FTSE 350 news summary: RBS, Easyjet, ITV, Catlin Group

With all eyes on the election result, and expectations of a pretty poor performance for equity markets today, news flow from the FTSE 100 was very light.

The Royal Bank of Scotland Group (LSE:RBS) reported today, announcing a first quarter operating profit of £713 million, as the partially nationalised bank said it benefited favourable credit trends and strong seasonal results from its Global Banking & Markets business.

Meanwhile in the FTSE 250, investor’s found slightly more to chew on.

EasyJet (LSE:EZJ) reported passenger statistics for the month ending 30 April 2010, which were impacted by the volcanic ash cloud.  Before this disruption EasyJet expected passenger numbers in April to be around 4.3 million representing growth in passenger numbers of 14% and a load factor of 86.2%.  Due to the large number of cancellations however, Easyjet’s load factor came in at 85.2% and passenger numbers were 3.5 million.

Broadcaster ITV (LSE:ITV) released an interim management statement this morning ahead of its AGM.  Group revenues for the three month period ended 31 March 2010 rose 6% to £450 million, as advertising revenues continued to recover from their low in 2009.  The FTSE 250 constituent remained cautious however, stating that the outlook for the second half was ‘highly uncertain’.

Insurer and Reinsurer, Catlin Group (LSE:CGL) also released its interim management statement, reporting a 9% rise in gross premiums written to $1.3 billion, 39% increase in premiums written by non-London hubs and 0.5% increase in average weighted premium rates across the group.  The company’s strongest gains came in property insurance.

http://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/16347/ftse-350-news-summary-rbs-easyjet-itv-catlin-group-16347.html