Upbeat outlook from Capita fails to address growth fears July 21, 2011 POSITIVE first-half results and outlook from British outsourcing group Capita yesterday were overshadowed by uncertainty over when the company will return to organic growth. Capita, which runs the Teachers’ Pension Scheme, TV licensing for the BBC and the Criminal Records Bureau, said underlying pre-tax profit rose seven per cent to £174m for the six months [...]
Roche predicts higher earnings due to cost cuts July 21, 2011 SWISS drugmaker Roche raised its full-year earnings target for 2011 yesterday as cost-cutting protected its first-half profitability from the impact of the strong Swiss franc. The Basel-based group is now aiming to grow core earnings per share around 10 per cent in local currencies this year, after previously guiding for high single-digit growth. But it [...]
PRINCE ANDREW QUITS TRADE ROLE July 21, 2011 PRINCE Andrew is to step down from his role as Britain’s trade ambassador, just four months after his links to a sex offender prompted calls for him to quit the unpaid position. The prince, 51, will be leaving his job as the government’s special representative for international trade and investment, which he has held since [...]
Trimming the fat is not enough July 21, 2011 CAPITA yesterday said the conditions for outsourcing were proving “increasingly buoyant”. Such confidence should have had investors piling into the stock, especially as earnings per share were up 12 per cent and contract wins were double the same period last year at £1.1bn. The companies it signed major deals with in the first six months [...]
Torrid trading drags Nokia to £324m loss July 21, 2011 NOKIA yesterday crashed to an expected second quarter loss, compounding a miserable year for the former smartphone market-leader. Even factoring in a one-off payment of €430m from Apple over a long-running patent dispute, Nokia slumped to a loss of €368m (£324m). It was dragged down by a 20 per cent slide in revenues in its [...]
Shrinking margins hit Publicis July 21, 2011 SHRINKING margins and a warning of a final quarter slowdown took the shine off forecast-beating first-half results at Publicis. A surprise pick-up in European ad spending pushed the French firm to better than expected revenues. The world’s third-biggest ad group also reiterated its previous annual targets as revenue grew across all regions in the first [...]
888 revenues storm past forecasts July 21, 2011 ONLINE gaming firm 888 yesterday reported an 18 per cent rise in first-half revenue, driven by a strong performance in its casino and poker businesses. It now forecasts full-year results will be marginally ahead of the current market view. Analysts on average expect the company to post a full-year pre-tax profit of $21m on a [...]
BC Partners wins fight to buy Con Hem for £1.6bn July 21, 2011 PRIVATE equity firm BC Partners is set to buy Swedish cable company Com Hem, in a deal that will value the firm at about 17bn crowns (£1.6bn), one of the largest buyouts in Europe this year, people familiar with the situation said. BC Partners beat rival Cinven to acquire the business, owned by Carlyle Group [...]
AT&T profit beats forecasts July 21, 2011 AT&T’s second-quarter profit and revenue beat Wall Street estimates as it added more subscribers than expected, despite the loss of exclusive rights to sell Apple’s iPhone. The number two US mobile provider, which is seeking approval to buy T-Mobile USA for $39bn, added 331,000 net subscribers in the quarter, compared with the average analyst expectation [...]
Colt earnings fall on voice revenue July 21, 2011 European telecoms provider Colt Group saw core earnings dip slightly in the first half as a drop in voice revenue offset higher data and managed services sales. The group, which mainly serves businesses, reported core earnings of €157.2m (£139m), down 0.6 per cent, on 3.5 per cent lower revenue of €766.2 for the six months [...]