Full-year results to be published on 26 September from consumer goods firm PZ Cussons (PZC) come hot on the heels of the company’s announcement that it plans to take full control of its Nigerian business.

This decision may come under some scrutiny as the impact of the devaluation of the Nigerian naira could well mar the upcoming numbers. Volatility in the currency and the country itself has been a regular source of profit warnings from the business.

Shore Capital analyst Darren Shirley says the proposed acquisition makes strategic and financial sense, yet the price paid raised some eyebrows.

The company has offered £23 million in cash to acquire the 26.7% of PZ Cussons Nigeria it doesn’t already own, representing a 20% premium to the undisturbed price.

The Manchester-headquartered firm insisted the acquisition will ‘significantly simplify and strengthen’ its business in Nigeria, which has seen an improvement in profitability in recent years, putting in place ‘a sustainable structure and platform to maximise long-term growth and value’.

Investor focus when the full-year results are published is also likely to fall on how PZ Cussons is balancing price and volume across a portfolio of brands which include Carex, Cussons Baby, Imperial Leather and Original Source. This is a conundrum facing much of its peer group, which in passing on higher costs to consumers have created an incentive to trade down to unbranded alternatives.

UK UPDATES OVER THE NEXT 7 DAYS

FULL-YEAR RESULTS

September 22: Stranger Holdings

September 25: Wilmington

September 26: Close Brothers, Finsbury Food, Newmark Security, Origin Enterprises, PZ Cussons, Time Finance

September 27: Avingtrans

September 28: Hansard Global

HALF-YEAR RESULTS

September 22: First Tin

September 25: Alphawave IP, Aurrigo International, IQGEO, Ondine Biomedical, Venture Life

September 26: Alliance Pharma, Animalcare, Cambridge Cognition, Card Factory, Diaceutics, DigitalBox, EKF Diagnostics, Ergomed, Lifesafe, The Mission, Mortgage Advice Bureau, Next 15, Niox, Tinybuild, Yu Group

September 27: Amicorp, Arix Bioscience, Biome Technologies, BioPharma Credit, Everyman Media, Pantheon Infrastructure, Pendragon, Pennant International, Plant Health Care, Safestyle, Skillcast, Xeros Technology

September 28: Avacta, Ceres Power, Novacyt, Phoenix, RBG, Shield Therapeutics, Trellus, Trinity Exploration & Production, XLMedia

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