Today in the UK stock market: stock prices rose, the pound strengthened; HSBC leads the earnings season pushing the index to a new high

Investing.com - The UK stock market opened higher on Wednesday, boosted by a busy earnings season led by HSBC, recovering from earlier declines caused by geopolitical uncertainties and concerns over artificial intelligence.

As of 08:36 GMT, the blue-chip FTSE 100 hit a new high, rising 0.7% to 10,760.70 points. The GBP/USD exchange rate increased 0.2% to 1.3520.

Germany’s DAX index rose 0.07%, and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.3%.

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UK Market Overview

HSBC Holdings (HK:0005) (LON:HSBA) reported full-year pre-tax profit of $29.91 billion on Wednesday, beating analyst expectations of $28.86 billion but below the $32.38 billion forecast for 2024.

The stock rose 5.8% in early London trading.

The Asia-focused bank’s profit decline reflects $4.9 billion in special items, including impairment of the Bank of Communications stake and restructuring costs. Excluding these items, pre-tax profit increased from $34.18 billion to $36.62 billion.

The bank’s 2026 net interest income target exceeded analyst estimates. HSBC’s shares listed in Hong Kong rose over 2% after the earnings release.

Aston Martin (LON:AML) announced 2025 revenue fell 21% to £1.26 billion, with wholesale volume down 10% to 5,448 vehicles. Gross profit dropped 37% to £369.8 million, with gross margin compressing from 36.9% in 2024 to 29.4%.

The luxury car maker reported an adjusted pre-tax loss of £189.2 million, wider than the £82.8 million loss in 2024. Declining sales, fewer high-margin special models, and tariff pressures weighed on performance. The company outlined a recovery plan for 2026.

Haleon shares fell over 4% in early London trading after the consumer health group reported Q4 organic sales growth of 2.1%, below the market forecast of 3.5%. Volume declined 0.3%, while price increases of 2.4% were in line with expectations.

St. James’s Place (LON:SJP) reported 2025 core cash earnings of £462.3 million, up 3% from £447.2 million in 2024, beating market expectations by 4%. Basic cash earnings per share rose 6% to 87.0 pence from 82.0 pence.

Revenue increased 19% to £3.77 billion from £3.16 billion, with assets under management reaching a record £220 billion, up 16% from £190.2 billion. The UK wealth manager announced accelerated shareholder distributions, boosting its stock by 4%.

Hiscox (LON:HSX) reported full-year earnings per share 7.5% above market consensus and announced a $300 million share buyback plan, 43% higher than the expected $210 million.

The specialty insurer’s retail division’s gross written premiums grew 6.3% for the full year, outpacing the 6.1% growth in the first nine months of 2025. In Q4, retail gross written premiums increased 10.0%.

Diageo announced organic revenue and EBITA for the first half of fiscal 2026 declined 2.8%. The spirits maker’s H1 results showed organic revenue and EBITA down 2.8%, versus market expectations of a 2.0% revenue decline and a 3.9% EBITA decrease.

EPS was 95.3 cents, above the 93.1 cents expected. The company also announced a dividend cut.

Jet2 (LON:JET2) expects fiscal year ending March 2026 to meet current analyst estimates of £439 million. The airline said its EBITA for summer 2026 will be flat compared to last year, excluding investments of £40-50 million at Gatwick. This suggests an EBITA of around £400 million for 2027.

Bookings for summer 2027 increased 7.9%, aligned with the company’s 8.0% capacity growth. Capacity expansion includes a 2.0% base increase, with 1.1 million seats added at new bases and 400,000 seats at mature bases.

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