Headline
Johnson Matthey completes £1.325bn Catalyst Technologies disposal to Honeywell, marking a transformative pivot to a PGM-focused group as UK results dispersion widens.
What UK Plc said today
No profit warnings, but the day's strongest concrete signal is JMAT completing the £1,325m sale of Catalyst Technologies to Honeywell — flagged as "transformative" — leaving the group refocused on PGM expertise. Alongside that, BPT posted a materially strong H1: underlying management fees +22.8%, underlying EBITDA +77.6% at a 60.6% margin, and raised its 2026 fundraising target from €24bn to €28bn (already €26bn raised). AUM reached $97.3bn (+12.4%) and fee-paying AUM jumped 32.7%.
Trading updates skewed positive at the top end. WISE delivered Q1 FY27 revenue of $714m (+25% YoY) with cross-border volumes +26% and active customers +21%, reaffirming guidance. ITX raised full-year guidance to "no less than $14.8m" after H1 revenue rose 72% to $8.3m. EYE reported FY26 revenue of £46.7m (-3%) but ARR +31% and set new medium-term targets of >£100m revenue and +30% EBITDA margin. South African miner VALT flagged H1 headline earnings up more than 1388% on stronger PGM prices and volumes. ALU was softer: FY26 revenue c.£107m (-5%), though the exit order book was up 49%.
Results elsewhere were mixed. FVEN NAV per share fell to 85.0p (from 90.1p) with a £1.24m pre-tax loss, though the Flock/Admiral disposal for £80m completed post year-end. TMIP confirmed an "orderly, commercially disciplined wind-down," with 23 vessels sold and bank debt fully repaid.
Statistical releases
- ONS Public opinions and social trends, GB: June 2026 — sentiment/behaviour snapshot; useful read-through for consumer-facing names.
- ONS Deaths registered monthly, England and Wales: June 2026 — demographic data, limited near-term market signal.
Policy / monetary
Nothing material from BoE or HMT.
Themes
PGM cycle turning up. JMAT's Catalyst disposal reframes it as a "lean, cash generative" PGM-focused group at exactly the moment VALT guides to headline earnings up >1388% on "significantly stronger PGM prices" and +18% volumes. Two independent data points from very different vantage points.
Alternative-asset fundraising resilient. BPT raised its fundraising target to €28bn and reports a "good transaction pipeline" for H2; FVEN describes the long-term outlook for deep-tech and enterprise software as "attractive" despite macro headwinds. Capital formation at scale is not stalling.
Guidance dispersion is wide. Four "ahead" tones (EYE, ITX, WISE, VALT) sit alongside ALU's -5% revenue and TMIP's wind-down. This isn't a broad-based upgrade cycle — it's stock-specific execution divergence.
Board reshuffles cluster. GETB, IBST, SSTY, TND and VAL all announced director changes today, with GETB and TND explicitly framing transitions as strategy pivots (value realisation, chair search) — worth watching for follow-through actions.
Watch
- 21 July 2026: REVB full-year results (year ended 28 Feb 2026); BSV and CMPG/CMPI share dealings commence.
- 22 July 2026: GCL investor presentation via Investor Meet Company; CVCG placing results.
- 23 July 2026: MAB Q3 trading update (42 weeks to 18 July).
- 28 July 2026: BHL admission of fundraise shares to AIM.
- 29 July 2026: CRE H1 2026 interim results.
- 31 July 2026: RHIM half-year results.
- 12 August 2026: SSTY AGM.
- Year-end 2026: BPT Kayne Anderson Real Estate acquisition expected to close.