FTSE 100 shares round-up: Next, GSK, Haleon, LSE, Smith & Nephew

The “weatherproof” shares of Next (LSE:NXT) today set a fresh record and helped lift Marks & Spencer Group (LSE:MKS) to a seven-year high after the retailer delivered another upgrade to profit guidance.

Microsoft-backed London Stock Exchange Group (LSE:LSEG), Smith & Nephew (LSE:SN.) and Haleon (LSE:HLN) also kept up their recent share price progress as the blue-chip results season continued with more hits than misses.

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The strong earnings outlook meant the FTSE 100 index outperformed leading European markets, still within sight of a record high despite a mid-afternoon reversal.

Alongside Rolls-Royce Holdings (LSE:RR.), Next lit up the FTSE 100 after a £20 million boost to full-year profits guidance to £980 million helped shares add another 784p to a fresh record of 9,858p.

It reported full-price sales growth of 3.2% versus last year, beating expectations by £42 million despite wet UK weather compared with last summer’s more favourable conditions.

The latest profit upgrade was split £11 million from the half-year sales beat and £9 million from logistics costs coming in lower than previously assumed.

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US bank Jefferies has a price target of 10,300p and suspects investors will anticipate further upgrades following today’s “successful weatherproofing”. It added: “With this should come a fuller valuation as the just reward to the reducing cyclical nature of the group.”

Shore Capital retail analyst Clive Black called the update a “very pleasant surprise” given that it covered a period when industry-wide revenues have been under pressure.

He said it showed why the firm is held in such high regard. Black added: “Next has a lot of admirers among UK equity investors, the firm more often than not being a core holding in portfolios where exposure to UK discretionary consumer goods has been quite modest.”

The strength of the update also benefited Marks & Spencer, which rallied 8.8p to extend its progress since mid-May to more than 20% at 337p.

It was also a landmark session for shareholders of LSEG, which rose 380p to a record 9,850p after progress on costs helped half-year earnings per share of 174p to come in 1% above City hopes and 8.1% higher than last year.

Management also stuck by expectations for an acceleration of revenues growth from next year as the benefits of the company’s partnership with Microsoft begin to flow.

Despite the latest share price milestone, Bank of America maintained its Buy rating with the stock on 24 times forecast 2025 earnings.

It has a price target of 11,500p, noting that LSEG benefits from strong recurring revenues and structural demand for data while trading at an approximate 20% discount to market data peers.

Smith & Nephew traded at its highest level in over a year, up 85p to 1,208p after half-year results showed progress in its drive to become a higher growth and more profitable business.

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The medical devices firm, whose chair is former Serco boss Rupert Soames, lifted its trading profit margin to 16.7% from last year’s 15.3% and said it continued to expect a figure of more than 18% for the full year. Revenues growth guidance remained in the range of 5-6%.

Haleon shares rose 11.5p to 361.1p, the highest level since its 2022 split from GSK (LSE:GSK) after the firm behind brands including Sensodyne and Centrum said second-quarter revenues growth accelerated to 4.1% in the second quarter.

The consumer healthcare firm, whose shares have now lifted 11% in the past month, forecast full-year revenues growth of 4-6% and a high-single digit improvement in operating profit.

The upturn will provide some relief for investors whose portfolios include GSK as well as Haleon. Despite a second upgrade to 2024 guidance, GSK shares fell 2% or 30.5p yesterday as bears jumped on the negative implications of a downgrade to the company’s vaccines outlook, as well as continued uncertainty over ongoing Zantac litigation in the US.

There were tentative signs of recovery today, lifting GSK 13p to 1,525p as Deutsche Bank highlighted a price target of 1,850p.

UBS kept its estimate unchanged at 1,580p, despite noting that GSK is on a forecast multiple of 10.2 times 2025 earnings compared with 13.8x for EU peers excluding Novo Nordisk.

It warned that comparatives will get tougher in the second half as GSK’s laps the launch of RSV vaccine Arexvy. UBS said: “This, together with Zantac resolution timing, will keep investors on the sidelines despite strong commercialisation skills.”