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Coats Group plc (LSE:COA) increased its medium-term operating margin target to 21–23% from the previous 19–21% on Thursday and lifted its five-year free cash flow objective to around $1bn. The update followed the release of 2025 results that broadly matched market expectations, with the shares rising more than 3% in London trading.

The company reported adjusted operating profit of $290m on revenue of $1.465bn. Organic sales were broadly flat compared with markets that Coats estimated declined by low- to mid-single digits. Operating margin improved by 80 basis points to 19.8%.

“2025 was a transformational year for Coats. We achieved record profit and cash generation, reshaped the portfolio for accelerated growth and reorganised the Group for simplicity. As a result, we have upgraded our medium-term financial targets, including c.$1bn of free cash, and look at 2026 with confidence,” said David Paja.

Adjusted earnings per share reached 9.3 cents, slightly ahead of the 9 cents consensus forecast. However, earnings were partly weighed down by higher interest costs following a pension settlement in 2024 and a $322m equity raise used in part to finance the October acquisition of OrthoLite for an enterprise value of $770m.

Analysts at RBC Capital Markets, which rates the stock “outperform” with a price target of 115 pence, said they viewed Coats as “a high-quality business with structural growth potential that is not reflected in a P/E of 11.5x26E with an FCF yield of 9% and rising from 2026E also supportive.”

The group generated record free cash flow of $160m, surpassing its own forecast of $132m. Net debt increased to $815m from $449m, while pro forma leverage stood at 2.2 times, comfortably below the covenant limit of three times. The company expects leverage to fall below two times by the end of 2026.

Within the business segments, footwear revenue declined 2% organically, as U.S. tariff disruptions prompted customer destocking that continued through the end of the year. Apparel revenue increased 1% organically despite an estimated 3% contraction in the overall market. Coats said it captured roughly 100 basis points of market share in both divisions.

OrthoLite contributed $42.6m in revenue and $10.5m in operating profit during its first two months under Coats ownership. The company aims to achieve $20m in annualised cost synergies from the acquisition by 2028. Meanwhile, revenue from fully recycled thread products climbed 43% to $554m.

Looking ahead, the company expects organic growth in 2026 despite uncertain market conditions and warned that geopolitical tensions in the Middle East could pose risks to demand.

Consensus forecasts for the full year currently point to revenue of $1.76bn and adjusted operating profit of $371m, which management said are consistent with its expectations.

The board proposed a final dividend of 2.28 cents per share, an increase of 4%. The company maintained its medium-term targets of annual earnings per share growth above 10% and revenue growth exceeding 5%.

Ibstock plc (LSE:IBST) reported full-year 2025 results on Thursday that were broadly in line with expectations, though analysts cautioned that slower volume growth and near-term trading challenges could weigh on performance in 2026.

Shares in the UK building materials group dropped more than 5% during trading in London following the update.

The company had previously released preliminary figures for 2025 showing revenue of £372m and adjusted EBITDA of £71m, both broadly consistent with market forecasts. Adjusted earnings per share reached 5.7 pence, slightly ahead of the 5.6 pence analysts had anticipated.

However, cash flow generation and shareholder distributions were weaker than expected. Free cash flow was negative £17m, while the company declared a dividend of 3 pence per share, below the market expectation of 3.9 pence.

Analysts at RBC Capital Markets said the results pointed to a slower start to the year. “Current trading has been below expectations due to weather,” the analysts noted, adding that adverse conditions had weighed on demand early in 2026.

The brokerage also indicated that consensus forecasts for 2026 earnings may come under pressure as analysts revise down volume assumptions. Growth expectations are now likely to move closer to flat levels rather than the previously anticipated 2%–3% increase. As a result, consensus adjusted EBITDA could fall into the high £60m range, compared with current estimates of roughly £75m.

Even with these revised expectations, analysts warned that risks remain. RBC said another downgrade, a heavier second-half earnings weighting and energy cost exposure “is unlikely to be well received,” adding that the company’s outlook will depend heavily on a recovery in demand during the spring selling season.

Pricing conditions have remained relatively stable. Clay brick prices increased by about 2% to 3% following adjustments introduced in February, while the company has hedged approximately 80% of its energy requirements for 2026, with stronger coverage in place for the first three quarters of the year.

Net debt stood at around £120m at the end of the period, broadly unchanged compared with the previous year, supported by roughly £30m generated from asset disposals.

Babcock International Group plc (LSE:BAB) reported fiscal year 2025 earnings per share of 16.9 pence, exceeding the consensus forecast of 16.4 pence by about 3%.

The group generated revenue of £4.9bn for the year, in line with analyst expectations, with organic growth of 1%.

Adjusted EBITA reached £272m, slightly above the company’s guidance of £270m and ahead of the £267m consensus estimate. The adjusted EBITA margin came in at 5.6%, marginally higher than the 5.5% analysts had projected.

