectations for the financial year ending in 2026.
Speedy Hire swings to pretax loss as interest costs and ProService weigh
Speedy Hire reported an adjusted pretax loss of £9.8m for the year ended 31 March, reversing a profit of £8.7m in the prior year. The tools and equipment hire group attributed the deterioration to elevated interest costs stemming from fleet investment and the financial impact of its ProService transaction, both of which compressed earnings over the period.
Smiths News secures exclusive News UK national distribution to 2037
Smiths News (SNWS) has won exclusive national distribution rights for The Sun, The Times, and The Sunday Times, locking in a contract with News UK worth £125m a year through to 2037. The deal reinforces the position of the UK's largest news wholesaler and provides long-term revenue visibility well into the next decade.
Social Housing REIT acquires ReSI senior living portfolio for £108.3m
Social Housing REIT (SOHO) has agreed to acquire a senior living portfolio from ReSI for £108.3m, marking a strategic extension of its existing social housing focus into the adjacent senior living segment. Chair Jos Short described the move as a natural evolution of the trust's strategy, and the acquisition adds a new asset class to the REIT's portfolio alongside its established affordable and specialist housing holdings.
AO World posts record £50.5m profit on 11% revenue growth
AO World (AO.) confirmed full-year profits in line with market expectations, with founder and CEO John Roberts reporting revenue up 11% to £1.27bn and profit up 16% to a record £50.5m. Roberts also highlighted what he described as the strongest balance sheet in the company's history, rounding out a set of results that mark a significant milestone for the online electricals retailer.
Kosmos Energy closes $127m Equatorial Guinea asset disposal
Kosmos Energy (KOS) completed the sale of its Equatorial Guinea assets for $127m, with chairman and CEO Andrew G. Inglis framing the transaction as a portfolio high-grading exercise that divests high unit-cost production while strengthening balance sheet resilience. The company retains exposure to future upside from the divested assets through deal terms, preserving optionality alongside the immediate cash proceeds.
Hays divests six European businesses to Meraki Capital for £4m
Hays sold its operations in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Luxembourg, Romania, and Sweden to Meraki Capital for £4m, as the global recruiter narrows its geographic footprint to 16 core markets. The disposal represents a deliberate strategic consolidation, shedding subscale European presences to concentrate resources on markets where the group holds stronger competitive positions.
Likewise Group reports 17% year-to-date revenue growth
Likewise Group (LIKE) reported year-to-date revenue growth of 17%, with the UK floor coverings distributor reaffirming full-year market expectations despite an uncertain global backdrop. The group also confirmed that its expansion projects remain on track, pointing to accelerating sales momentum as the driver of confidence in meeting consensus forecasts.
Switch Metals mobilises drill rig at Issia for tantalum and lithium targets
Switch Metals (SWT) has mobilised a reverse circulation rig at its Issia Project in Côte d'Ivoire, initiating a maiden drilling campaign of approximately 2,500 metres across two priority hard-rock targets prospective for tantalum and lithium pegmatites. The AIM-listed critical metals company is targeting the mineralised systems that underpin the project's strategic rationale in the context of growing demand for battery and technology metals.
Oriole Resources launches maiden drill programme at Cameroon limestone deposit
Oriole Resources (ORR) is commencing a 1,000-metre diamond drilling programme at its Wapouzé project in Cameroon, with the campaign designed to generate a JORC-compliant resource estimate at a limestone deposit the company believes could serve as a supply source for Cameroon's cement industry. The maiden drilling marks the transition from exploration to resource definition at the project.
Georgina Energy secures drill rig deposit for Q3 Hussar well
Georgina Energy (GEX) has paid a deposit to secure the Ensign 970 rig for its Hussar EP513 well in Western Australia, keeping a third-quarter 2026 spud date on schedule. The helium and hydrogen explorer's rig commitment represents a key de-risking step ahead of what would be a significant operational milestone for the company's Australian programme.
Meridian Mining intersects second VMS layer at Santa Helena with visible gold
Meridian Mining has identified a new gold-silver and zinc-lead mineralised zone below and east of the Santa Helena Central resource in Brazil, representing a second volcanogenic massive sulphide layer at the project. The discovery keeps the system open for further expansion and adds to the geological complexity of a deposit that continues to grow with successive drilling campaigns.
GEO Exploration defines MAG001 target and uranium anomalies at Gorge Project
GEO Exploration (GEO) has flagged the MAG001 magnetic anomaly as a priority target at its Gorge Project, alongside the identification of uranium anomalies generated from modern datasets now being applied to the licence area. CEO Omar Ahmad said the updated data is enabling a shift from historical prospectivity assessment towards systematic target generation, marking a more structured phase of exploration activity at the project.
80 Mile receives regulatory protection for Greenland Jameson Land concessions
80 Mile (80M) has received regulatory confirmation from Greenland authorities that no third party can be granted overlapping mineral rights at its Jameson Land hydrocarbon concessions, providing legal certainty over the exclusivity of its position ahead of planned drilling at Disko in July. The protection removes a potential source of title risk as the AIM-listed explorer prepares for what would be its first well at the project.
Hercules launches construction skills whitepaper in Parliament
Hercules (HERC) unveiled its The Skills Gulf whitepaper at the Houses of Parliament, setting out a series of recommended actions to address an estimated shortfall of 250,000 workers in the UK construction and infrastructure sectors. The publication positions the company at the centre of a policy debate around workforce capacity at a time when the UK government has placed infrastructure delivery at the heart of its growth agenda.
