BEST OF THE BROKERS June 22, 2009 BELLWAYUBS upgraded Bellway to “buy” after its trading update confirms a stabilising market. The broker has factored in write-downs in 2010 of £54m, and has new earnings per shares estimates of 15.27p in 2009 and 1.19p in 2010. GO-AHEAD GROUPGo-Ahead’s pre-close update has shown the company to be on track for Royal Bank of Scotland’s [...]
New interactive strategy pays off for NetPlay TV June 22, 2009 GAMING firm NetPlay TV yesterday said its losses had narrowed over the past year as its strategy of chasing the live gaming market started to pay off. NetPlay posted a £1m pre-tax loss for the year to December, compared with a £4.4m loss the previous year. Revenue soared by 118 per cent to £19.8m. “The [...]
CITY MOVES Who’s switching jobs June 22, 2009 AvivaThe insurance group has appointed Jon Bunn as its new corporate affairs and communications director in Europe. Bunn will report to Andy Moffat, Aviva’s director of human resources in Europe. He was previously group public relations director at Prudential, and before that was director of media relations at accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. He began his career [...]
Rose waives 1.1m share award payout June 22, 2009 SIR Stuart Rose, executive chairman of Marks & Spencer, yesterday waived his entitlement to more than £1m in shares in a bid to appease disgruntled shareholders. Under the incentive share plan, M&S’s remuneration committee had awarded Rose 1,184,900 shares. But after a shareholder backlash led by the Association of British Insurers (ABI), Rose said he [...]
INDEPENDENT CONSIDERS CASH CALL June 22, 2009 INDEPENDENT News and Media (INM), publisher of The Independent newspaper, is mulling a deeply-discounted rights issue as part of the refinancing of its €200m (£169m) bond. INM is in talks with shareholders, including former chief executive Sir Tony O’Reilly (left) and Denis O’Brian, who have a combined stake of over 50 per cent.
Blue Oar, now Astaire, fined 225,000 by LSE for breaching Aim regulations June 22, 2009 STOCKBROKER Blue Oar Securities, which recently changed its name to Astaire, was yesterday hit with a £225,000 fine from the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and publicly censured for breaching the Aim market rules. The LSE said Blue Oar failed in its duty as a nominated adviser (Nomad) to Worthington Nicholls, now called Managed Support Services, [...]
Apple’s new iPhone sells 1m in week one as Jobs returns June 22, 2009 APPLE said yesterday that it had sold more than 1m of its iPhone 3GS in the first three days of launch, making it the most successful smart phone debut to date. The rush to secure the latest model beat analyst expectations and matched the sales for the old 3G model, despite being launched in just [...]
LINDSEY PROTESTS CONTINUE June 22, 2009 HUNDREDS of sacked contract workers burnt their dismissal letters outside Lindsey oil refinery yesterday in a symbolic act of defiance against French owner Total, which had given them until last night to reapply for their jobs. Thousands of workers from across the UK are expected to down tools today in support of the 647 staff [...]
ITV flatters bondholders June 22, 2009 ITV’s bondholders have won improved terms on the broadcaster’s proposed bond exchange just two days before the offer closes. The struggling broadcaster said that, following discussions with “several substantial holders” of its 2011 bonds, the new bonds will pay a coupon of 10 per cent rather than the 9 per cent offered previously. The exchange [...]
Thames Water drinks in profits but warns of rising bills to come June 22, 2009 THAMES Water said yesterday that tighter cost controls had driven a full year pre-tax profit rise of four per cent to £435.1m, but warned of a challenging year to come. The UK’s largest water company said that for every 100p of profit it made, it has invested 226p in a programme which included replacing London’s [...]