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Infrastructure trusts HICL Infrastructure (HICL) and The Renewables Infrastructure Group (TRIG) have set out plans to combine their assets, merging into a £5.3bn giant.

Under the proposal, TRIG will be wound up and its assets will be transferred to HICL, which will then invest in a broader range of infrastructure assets.

The merged entity will target a net asset value (NAV) total return of 10 per cent a year over the medium term and aim for a “progressive� dividend, starting at target of 9p per share.

Read more on the plans here

Online lifestyle retailer THG Plc (THG) has inked a deal with Mars to launch a new range of Snickers-flavoured protein powders.

The agreement, which applies to THG’s sports nutrition brand Myprotein, marks the latest in a series of international collaborations for the division, including tie-ups with Müller and Vimto. 

Kerry Cavanaugh, general manager for Mars Drinks and Treats, said that the fast growth of the protein products market was a key motivation for the deal.

Jefferies analyst Andrew Wade said the partnership should help THG to “build clear points of difference and support the development of its offline retail and licensing ambitions�. The new lines will launch on 20 November.

Shares in THG rose 2 per cent in early trading.

DCC (DCC) announced the terms of its £600mn tender offer aimed at returning the proceeds of its healthcare business to shareholders.

The distributor said it plans to buy back 11.95mn shares from shareholders, or about 12.3 per cent of its existing share capital. It will repurchase the shares over the next month at rates of between 5,020p and 5,320p a share.

This is a premium of “up to� 6 per cent on Friday’s closing price of 5,020p but a range of between 4.4 per cent and 10.6 per cent above the volume-weighted average price over the previous 90 days.

DCC had pledged to return £800mn of the proceeds from the £1.05bn sale of the healthcare business to private equity firm InvestIndustrial. It is already in the process of a £100mn buyback and plans to complete a further £100mn of share repurchases when it receives an unconditional deferred payment from the buyer in two years’ time.

DCC’s shared edged up by 5p to 5,025p.

Sirius Real Estate (SRE), whose business model focuses on acquiring and improving industrial parks, posted first-half results in line with expectations for the six months to September.  “The first half has evolved according to plan,â€� chief executive Andrew Coombs told Investors’ Chronicle. 

Headline rental income rose 15 per cent to €243mn (£214mn), and 5 per cent on a life-for-like basis. First-half funds from operations (FFO), a measure of cash flow, increased 7 per cent to €65mn. The company expects to achieve market expectations for FY 2026 FFO of €133mn. 

The company continues to prefer Germany ahead of the UK for acquisitions. During the first half of the year it made €339mn of acquisitions and €32mn of disposals. The group also hiked its interim dividend by 4 per cent to 3.18c. Still, the shares fell 1 per cent.

Building products companies continue to report “subdued� market conditions, triggering broker downgrades for 2025 and 2026.

Although Genuit (GEN) said that like-for-like revenue grew by 3.7 per cent in the four months to October, it cut guidance for underlying operating profit. It now expects to generate an operating profit of £92mn to ££95mn this year, a downgrade from consensus forecasts of £95mn-£99mn.

Alongside this year’s cut, broker Peel Hunt said that it expects consensus forecasts for next year to also be taken down by 4 to 5 per cent.

Stelrad (SRAD) also reported tougher trading conditions and said its operating profit would come in marginally ahead of last year at £32mn-£33mn, albeit 2-3 per cent lower than consensus forecasts, according to Peel Hunt. It cut pre-tax profits for this year and next by 4 per cent.

Stelrad also said it would incur a one-off charge of £1.6mn relating to the restructure of its Turkish operations.

Shares in both companies fell by 14 per cent.