The earnings outperformance was driven by slightly stronger EBITA as well as lower net interest costs, which totalled £45m compared with guidance of £48m. The effective tax rate of 23% was consistent with the company’s expectations.

On a reported basis, EBITA was £246m, representing a 3% increase and showing a solid improvement compared with the prior year.

During the year, Babcock secured order intake of £5.5bn, up from £4.9bn in FY24, resulting in a book-to-bill ratio of 114%. The order book expanded 9% year on year to £14.5bn, with roughly two-thirds of contract awards linked to the defence sector.

Free cash flow totalled £219m, comfortably exceeding the analyst consensus of £153m. Adjusted net debt stood at £206m, below the consensus estimate of £232m, giving a leverage ratio of 0.7 times—beneath the company’s target range of 1 to 2 times.

The net debt figure reflects £245m spent on acquisitions, including the purchase of MT&S, as well as a newly announced £75m share buyback programme.

Looking ahead to fiscal year 2026, Babcock reaffirmed the outlook outlined in its December trading update. The company expects EBITA of around £300m, slightly above the consensus estimate of £291m. This would represent roughly 10% year-on-year growth and imply a margin of about 6% at the upper end of the group’s medium-term target range of 5% to 6%.

The outlook is supported by strong order intake during 2025, a full-year contribution from the MT&S acquisition and ongoing productivity improvements.

Revenue for FY26 is expected to reach approximately £5bn, with organic growth of around 3%. Tax rate guidance remains unchanged at roughly 25%, while free cash flow is forecast at about £160m, consistent with the company’s medium-term objectives.

Babcock also updated its year-end net debt forecast to £165m from £150m and increased projected net finance costs to £52m from £50m to account for the newly announced share buyback programme.

Aviva plc (LSE:AV.) reported a 25% increase in annual profit and announced the resumption of its share buyback programme, supported by higher insurance premiums, growth in its wealth division and the integration of rival Direct Line Insurance Group plc.

Operating profit for the 2025 financial year reached £2.2bn, up from £1.8bn the previous year and broadly in line with analyst forecasts compiled by the company.

The insurer, which provides car, home and life insurance across the UK, Ireland and Canada, also proposed a final dividend of 26.2 pence per share and announced a £350m share buyback. The repurchase programme resumes after being paused during the acquisition of Direct Line.

Within its core operations, general insurance premiums increased 18% to £14.1bn, while net inflows into the group’s wealth business rose 6% to £10.9bn.

Aviva reaffirmed the financial targets it set out in November, including plans to grow earnings per share by around 11% annually through to 2028. The company also expects to almost double the cost savings anticipated from combining its operations with Direct Line.

The insurer completed the £3.7bn acquisition of Direct Line last year, marking the largest takeover during the tenure of chief executive Amanda Blanc. The deal significantly expanded Aviva’s presence in the UK motor insurance market and is expected to generate substantial operational efficiencies in the coming years.

Foresight Solar Fund Limited (LSE:FSFL) reported a net asset value of 99.2 pence per share as of 31 December 2025, resulting in a NAV total return of -0.9% for the fourth quarter.

The quarterly performance was influenced by several negative factors, most notably the conclusion of a previously disclosed tax review, which reduced NAV by 5.4%.

Additional downward pressures included higher forecast capture price discounts, which lowered NAV by 1.9%, the effect of subsidy RPI/CPI rebasing at -1.7%, curtailment in Australia at -1.4%, and revisions to power price forecasts alongside other movements that together reduced NAV by 1.2%.

These declines were partly balanced by a number of positive developments. Extensions to asset lifetimes and lifecycle investments contributed 4.7%, while higher projected energy yields added 3.8%. The time value adjustment net of project actuals contributed 1.5%, commissioning of the Sandridge battery energy storage system added 0.4%, and share buybacks contributed 0.2%.

An independent portfolio review also resulted in a 2.8% increase in forecast annual production across the company’s UK assets. The group now assumes that most UK sites will operate for the shorter of either their planning permission expiry or a maximum lifespan of 40 years.

Across the global portfolio, total generation came in 1.3% below the base case scenario, mainly due to curtailment in Spain and Australia. However, electricity output from the UK portfolio exceeded expectations, finishing 3.4% above budget.

Dividend cover for the year stood at 1.3 times, while the company has utilised nearly £55m of its £60m share buyback programme.

As of 31 December 2025, the overall valuation of the UK portfolio was estimated at £0.97m per megawatt.

Elementis plc (LSE:ELM) reported full-year 2025 results on Thursday that came in ahead of analyst expectations, supported by improved margins despite a difficult trading environment. The company also announced the planned sale of its pharmaceutical manufacturing division to Associated British Foods plc.

