News24 | Business brief | Stefannuti Stocks slumps and Silicon Valley’s AI executive shakeup

Stefannutti Stocks disappointed the market with a profit warning, while Silicon Valley has seen a shakeup for AI-focused executives.

Engineering and construction group Stefanutti Stocks warned shareholders to expect a deterioration in earnings per share of between 110% and 130% for its six months to end-August. Headline earnings per share, however, are expected to increase as much as 20%, while its results from continuing operations will look much better. The group didn’t go into detail, and in late afternoon trade, its shares were down more than 7%, valuing it at about R235 million on the JSE. The shares have still risen by about a quarter in the past 12 months.

FirstRand, which owns FNB, reported on its key income statement lines are trending in line with expectations in its 2024 year, except for the credit loss ratio (CLR) which is now expected to be lower than the group initially guided. The CLR is not expected to reach the midpoint of the group’s through-the-cycle range, “demonstrating that the origination strategy adopted continues to result in a stronger relative credit performance despite the challenging cycle”. Shares in the financial services group were up just over 1% on Monday afternoon and have gained almost 1% in the past year.

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