European markets opened with modest gains in the early trading session on Wednesday, as London’s blue-chip benchmark climbed to fresh highs after a string of high-profile corporate reports.
At 08:36 GMT the FTSE 100 rose 0.7% to 10,760.70, marking a new record. The British pound strengthened 0.2% versus the US dollar, trading at 1.3520. Elsewhere in the region, Germany’s DAX advanced 0.07% and France’s CAC 40 added 0.3%.
Earnings round-up: UK companies deliver mixed results
HSBC was the standout mover in morning trading after releasing its full-year results. The Asia-focused lender reported pretax profit of $29.91 billion, topping analyst expectations of $28.86 billion but below the $32.38 billion reported in 2024. HSBC’s shares rose 5.8% in London trading, while its Hong Kong-listed stock climbed more than 2% after the numbers were published.
The reported decline in headline pretax profit largely reflected $4.9 billion of notable items, including impairments related to its stake in Bank of Communications and restructuring charges. Stripping out those items, pretax profit increased to $36.62 billion from $34.18 billion. The bank also set a 2026 net interest income target that was above analyst expectations.
Aston Martin reported a challenging 2025 performance. Revenue fell 21% to £1.26 billion and total wholesale volumes dropped 10% to 5,448 vehicles. The luxury carmaker’s gross profit contracted 37% to £369.8 million, with gross margin compressing to 29.4% from 36.9% the prior year. Aston Martin recorded an adjusted EBIT loss of £189.2 million, deeper than the £82.8 million loss in 2024. Management cited lower volumes, fewer high-margin Specials and tariff headwinds as weighing on results, and outlined plans for a recovery in 2026.
Consumer health group Haleon saw its shares fall more than 4% after reporting fourth-quarter organic sales growth of 2.1%, short of consensus expectations of 3.5%. Reported volume fell 0.3% against expectations of roughly 1% growth, while pricing rose 2.4%, essentially in line with forecasts.
St. James’s Place posted an underlying cash result of £462.3 million for 2025, up 3% from £447.2 million in 2024 and 4% ahead of consensus. Underlying cash basic earnings per share increased 6% to 87.0 pence from 82.0 pence. Revenue climbed 19% to £3.77 billion from £3.16 billion, and funds under management reached a record £220.0 billion, up 16% from £190.2 billion. The wealth manager said it would accelerate the increase in shareholder distributions, and its shares rose about 4% on the news.
Specialty insurer Hiscox reported full-year earnings per share 7.5% above its company-collated consensus and unveiled a $300 million share buyback program, larger than the $210 million figure the consensus had included by 43%. Hiscox’s retail division saw insurance contract written premiums grow 6.3% for the full year, up from 6.1% in the first nine months of 2025; retail premiums rose 10.0% in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Diageo’s first-half fiscal 2026 update showed organic revenue sales and earnings before interest and taxes both falling 2.8% versus the prior year. That compared with consensus expectations for a 2.0% revenue decline and a 3.9% decrease in EBIT. Diageo reported earnings per share of 95.3 cents, above the consensus estimate of 93.1 cents, and announced a dividend cut.
Airline operator Jet2 said it expects fiscal 2026 earnings to align with current analyst consensus of £439 million. The company indicated that summer 2026 EBIT should be broadly flat year-on-year before taking into account a £40 million to £50 million investment in a new Gatwick base. That implies an expected EBIT of about £400 million for fiscal 2027. Jet2 also reported that bookings for summer 2027 rose 7.9%, matching capacity growth of 8.0%. The capacity increase includes 2.0% underlying growth, with 1.1 million additional seats allocated to new bases and 0.4 million seats added to established bases.
Market implications
Early moves in London’s market were shaped by heavyweight corporate news, with HSBC’s results and guidance providing the primary impetus for the index’s record level. Elsewhere, company-specific developments produced divergent stock moves across the consumer goods, luxury auto, insurance and travel sectors.
Investors will likely watch upcoming reports on the UK earnings calendar closely to gauge whether broader momentum can extend beyond the initial boost from the bank’s results.