Debt market revival helps Moody’s profit October 28, 2010 MOODY’S reported a better-than-expected third-quarter profit yesterday and raised its full-year outlook, as a pickup in capital markets activity prompted more bond issuers to seek its ratings. Moody’s earnings were powered by a 43 per cent jump in revenue from rating corporate debt. Moody’s said third-quarter profit rose to $136m (£85.3m), or 58 cents a [...]
DTZ warns it will post a loss October 28, 2010 REAL estate consultant DTZ warned yesterday it is likely to miss its full-year profit forecasts and post a small loss for the year to April 2011. The FTSE-listed company said sluggish investment levels in the EMEA region pose the biggest problem. DTZ was expected to report a £10m pre-tax profit this year. The business posted [...]
Rugby Estates plans to cash in on the end of the real estate valuation rally October 28, 2010 RUGBY Estates posted a pre-tax profit of £2.38m for the six months to the end of July, while the chairman pledged to sell more of its portfolio as the rally in property value runs out of steam. Rugby, which sold its £37m real estate investment trust to ING in April, said it had also disposed [...]
Motorola in the black for first time in three years October 28, 2010 Motorola made money from its phones for the first time in more than three years in the third quarter, helped by smartphones running Google Android software. Motorola’s total third-quarter profit rose to $109m (£68.4m), or five cents per share, from $12m , or one cent per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose six per cent [...]
General Motors secures deal to repay $2.1bn to US government October 28, 2010 GENERAL Motors said yesterday it had reached a deal with banks for a $5bn (£3.1bn) credit facility and would repay $2.1bn to US taxpayers by buying back preferred shares after its IPO. The announcement of the steps intended to strengthen GM’s balance sheet come just days before bankers are expected to begin a road show [...]
Vale ready to invest record $24bn in 2011 October 28, 2010 BRAZILIAN mining company Vale, the world’s top iron ore producer, will invest a record $24bn (£15.1bn) in 2011 as it diversifies toward pricier metals and profitable fertilisers. Vale’s highly awaited capex budget nearly doubles this year’s outlays and will lay the groundwork for the company to vastly boost output of key products amid soaring demand [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS October 28, 2010 NATIONAL GRID Standard & Poor’s has downgraded the utility to “sell” from “hold”, with a target price of 516p. The broker notes National Grid’s 10.7 per cent share price rise in the last year, resulting in a 12.4 per cent outperformance of the sector, which could lead to profit-taking soon. Planned capital expenditure is also [...]
Blackstone’s earnings soar as slump ends October 28, 2010 PRIVATE equity firm Blackstone Group yesterday posted quarterly earnings that beat market forecasts, and said the value of its private equity and real estate portfolios rose, although the amount invested in new deals was steady. The firm, which has investments in companies including Hilton Hotels and casino operator Harrah’s Entertainment, said third-quarter economic net income, [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS October 28, 2010 Shore Capital The stockbroking group has hired Jerry Keen as head of natural resources in the corporate broking division, and Ramona Tipnis, Dr Paul Taylor and Craig Howie as new analysts. Keen (pictured) was previously head of corporate broking at Astaire. Tipnis will cover general retail and joins from Oriel Securities. Taylor, a healthcare analyst, [...]
France Telecom beats hopes October 28, 2010 FRANCE Telecom posted forecast-beating third-quarter results after a marked turnaround in its all-important home market. Its results were fuelled by new bundles of mobile, fixed-line, broadband and TV and a boom in smartphones. Europe’s third-largest telecom operator by revenue also tweaked its outlook for 2010 revenue, saying it would be “slightly up” on a comparable [...]