FirstGroup’s Great Western contract win puts transport giant back on track March 23, 2015 After a string of disappointments, rail operator FirstGroup has at last had a bit of good news. Light appeared at the end of the tunnel for rail operator FirstGroup yesterday, with shares jumping 4.16 per cent after the company announced that its First Great Western franchise has been extended for another four years. Shareholders [...]
Volution Group looks to the future as profits rebound after IPO March 23, 2015 Ventilation specialist Volution Group has seen a remarkable turnaround in fortunes since its float, according to results released yesterday. The British company listed in June last year after previously being owned by a private equity group and reported a first half pre-tax loss in 2014 of £8m. But since its float the company has [...]
YouGov revenues rise as General Election enters knife-edge finale March 23, 2015 UK polling firm YouGov saw revenues rise 11 per cent in the six months to 31 January as the country gears up for the General Election. But despite the UK’s ongoing state of political fervour, the standout territory for earnings was the US, where YouGov counts Coca-Cola, Facebook and Google among its client base. YouGov [...]
Analysts: Bank levy could drive Standard Chartered abroad March 23, 2015 George Osborne’s major new hike in the bank levy could prompt Standard Chartered to leave the UK, analysts at JP Morgan said yesterday, as the tax puts it at a disadvantage against global rivals. Such a move – to a location such as Singapore or Hong Kong – could take two or more years and cost [...]
RBS to sell stake in US subsidiary Citizens Financial March 23, 2015 Royal Bank of Scotland will shrink its stake in its US subsidiary Citizens Financial to below 50 per cent. Citizens Financial has announced RBS will sell off 115m shares in the company which only listed on the New York Stock Exchange in September. RBS will also grant the underwriters – including Morgan Stanley, Goldman [...]
Patrick Cescau exits Tesco board in clear-out – to be replaced by Richard Cousins March 23, 2015 Patrick Cescau, the senior non-executive Tesco director who led the search for the supermarket's new chairman, is leaving the firm's board, confirming speculation of his departure. Cescau's departure comes after six years with the retailer – it was widely believed he would depart after a new chairman was named to clear the way for a [...]
FTSE 100 and 250 quarterly review takes effect as Hikma, Tullow Oil and Afren shuffle March 23, 2015 The shake-up revealed as a result of the quarterly review of the FTSE 100 and 250 takes effect this morning. Hikma Pharmaceuticals entered the blue-chip benchmark index, and its shares were down 2 per cent at £21.40. The pharmaceutical products manufacturer, which floated around ten years ago, has a market cap of £4.22bn. Hikma knocked out Tullow Oil [...]
Afren shares inch up as it informs Serious Fraud Office of expense payment concerns March 23, 2015 Troubled oil firm Afren has notified the Serious Fraud Office of concerns over expenses payments thrown up by a review by its legal advisers. Afren said the concerns arose from work by its law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher "regarding the hire of an individual within its operations in 2012 and the payment of certain travel [...]
FirstGroup share price edges up after securing Great Western rail franchise March 23, 2015 FirstGroup's share price edged up this morning after it announced a deal with the Department of Transport (DfT) to operate the First Great Western rail franchise all the way through to 1 April 2019. The deal could be extended by a year at the DfT's discretion. After losing a series of bids for rail franchises [...]
Halfords names Jill McDonald new chief executive to replace Matt Davies March 23, 2015 Halfords has named Jill McDonald as its new chief executive, filling the saddle left empty by Matt Davies who's departing to lead Tesco's business operations in June. McDonald will leave fast food chain McDonald's where she is UK chief and president of North West Europe. The former marketing chief joined the restaurant business in 2006 [...]