Blak Wave is planning to use the funding to develop a new drama show

The owners of an independent television production company in Bristol say they are “super excited” after securing funding from Channel 4 to develop a drama show.

Blak Wave was set up by Michael Jenkins and Dr Mena Fombo in 2019 in a bid to create content from a “fresh perspective” and to give a voice to those underrepresented on television.

On Tuesday, July 28, the duo announced the business was one of five indies to win backing from Channel 4’s Creative Equity Drama IP Fund, which is designed to support ethnically diverse-led indies to secure and develop IP.

“We are so please to share with the world that we were successful in our pitch to the Channel 4 creative equity fund,” Blak Wave said in a statement on Facebook.

“This is big for Blak Wave. Mena and I do a lot of documentary’s and short drama films but we are super excited to be developing our first drama tv show with Channel 4.

“This has been years in the making and it’s a reminder that this game is a marathon and not a sprint. Shout out to the other companies selected we are in good company.”

Blak Wave is behind productions including ‘No Rucks Given!’ – a women’s rugby documentary made in partnership with Warner Bros, Discovery Access and TNT Sports – and carnival documentary Home Carnival Queen, in partnership with BBC Arts.

The company’s co-founder, Dr Fombo, is a Bristol-based equality and diversity campaigner, who is also behind Black Girl Convention – a movement to ensure that women of African and Caribbean heritage have “a sense of home” by sharing experiences.

Mr Jenkins, meanwhile, is a writer and director for film and TV. He won Best Short Film for ‘Check the Label’ at the Royal Television Society Awards West in 2018 and Best Documentary at the Royal Television Society Awards West in 2021 for ‘Monumental’. He is a full BAFTA voting member.

The other independent production companies to secure funding from Channel 4 are Greenacre Films, Turnover Films, Lunar Pictures and Dark Pictures.

Shares of Itron Inc. surged Tuesday morning, climbing 22.54% to $103.89, after the utility technology company reported second-quarter earnings that significantly exceeded Wall Street’s expectations, adding $19.11 to the stock’s value in early trading.

The rally marks one of the strongest single-day moves in the company’s recent history, coming just hours after Itron released its quarterly results before the market open.

Earnings Beat Expectations by a Wide Margin

Itron reported earnings per share of $1.59 for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimate of $1.29 by 30 cents, according to Briefing.com. The company also posted a return on equity of 19.54% and a net margin of 12.31% for the period, metrics that reflected solid underlying profitability even as top-line revenue growth slowed.

Revenue Declined, But Profitability Held Up

Despite the strong earnings beat, Itron’s revenue moved in the opposite direction during the quarter, underscoring a business that managed to protect margins even as sales softened. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis, and earnings per share also came in slightly below the $1.62 the company reported during the same period a year earlier. Even so, the scale of the earnings beat relative to analyst expectations appeared to outweigh investor concerns about the revenue decline.

A Business Focused on Utility and City Infrastructure

Itron, based in Liberty Lake, Washington, describes itself as focused on innovating new ways for utilities and cities to manage energy and water resources. According to the company, Itron is transforming how the world manages energy, water and city services, offering intelligent infrastructure solutions designed to help utilities and cities improve efficiency, build resilience and deliver safe, reliable and affordable service through connected devices and edge intelligence.

Updated Guidance for the Rest of the Year

Alongside its second-quarter results, Itron also provided updated financial guidance for the coming quarters, giving investors a clearer picture of management’s expectations heading into the second half of the year. The company updated its third-quarter 2026 guidance to a range of $1.50 to $1.60 in earnings per share, and raised its full-year 2026 guidance to a range of $6.30 to $6.50 in earnings per share.

A Trading Pattern Heading Into the Report

In the days leading up to Tuesday’s results, Itron’s stock had shown relatively little movement, trading well below both analyst price targets and its own recent averages. Itron’s stock price was largely unchanged heading into earnings, with the shares heading into the report carrying an average analyst price target of $126.70, compared with a share price in the $84 range just before the report. Shares of Itron opened at $84.78 on Tuesday, before the earnings-driven rally pushed the stock sharply higher over the course of the morning session.

Prior to Tuesday’s surge, the stock had been trading below both of its key technical averages. The company’s 50-day moving average stood at $83.04 and its 200-day moving average at $89.73, both levels the stock moved well above following Tuesday’s earnings-driven rally.

A History of Revenue Misses Made Tuesday’s Report Notable

The scale of investor relief following Tuesday’s results is best understood against the backdrop of Itron’s recent track record with revenue expectations specifically. Itron has missed Wall Street’s revenue estimates multiple times over the last two years, making the earnings beat particularly notable even as the company’s overall revenue continued to decline year-over-year. In the prior quarter, the company had reported revenue of $587 million, down 3.3% year-over-year, though it still delivered a solid beat of both EBITDA and earnings-per-share estimates in that period as well.

