29 May 2019 – trading update
A trading update has been provided for the first three months of 2019. Although the London Stock Exchange reported that the number of trades for the first quarter was 27% down on the same period a year earlier, performance was resilient. Commission and fee revenues for the first quarter were up 2% on the same period in 2018. This compared favourably with a decrease of 3% for the peer group used for comparison in the quarter. An operating profit was also generated in the first quarter, reflecting acquisitions made in 2018 and the digital transformation strategy. Share’s market share of revenues excluding interest, relative to its peer group, was 3.70% versus 3.54% in the first quarter of 2018 and 3.90% in the fourth quarter of 2018. We keep our SPECULATIVE BUY rating.