STV has been enjoying a strong pipeline of commissions, with a fresh order from ITV announced on Thursday for a new series of Celebrity Catchphrase.

At the back end of last year STV Studios had a forward order book at £92m, including a second series of global drama, Criminal Record, for Apple TV+.,

The progress of the studios business offsets ongoing weakness in the linear TV advertising and commissioning markets.

In its most recent update the company’s cost savings plan was on track to deliver at least £1.5m savings in FY24 and hit the target £5m annual run rate by the end of 2026, as previously guided.

Shares in the Glasgow broadcaster closed strongly higher, up 15p or 7.73%, at 209p, though they are well off their year-high of 297p.

Persimmon

Housebuilder Persimmon is expected to report a rebound in profits which might give a lift to its shares which are down by a sixth over the past year and by two-thirds from 2020’s all-time high.

This was the result of the Help-to-Buy scheme ending, higher interest rates and input costs, cladding remediation expenses, lower consumer confidence and – ultimately – lower completions and flatlining prices. All led to lower profits and dividends for the York-headquartered company.

Persimmon, named after the horse that won the 1896 Epsom Derby for King Edward VII, said In January, that profit would come in towards the top end of its £349-£390 million forecast, which would be a small improvement from last year.

Completions in 2024 were up 7% to 10,684 while prices rose 5% to £268,000, but February activity in Britain’s residential construction sector plunged to levels not seen since the pandemic, according to a recent poll of companies.

Data released by Halifax on Friday showed that average property prices dipped about £213 last month compared with the previous month.

Analysts and shareholders will look for any comment from Persimmon CEO Dean Finch on the new year trend in forward sales, £1.2 billion at the last count, and also the trend in sales per outlet per week, which averaged 0.70 in 2024 against 0.58 in 2023.

Aarin Chiekrie, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said Persimmon’s in-house materials businesses should reduce the impact of building cost inflation for the company.

Dan Coatsworth at AJ Bell says it is possible that the early stages of 2025 are getting a boost from the combination of lower interest rates and the imminent end to 2022’s lowering of stamp duty land tax thresholds (south of the border), which will return to their prior levels on 1 April this year. Overall, however, housing affordability remains a key issue.

Helped by a net cash pile and higher income, Persimmon is expected to eke out a modest increase in its dividend in 2024 and 2025, compared to the 60p a share paid out in 2023.

John Lewis Partnership

On Thursday the employee-owned John Lewis Partnership is expected to report pre-tax profits of £120m. This represents a huge jump on the £42m reported in the previous financial year.

The figures will mark the first results presentation by new chairman Jason Tarry, the former UK boss of Tesco, who is overseeing a modernisation of its stores, opening new Waitrose supermarkets and introducing in-store Caffè Nero shops.

Despite the turnaround programme, and the return of its ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ tag, The Daily Telegraph suggested that it had missed internal sales targets.

Its 73,000 staff will be awaiting new on an annual bonus. The partnership previously said that it would not issue a bonus unless it reached £150m in pre-tax profits.

Craneware

Craneware, the Edinburgh software company, said in January that it expects to benefit from a “period of stability” and investment in its key US healthcare market following the presidential elections.

So investors will be keen to hear if recent volatility has altered its outlook when it announces interims on Tuesday.

The strength of its balance sheet, high levels of recurring revenue and strong cash generation provide Craneware with “solid foundations, and the ability to fully absorb the impact of National insurance increases in the United Kingdom”, it said in a trading update.

The group was trading in line with market expectations for the year ending 30 June 2025 and said it was pleased with the accelerated growth delivered in the period.

The first half to the end of December showed double-digit growth of about 10%, to exceed $100m of revenue, from $91.2m in the corresponding period last year.

Sales have included the first major customer contract secured via the Microsoft Azure Marketplace.

Keith Neilson, CEO, said the pace of innovation taking place across the company in collaboration with Microsoft and Oracle is “considerable”.

Diary

Monday 10 March

• Full-year results from Clarkson

Tuesday 11 March

• Full-year results from STV, Costain, and Domino’s Pizza
• First-half results from Craneware, Supermarket REIT
• British Retail Consortium UK retail sales figures

Wednesday 12 March

• Full-year results from Balfour Beatty, Legal & General
• US inflation

Thursday 13 March

• Full-year results from Deliveroo, John Lewis, Savills
• First-half results from DFS Furniture

Friday 14 March

• Full-year results from Bodycote
• UK construction, industrial and manufacturing output