Partygaming boosted by poker punters February 3, 2010 INTERNET gaming firm PartyGaming yesterday said fourth quarter revenues rose 32 per cent compared with a year earlier and 17 per cent compared with the previous quarter; generating almost £279m for 2009. Finance director Martin Weigold said he expects sales and profit to post “double-digit” gains this year, excluding acquisitions. The group predicts a profit [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS February 3, 2010 BSKYB ING advises investors to “buy” BSkyB shares citing its “decent financials” and strong operating metrics despite the consumer recession. Believes its recent results indicate it’s a company for “BT to worry about”. Says the shares are “too cheap by far,” and that the market is underestimating its growth plans. Expects it to grow more [...]
Flurry of deals gives private equity new hope February 3, 2010 A RETURN to buoyancy for private equity could be just around the corner following a flurry of deals that promises to give new hope to an industry left treading water at the end of 2009. Yesterday Jon Moulton’s Better Capital fund announced its inaugural deal, buying aerospace supplier Gardner Group for £20m. It is the [...]
PERFORMANCE JITTERS February 3, 2010 PERFORMING arts school group Stagecoach Theatre Arts said yesterday it endured a tough past six months as the downturn continues to put pressure on families’ discretionary spending. The group’s pre-tax profit fell 20 per cent to £267,000 over the first half, though this mainly reflected a write-back of provision in the prior period.
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS February 3, 2010 GLG Partners The asset management group has appointed Raffaele Costa as its new co-head of marketing. Costa, 40, has worked at GLG since it was founded in 1995, when he joined as a portfolio manager specialising in US and European equities. Prior to that, he was at Goldman Sachs. Costa will now work alongside co-chief executive [...]
Kraft seeks $4bn to pay for Cadbury February 3, 2010 KRAFT, the US food group, will raise at least $4bn (£2.5bn) in the debt markets to fund its £11.7bn acquisition of UK rival Cadbury, according to people close to the matter. The fundraising will consist of four tranches, each at least $1bn in size. The tranches will have maturities of 3¼, 6, 10 and 30 [...]
Santander see UK profits surge February 3, 2010 THE UK operations of Spanish banking giant Santander saw full-year profits leap 55 per cent in 2009 as the group grew its share of the mortgage market and signed up more than expected new customers to its bank accounts. Pre-tax profits hit £1.54bn for the year to 31 December with new acquisitions Bradford & Bingley [...]
Yell revenues stabilise February 3, 2010 PUBLISHING group Yell saw signs of stability in the third quarter as the rate of revenue decline slowed. The FTSE 250-group reported a 13 per cent drop in revenue at constant currency rates for the three months to December – beating the 16 per cent guidance previously given. Revenue for the first nine months of [...]
Glaxo profits up – but cuts looming February 3, 2010 DRUGS giant GlaxoSmithKline has reported a 12 per cent rise in annual profit – but warned that cost-cutting measures would be imposed. Pre-tax profits for 2009 were £8.73bn ($13.81bn) up from £7.78bn in 2008. A £500m programme of cuts will be completed by 2012. Glaxo said its profits had been enhanced by sales of flu [...]
Power shortages loom for UK February 3, 2010 BUSINESSES and homes across the UK could face power shortages in the years ahead, energy regulator Ofgem has warned. The regulator also warns that a proportion of consumers may not be able to afford the higher energy prices they will have to face. Ofgem says there is “reasonable doubt” about whether the UK’s energy market [...]