How Itron’s Peers Have Performed

Itron’s results also arrive amid a broader earnings season for companies in the electrical equipment and resource management space, offering useful context for how the sector has performed overall. Among Itron’s peers, Teledyne delivered year-on-year revenue growth of 9.8%, beating analyst expectations by 5.3%, while Badger Meter reported a revenue decline of 6.6%, in line with consensus estimates. Notably, Teledyne’s stock price was largely unchanged following its results, while Badger Meter’s shares fell 15.5%, illustrating how varied investor reactions have been across similarly positioned companies this earnings season.

Institutional Ownership Remains High

Itron’s shareholder base remains heavily concentrated among large institutional investors, a factor that can amplify stock price moves during periods of significant news. Roughly 96.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds, with several funds having recently increased their positions. Merewether Investment Management now owns 300,787 shares of the company’s stock, after adding 282,587 shares during the most recent quarter, while Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its stake by 65.2% during an earlier quarter.

Mixed Analyst Sentiment Heading Into the Report

Wall Street analysts had offered a range of views on Itron’s stock in the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s earnings release, reflecting some uncertainty about the company’s near-term trajectory. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold” rating on the stock in early May, while Zacks Research downgraded Itron from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a mid-July research note, underscoring the divided views among analysts heading into the earnings report.

An Elevated Level of Short Interest

Ahead of Tuesday’s results, some market analysis had also flagged the potential for outsized stock price swings tied to the company’s options and short-selling activity. Short interest in Itron’s stock appeared elevated heading into earnings, implying the potential for sharper volatility or a short squeeze if the company’s results materially surprised the market, a dynamic that appears to have played out following Tuesday’s stronger-than-expected earnings beat.

With Itron’s updated full-year guidance now pointing toward earnings per share between $6.30 and $6.50, investors will be watching closely in the coming quarters to see whether the company can continue delivering earnings beats even as top-line revenue growth remains under pressure. A conference call with company management, scheduled for 10 a.m. Eastern time Tuesday, is expected to provide further detail on the factors behind the quarter’s performance and management’s outlook for the remainder of 2026, along with additional context on the guidance increase that appeared to catch many investors positively by surprise.

Plans were initially refused by the local council but a government inspector has overturned the decision

A Devon business will be permitted to build an ‘educatering’ facility after successfully appealing a decision that initially rejected its proposals.

Goosemoor, which has been owned by the Pritchard family for nearly 70 years, sought permission to build a site in East Devon that would primarily house a food distribution centre for its school meals operation.

While this is expected to run round-the-clock for six days a week, the business also envisaged the development, in the parish of Woodbury, would have a classroom where pupils could discover the origins of their food and prepare meals, alongside open areas where crops would be cultivated to supply ingredients.

Local planning authorities declined to approve the scheme earlier this year, citing concerns about its effect on the surrounding countryside – the majority of which carries some form of protected status – and the view it would almost certainly require car access, which could itself prove troublesome for others using the narrow rural lane which lacks pavements or street lighting.

East Devon District Council’s planning committee also raised concerns about the possible impact on neighbouring properties, which include Grade II listed North Lodge, Nutwell Cottages and Nutwell Lodge Hotel.

However, a government planning inspector has reversed the decision – though with 26 conditions attached to the approval. Goosemoor has welcomed the ruling, while a council spokesperson said it was “disappointed” given its “clear concerns” about the proposal.

Although inspector Laura Cuthbert acknowledged several of the issues raised by the council, she assigned most of them only ‘limited’ or ‘moderate’ weight, while affording “significant weight” to the potential employment benefits the scheme could deliver and its broader economic impact.

Within her report, the inspector indicated the development could generate as many as 75 new jobs.

Citing the council’s own economic development officer, Ms Cuthbert noted the authority had recently acknowledged a “critical and well-established shortage of available employment land” in East Devon, which was “constraining inward investment, local business growth and forcing some employers to leave the district”.

Ms Cuthbert said: “These comments indicate that concerns regarding the availability of employment land and commercial premises remain significant and ongoing.

“Consequently, notwithstanding the council’s emerging strategy to address this matter, there remains an acknowledged and substantial shortfall in employment land across the district.

“Whilst future allocations may assist in meeting that need, their delivery remains uncertain at present. Having regard to the evidence before me, I conclude that the proposal would make a meaningful contribution towards addressing the current shortage of employment land and premises.”

Jamie Walsh, the founder and director of Goosemoor Educatering, welcomed the decision.

“The appeal has gone our way, and I think the process was pretty considered,” he said.

“It was back and forth from both sides, but what was pleasing is that in the appeal format, we could answer any queries, statements or questions and so it felt a lot more like our voice was heard [than at the planning committee].

“The inspector kept mentioning the planning balance and it came down more in our favour with the potential negatives not being enough to block the application.”

Mr Walsh said he hoped construction on the site would get under way in spring next year, once the firm has met the planning conditions attached to the scheme.

