Homeserve sees UK custom fall after hefty fine May 20, 2014 HOMESERVE’S UK customer base has dwindled in the wake of a huge fine for mis-selling, the home insurer announced yesterday. The company, which marketed itself as the fifth emergency service, was slapped with a £30m fine by the Financial Conduct Authority in February for selling people policies they did not need. It also made a [...]
Countrywide hires Bupa director Alison Platt to be next chief exec May 20, 2014 COUNTRYWIDE is to bring in a female executive to succeed Grenville Turner when he steps up from chief executive to chairman late this year, the UK’s largest estate agency announced yesterday. The group has poached Alison Platt, the head of health insurer Bupa’s international development markets business, to take over as chief executive in September. [...]
Debt fund demand helps drive record fundraising year for ICG May 20, 2014 DEBT specialist Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) yesterday celebrated a record year for fundraising amid a growing clamour for debt funds from investors. ICG raised €3.8bn (£3.1bn) from investors for the year ending in March – 70 per cent higher than its previous record fundraising. The business has been on the road marketing 14 different strategies. Nearly [...]
Big Yellow profits shine thanks to recovery in housing market May 20, 2014 SELF-STORAGE company Big Yellow Group posted a 15 per cent jump in adjusted pre-tax profits yesterday, thanks to the recovery in the housing market that has boosted demand for space in its stores. The company, known for its yellow-coloured storage sites, reported an adjusted pre-tax profit of £29.2m in the year to 31 March compared [...]
Bunzl ditches KPMG as auditor May 20, 2014 Distribution and outsourcing firm Bunzl yesterday said it had dropped KPMG as its auditor and hired PwC in its place. The FTSE 100-listed company said in last year’s annual report that it intended to hire a new auditor, to comply with good governance practice, following KPMG’s tenure as auditor that has spanned almost three decades. [...]
Kier wins £100m hospital contract May 20, 2014 Construction and services firm Kier said yesterday that it has been awarded a £100m contract by the University Hospital of North Staffordshire to support the integration of health and care services, which will include refurbishment, extension and new build projects. The FTSE 250 firm said the first projects are due to start in July, with works [...]
BTG deals drive big rise in profit May 20, 2014 Healthcare company BTG Group yesterday said annual pre-tax profits soared 38 per cent last year to £33.3m. The rise was driven by a 24 per cent increase in revenue for the year ending March, on the back of the acquisitions of TheraSphere and Ekos last year. BTG chief executive Louise Makin called the year “transformational” [...]
City Moves for 21 May 2014 | Who’s switching jobs May 20, 2014 Brooks Macdonald Employee Benefits The corporate benefits advisory business has appointed Camille French as a client relationship manager. She has over 20 years’ experience in the financial services industry, and joins from JLT Employee Benefits. Duncan Lawrie Private Bank The private bank has announced the appointment of Byron Coombs as chief executive. He has had a [...]
Best of the Brokers for 21 May 2014 May 20, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com CAMBIAN Numis has started covering the newly-floated care home company with a “buy” rating and 340p target price. The broker reckons Cambian can deliver an earnings growth rate in the mid-teens, and thinks the current price does not reflect the prospects of this [...]
London Report: Vodafone and Marks weigh down on FTSE May 20, 2014 SELL-OFFS in mobile operator Vodafone and retailer Marks & Spencer dragged down Britain’s blue-chip equity index yesterday, after disappointing forecasts from both companies. The benchmark FTSE 100 index closed down by 0.6 per cent, or 42.55 points, at 6,802.00 points. Vodafone took the most points off the FTSE as it fell by 5.5 per cent [...]
