Co-op will vote against BSkyB at AGM November 2, 2005 Pay TV broadcaster BSkyB suffered a fresh blow to its share buyback plans after shareholder Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS) announced it would vote against the proposal at what is expected to be a stormy AGM this Friday. The insurer, which joins a growing list of institutional investors who have threatened to scupper the plan, said [...]
Hopes for rate cut dashed as house prices begin recovery November 2, 2005 The odds on the Bank of England cutting interest rates for the second time in four months lengthened yesterday after the release of a raft of better than expected economic data. The latest snapshot of the housing market by leading lender Nationwide showed prices jumped 1.3 per cent, the fastest rate in 15 months, bringing [...]
Party like it’s 1999 November 2, 2005 Mergers and acquisitions are back and they’re almost as lucrative as they were during the last feverish round. It’s a throwback to the turn of the century: multibillion pound mergers are announced by the day, the stock market is soaring, city pubs and wine bars are buzzing. All that’s missing is the sight of grown [...]
Doing business out of the Third World November 1, 2005 Salman Rahman had to fight corruption, nationalisation and a cripplingly poor infrastructure as he established Beximco in his native Bangladesh. What do you do if you want a fax machine for your office? You get 113 signatures from various government departments, and permission from the security service. Sound absurd? That’s how it was in Bangladesh [...]
A good call for O2 buyer November 1, 2005 It was just a matter of time before someone made a move on the British company, so Telefonica’s offer for O2 was no big shock. But there’s still time for other rivals to muscle in on the act, says Ben Griffiths. Since splitting off from BT four years ago, O2 has persistently found itself unable [...]
Caution urged over Peacocks buy-out November 1, 2005 Broker Numis warned Peacocks shareholders to scrutinise the budget retailer’s performance at the half year as the recent run of strong trading could make the proposed £404m take-out price look “conservative”. The Peacocks management team, backed by Goldman Sachs, Debenhams chairman John Lovering and American hedge funds Och-Ziff Capital Management Group and Perry Capital LLC, [...]
Mowlem admits takeover approach November 1, 2005 Mowlem, the construction group chosen to build a new stand at Twickenham, is the latest company to be at the centre of takeover talks. The Middlesex-based company, which has added support services to its remit, admitted yesterday it had received an approach for the business, although it declined to reveal the identity of its suitor. [...]
Skandia posts sales ‘defence’ November 1, 2005 Skandia, the Swedish insurer at the centre of a £3.13bn takeover battle, attempted to bolster its defence yesterday by unveiling a 34 per cent leap in sales. Total premiums and deposits rose in the third quarter to Skr32.4bn (£2.29bn) as all its divisions, including Britain, helped boost revenue. Old Mutual, the British-listed company whose main [...]
Parkdean in talks with Grainger November 1, 2005 Camping and caravan parks operator Parkdean Holidays has confirmed it is in talks which could see it taken over by London-quoted property group Grainger Trust. Parkdean’s shares soared 20 per cent on the news while Grainger warned the discussions may or may not lead to an offer for Britain’s second-biggest operator of holiday sites. Grainger, [...]
Profits surge for Dyson November 1, 2005 Profits at Dyson, the company famous for its brightly coloured bag less cleaners, have doubled from £39.6m to £78.2m resulting in a bumper pay packet for founder James Dyson and his wife. The pair took home £28.9m as the private company’s sales increased fourfold largely due to a boom in American sales. Sales to 31 [...]