A spokesperson for East Devon District Council said the authority was “disappointed” the appeal had been allowed.

“Our position was that the site conflicted with countryside protection policies, was in an unsustainable location with very limited access to public transport, walking and cycling routes, and would cause harm to the landscape and to the setting of nearby listed buildings,” the spokesperson said.

“While the inspector agreed with all of these concerns, they concluded that the economic benefits of the scheme outweighed the harm identified, in the absence of a suitable alternative site.

“We respect the inspector’s decision, but our position remains that development in the countryside must be carefully managed and located where it can be properly supported by sustainable transport and infrastructure.”

Shares of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) rose nearly 4% to Rs 3,967 on the BSE in Wednesday’s early trade after the engineering major reported a 14% year-on-year (YoY) rise in net profit to Rs 4,123 crore for the first quarter of FY27, with brokerages retaining their ‘Buy’ calls for the stock.

L&T’s revenue from operations meanwhile rose around 7% YoY to Rs 67,942 crore during the April-June quarter of the ongoing FY27, from Rs 63,679 crore in the corresponding quarter of FY26. International revenue stood at Rs 34,393 crore, accounting for nearly 51% of the company’s overall revenue.

The company said it secured orders worth Rs 1.08 lakh crore during Q1, marking a 14% YoY growth. International orders meanwhile stood at Rs 60,702 crore, contributing 56% to the total order inflow. The company’s consolidated order book rose 5% sequentially to Rs 7.79 lakh crore as on June 30, 2026. International orders comprised 52% of the overall order book.

During the quarter, L&T said that it won significant orders across multiple businesses such as residential and commercial buildings, transportation infrastructure, ferrous metals, offshore wind and the heavy engineering businesses.

Also read | L&T Q1 Results: Net profit rises 14% YoY to Rs 4,123 crore, revenue up 7%

Goldman Sachs on L&T share price

Goldman Sachs highlighted that the company posted a good performance in a tough macro environment, with core order inflows coming in well ahead of expectations, ET Now reported. Operating margins however slipped slightly due to weaker execution as the West Asia conflict weighed on project timelines.

The international brokerage maintained its ‘Buy’ call on the stock.

Nuvama on L&T share price

Despite the West-Asia conflict and its related supply chain disruptions, L&T delivered 2% growth in Q1 core PPM revenue, Nuvama noted. It however retained its ‘Hold’ call on the stock as it believes the first half FY27 is likely to remain soft on Middle East-related disruptions.

Motilal Oswal on L&T share price

Motilal Oswal said L&T’s consolidated results and core EPC segment outperformed its estimates in the first quarter of FY27. Listing out the positives that it saw in the earnings print, Motilal said the company reported a healthy 14% YoY growth in core E&C order inflows, core E&C revenue growth of 3% YoY and flat margins at 7.6%.
Despite lower ordering from the Middle East region, L&T has diversified its order inflow mix from other geographies such as Europe and has also seen stable inflows from the domestic private sector, the domestic brokerage said, as it marginally revised its estimates to bake in Q1 performance.Motilal Oswal retained its ‘Buy’ call on the shares of L&T, while increasing its target price to Rs 4,550 apiece from Rs 4,500 apiece. The latest target price implies an upside potential of nearly 19% from the stock’s previous closing price.

JM Financial on L&T share price

JM Financial said L&T’s core EBITDA was 10% ahead of its estimates, led by core margin beat, with core execution in line. Robust order inflows also beat the domestic brokerage’s estimates, led by the ultra-mega order for offshore wind by TenneT. With strong prospects of Rs 15 trillion for 9M FY27 supported by continued momentum in ordering by the Middle East, we view L&T’s FY27 order inflow growth guidance of 10-12% as achievable. While Q1 FY27 execution was adversely impacted by West Asia geopolitical disruptions, we expect normalisation in execution from H2 FY27 onwards. This, coupled with a large order book should support revenue growth of 10-12% in FY27 (in line with the guidance),” it added.

L&T is well placed to deliver over 16% CAGR in EBITDA over FY26-28 supported by strong momentum in Middle East ordering, pick up in execution from the second half of FY27 onwards and stable core margins, JM Financial said as it remained constructive on the stock.

The domestic brokerage maintained its ‘Buy’ call on the stock but reduced its target price to Rs 4,640 apiece from Rs 4,700 apiece. The latest target price implies 21% upside potential.

L&T share price

L&T announced its Q1 earnings in the post market hours of Tuesday. Earlier during the day, the shares closed marginally higher at Rs 3,832 apiece. The stock has fallen more than 8% in a month and 7.5% in 2026 so far.

In the longer term, L&T shares have gained around 10% in a year, 45% in three years and 140% in five years. The company has a market capitalisation of nearly Rs 5.27 lakh crore.

Also read | Memory giant Micron picks L&T for $2.75 billion Sanand plant phase-2

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)