Unilever is hoping for a good hair day September 27, 2010 Unilever yesterday announced it will buy US hair and skin care specialist Alberto Culver in a deal worth $3.7bn (£2.34bn). The acquisition of the firm behind household names such as V05 and TRESemme marks the single biggest Unilever acquisition in almost a decade. The new brands will complement Unilever’s existing portfolio, which includes Dove, Clear [...]
This purchase makes financial sense September 27, 2010 INVESTORS should keep their hair on. Financially, this deal makes sense. Unilever’s $37.5bn-a-share offer, which values Alberto Culver at around $3.6bn, is good value. The offer, which is worth around 12 times prospective earnings for 2011, is pretty cheap when compared to similar deals. Which is just as well, because the deal – while sensible [...]
New setback for Gartmore September 27, 2010 Embattled fund manager Gartmore suffered a fresh setback yesterday when it lost the mandate to run a £50m investment trust following the resignation of a star manager. The Gartmore Growth Opportunities fund (GGO), said it has reached agreement in principle with Artemis Alpha Trust for a merger of the two companies’ assets. The proposal will [...]
BoE says spend not save September 27, 2010 THE deputy governor of the Bank of England called for Britain’s 22m savers to eat into their reserves and spend more to help stimulate the economy yesterday. Charlie Bean said the BoE wanted households to spend more rather than save. Bean’s comments come as British savers suffer poor returns on their deposits following the Bank’s [...]
FSA slams asset auditing September 27, 2010 THE Financial Services Authority (FSA) has launched a review into the auditing standards of client assets after deeming current practices as flawed. After reviewing auditors’ reports of client assets, the watchdog said it found “a number of serious failings” that indicated a raft of general deficiencies within the practice. As a result it will work [...]
CFOs call for less rules in financial narrative September 27, 2010 MORE discretion and less regulation is needed when auditors deliver financial commentary at the front of annual reports, according to a raft of chief financial officers (CFOs) at large commercial companies. A new report published by Deloitte and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) found that over 65 per cent of some 230 CFOs [...]
Eurozone lending up in August September 27, 2010 LENDING in the Eurozone increased in August by the fastest rate in more than a year, the European Central Bank (ECB) said yesterday. Loans to the private sector were 1.2 per cent higher in August than a year earlier, the fifth monthly rise in a row and the fastest growth since June last year, the [...]
Price of gold could hit $1,500 September 27, 2010 THE price of gold could reach record highs of up to $1,500 (£949) an ounce in the next twelve months delegates at the London Bullion Market Association (LMBA) annual conference said yesterday. The majority of delegates saw the price of gold rising to $1,406 an ounce by September next year but 32 per cent of [...]
Miliband the elder wows the crowds September 27, 2010 WHEN Tony Blair stood down as Prime Minister, an embarrassing memo detailing plans for his exit from office was leaked to the press. “He needs to go with the crowds wanting more. He should be the star who won’t even play the last encore,” it read. In the end,?Blair’s departure left the public – and [...]
Ignoring the deficit would be a disaster, Darling warns party September 27, 2010 ALISTAIR Darling yesterday warned of “disastrous consequences” if the Labour party ignores Britain’s £160bn budget deficit. Darling, who as chancellor pledged to halve the deficit within four years, said the party needed to set out a “credible plan with conviction and confidence”. He added: “People know there is a deficit, they know it needs to [...]