For the year ended 31 December 2025, adjusted earnings per share reached 13.7 cents, surpassing analyst forecasts of 13.0 cents.

Revenue declined 1.9% on a constant currency basis to $597.5m, slightly below the $601m expected by analysts but compared with $603.8m recorded in 2024. Adjusted operating profit increased 4.6% in constant currency terms to $126.7m, broadly in line with consensus estimates of $126m, while adjusted operating margin improved by 150 basis points to 21.2%.

Within the business segments, Personal Care delivered revenue growth of 2.4% on a constant currency basis to $224.5m, with adjusted operating margin jumping 410 basis points to 32.4%. Meanwhile, the Coatings division saw revenue decline 4.3% on a constant currency basis to $373.0m due to softer demand, though adjusted operating margin remained relatively strong at 18.9%, compared with 20.3% the previous year.

Elementis also confirmed it has agreed to sell its pharmaceutical manufacturing unit to Associated British Foods for an enterprise value of about €34m ($40m). The deal is expected to complete in the second quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approval, and is intended to allow the company to concentrate on its core Personal Care and Coatings markets.

The group said it plans to return the net proceeds from the transaction to shareholders once the sale is finalised.

“I am pleased we have delivered a resilient performance with strong growth in profitability and margins despite the challenging market environment,” said Luc van Ravenstein. “We are pleased to have reached another important milestone for Elementis with the agreement to sell our pharmaceutical manufacturing business.”

The board proposed a final dividend of 3.0 cents per share, bringing the full-year dividend to 4.3 cents—an increase of 7.5% compared with 4.0 cents in 2024. During the year, the company also completed a £40.0m ($53.8m) share buyback programme.

Net debt rose to $185.4m from $157.2m the previous year, with the net debt-to-EBITDA ratio standing at 1.3 times. Elementis reported delivering $18m in cost savings during 2025 and said it remains on track to achieve the remaining $4m in savings during 2026.

PageGroup plc (LSE:PAGE) reported full-year 2025 results on Thursday broadly in line with its previous guidance, though earnings per share came in below analyst expectations as a higher effective tax rate weighed on the outcome amid ongoing uncertainty in recruitment markets.

For the year ended 31 December 2025, the company generated gross profit of £769.5m, representing a 7.6% decline in constant currency compared with £842.6m recorded in 2024. Revenue also fell 7.4% year over year to £1,596.6m.

Operating profit dropped sharply to £20.9m, down 58.8% from the previous year and in line with earlier guidance. This equated to a conversion rate of 2.7%, compared with 6.2% in 2024. The results included roughly £15m in one-off restructuring costs, partly offset by £5m in savings.

Basic earnings per share decreased 68.1% to 2.9p from 9.1p the previous year, landing around 21% below market consensus. The shortfall was mainly attributed to a higher effective tax rate of 44.4%, compared with 42.1% in 2024.

The board proposed a final dividend of 3.21p per share, significantly lower than the 11.75p distributed the year before. This brings the total dividend for the year to 8.57p per share, marking a 50% reduction from 2024.

“The Group produced a resilient performance despite continued market uncertainty,” said Nicholas Kirk. “We saw variable market conditions across the regions, with ongoing challenging conditions in Continental Europe and the UK. However, we continued to grow in the US, and we saw improved conditions in Asia Pacific, particularly during the second half of the year.”

The number of fee earners employed by the group declined by 402 during the year, a reduction of 7.5%, leaving a total of 4,968. Despite the lower headcount, gross profit per fee earner remained strong at £148.9k, up 0.3% in constant currency.

PageGroup said its cost optimisation programme remains on course to deliver annualised savings of about £15m starting in 2026.

At the end of the year, the company reported net cash of £31.4m, down from £95.3m a year earlier, reflecting dividend payments totalling £53.6m during 2025.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) saw its sales in the United Kingdom drop significantly in February, declining 45.2% year over year to 2,208 vehicles, according to figures released Wednesday by New Automotive.

Meanwhile, Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD Company Limited (USOTC:BYDDY) recorded strong growth, with sales rising 40.9% to 968 vehicles over the same period. Despite the surge, Tesla maintained its position as the leading brand in the UK electric vehicle market.

New Automotive noted that Tesla’s delivery volumes often fluctuate from month to month. However, cumulative sales for the year to date are currently down around 5%, a trend the group said is likely to draw increased market scrutiny.

The data also highlighted continued momentum in the UK’s electric vehicle transition. Battery electric vehicles accounted for roughly one quarter of total car sales in February, while approximately one-third of newly registered vehicles were plug-in models.

“It’s fantastic to see one in four drivers opting for an electric car in February,” said Ben Nelmes. “As we enter yet another fossil fuel price crisis, every electric vehicle represents another step towards energy independence.”