Stock market today: S&P 500 hits fresh record close on stronger economic growth
Investing.com -- British stocks slipped on Friday, a day after the Bank of England cut interest rates, while the pound was mostly flat and TBC slumped following its earnings report.
The blue-chip index FTSE 100 fell 0.1% and the British pound is up 0.03% against the dollar to 1.3445.
DAX index in Germany dropped about 0.2%, the CAC 40 in France gained 0.4%.
TBC Bank reports higher Q2 earnings despite share price drop
TBC Bank Group PLC (LON:TBCG) reported increased second-quarter earnings, with pretax profit rising 3.1% year-on-year to 402,294 lari ($147,360), despite its London-listed shares falling above 5% following the announcement.
The bank, which operates in Georgia and continues to expand in Uzbekistan, saw its operating income grow by 23% to 834,627 lari, while net profit also increased 3.1% to 346,275 lari.
Just Group (LON:JUSTJ) downgraded by Barclays
In other market news, Barclays (LON:BARC) raised its price target for Just Group to 220p from 185p after the company’s first-half 2025 results, but downgraded the stock to "equal weight" from "overweight" due to recent share price gains.
The adjustment reflects a reduction in the discount rate applied to Just Group’s valuation from 14% to 12%, which Barclays attributed to strong organic capital generation and a solid capital position.
However, Just Group’s first-half results missed expectations across most key metrics, with adjusted operating profit declining 23% to £192 million.
Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) upgrades Diageo (LON:DGE)
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs upgraded Diageo to "neutral" from "sell" while maintaining its 12-month price target at 2,000p.
The upgrade comes after Diageo’s share price fell 20.4% since July 2024, outpacing the 2% decline in Goldman Sachs’ staples coverage and contrasting with an 8.2% gain in the MSCI World Europe index.
Goldman Sachs cited supportive valuation and potential portfolio actions as reasons for the upgrade, despite ongoing challenges in the U.S. spirits market.