On Wednesday, pizza delivery outfit Domino's reports full year results but there are not expected to be any surprises after the group said in an update last month that it has been trading in line with expectations.
Market consensus is for profit before tax of £42.1m on sales of £209m. A figure of 18.89p has been pencilled in for earnings per share (EPS) while the full year dividend is tipped to be 12.01p.
The firm's like-for-like (LFL) sales growth in fiscal 2011 was 3%, despite the Republic of Ireland registering a 4.1% decline in LFL sales.
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"As the majority of this [+3.0%] LFL performance will be price as opposed to volume, we do not expect the incremental margin gain to be as strong as previous years, providing 2011 EPS growth of 13.1% vs. a 3-year average of 25.7%," says broker Collins Stewart.
The broker added that Wednesday would be the ideal time for the group to lay out its strategy for the next 12 months.
As for Panmure Gordon, it expects a resilient current trading update helped by recent inclement weather. "Domino's has reportedly made good progress in its first German stores and we anticipate an update on this market," the broker said.
As for trading thus far in 2012, Peel Hunt notes that: "Intuitively, early 2012 LFLs should benefit from weak comparatives. Specifically, there is no repeat of the 2.5% VAT rise at the start of 2011. However, in contrast to the pub companies, snow was not a negative in early 2011, because fulfilment difficulties were countered by higher demand from customers staying at home."
Peel Hunt reckons Domino's franchisees have been promoting hard, "but that is usual, and there are no significant product launches or advertising campaigns."
Sports-themed casual wear retailer Sports Direct's interim management statement should show the firm enjoying continued growth at home and abroad, Panmure Gordon predicts.
The broker expects the retailer to report third quarter top line growth of a similar level to the 8.2% year-on-year increase seen in the UK in the first half of the company's financial year, driven by continued gross margin investment.
"Sports Direct has its foot firmly on the throat of its competitors and, with Euro 2012 fast approaching, we don't see any reason for mercy," the broker said.
Switching to matters economic, the Bank of England's February Inflation Report could have a negative effect on the value of sterling versus the euro and the dollar, Barclays Capital (BarCap) reckons.
BarCap expects the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will forecast modest economic growth and for inflation to undershoot the 2% target at the forecast horizon.
"The more important of the MPC's forecasts are conditional on the market's expectations for interest rates, taken from the average of 15 one-day forwards prior to the report. Typically, the market interprets an undershoot (overshoot) of inflation as a signal that rates need to be looser (tighter) than currently expected. With rates at 0.5%, the interpretation of below-target inflation is that more quantitative easing will be forthcoming," BarCap said.
BarCap's recommendation to traders is to go short of sterling versus the greenback ahead of the press conference.
INTERIMS
Thorntons, Town Centre Securities
INTERIM EX-DIVIDEND DATE
Penna Consulting, Puma High Income VCT , Puma Vct VII, Stavert Zigomala
QUARTERLY PAYMENT DATE
Abbott Laboratories, Marsh & Mclennan Cos Inc.
QUARTERLY EX-DIVIDEND DATE
BP, GlaxoSmithKline, M Winkworth, MedicX Fund Ltd., Royal Dutch Shell 'A', Royal Dutch Shell 'B', Unilever
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
Balance of Trade (EU) (10:00)
Capacity Utilisation (US) (16:15)
Crude Oil Inventories (US) (15:30)
GDP (Flash Estimate) (EU) (10:00)
Gross Domestic Product (GER) (07:00)
Industrial Production (US) (16:15)
MBA Mortgage Applications (US) (12:00)
Wholesale Price Index (GER) (07:00)
FINALS
Coca-Cola HBC S.A., Domino's Pizza UK & IRL, Morgan Crucible Co
IMSS
Speedy Hire, Sports Direct
SPECIAL EX-DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
GlaxoSmithKline
EGMS
Orchid Developments Group Ltd., Shanta Gold Ltd.
UK ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS
BoE Inflation Report (09:30)
Claimant Count Rate (09:30)
GDP (output, income & expenditure) (09:30)
Unemployment Rate (09:30)
FINAL DIVIDEND PAYMENT DATE
Income & Growth VCT
FINAL EX-DIVIDEND DATE
Catlin Group Ltd., Pressure Technologies, Sinclair (William) Holdings
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