Full-year results from Barratt Developments should show the way house building is going, and we'll see Ocado's first figures as a public company.
We'll have final results, for the year to June 2010, from house builder Barratt Developments (LSE: BDEV) on Wednesday, and it'll be pretty close to turnaround time.
We know from July's trading update that things are going better than were earlier expected and that net debt is down to around £375m, which is pretty good. We should see a small overall loss, with the company expected to return to a small profit next year. But perhaps more importantly, the details of Barratt's house building over the whole year should provide timely information for property investors.
Beer and food
On Friday, it's the turn of pub operator JD Wetherspoon (LSE: JDW) to release full-year results, and we're expecting a modest improvement on last year. There should still be a fair bit of net debt, but that's pretty much standard for a business with so much capital tied up in pub properties. Although the share price dipped quite sharply in 2008, Wetherspoon's profits actually remained pretty resilient through the recession.
Online grocer Ocado (LSE: OCDO) will release its first interim figures since flotation on Tuesday. Initially founded for the purpose of selling Waitrose products online, Ocado has yet to make its first profit, and its flotation in July got off to a rocky start.
After the anticipated price of 200p to 275p was pared down to 180p in order to shift the shares, the price has since fallen to 145p. With so much uncertainty, and only a very small profit penciled in for next year, it's a brave investor who would buy them even at that price.
Some other major retailers will be peppering the news wires next Thursday. There will be trading updates from HMV (LSE: HMV) plus Argos and Homebase owner Home Retail Group (LSE: HOME). Interim results from Morrison (LSE: MRW) will also be keenly watched after its new CEO, Dalton Philips, took charge of the supermarket chain in March of this year.
Pharmaceuticals
There are a few reports coming up next week that will be of interest to watchers of the healthcare and pharmaceuticals industries, starting with full-year results from Dechra Pharmaceuticals (LSE: DPH) on Tuesday.
Dechra, which specializes in veterinary medicine, is expecting a healthy profit. Back in the human world, we'll have full-year results from Abcam (LSE: ABC) on Tuesday, and interim figures from Alliance Pharma (LSE: APH) on Wednesday
Interim results from Premier Farnell (LSE: PFL) on Thursday should be interesting. The company, which distributes electronic and industrial products for the engineering industry, saw a bit of a profit dip last year, but since forecasts for the year ending February 2011 started looking rosier, the shares have been on a bit of a climb. They're not obviously cheap on a forward P/E of over 14, but there is a 4% dividend on the cards.
Notable announcements next week:
Monday: Craneware, Kofax, Titan Europe
Tuesday: Abcam, Ashtead, Dechra, Ocado,
Wednesday: A & J Mucklow, Barratt Developments, CPL Resources, Thorntons, Advanced Medical Solutions, Alliance Pharma, Cape, Lupus Capital, Prezzo, Valiant Petroleum
Thursday: DataCash Group, HMV, Home Retail, Morrison, Premier Farnell
Friday: JD Wetherspoon
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