Food, coupons and ale drive Greene King’s profit higher December 3, 2013 GREENE King reported revenue growth of more than five per cent yesterday on the back of strong retail pub sales during the first half of the year. The company said that food sales and its use of promotions at its retail pubs had led to profits reaching £85.6m, up 5.7 per cent during the six [...]
Analyst Views: What are your views on Greene King’s interim financial results? December 3, 2013 GEOF COLLYER DEUTSCHE BANK With bookings up 17 per cent at the same stage last year and with the Christmas and New Year holidays falling in mid-week, we expect the festive period to be a good one for the sector. Greene King’s shares have risen modestly in recent trading. We do not see any reason [...]
Exillon Energy investor mulls takeover offer December 3, 2013 FTSE 250-listed oil explorer Exillon Energy’s second largest shareholder yesterday said it had approached the board to make a possible offer for the rest of the company. Hanberg Finance, which is owned by Russian billionaire entrepreneur Mikhail Gutseriev, currently holds a 14.9 per cent stake in Exillon. It is considering making a bid of at [...]
Daisy looks to milk data services after half-year loss nears £4m December 3, 2013 DAISY Group, the business communications service provider, saw a 2.5 per cent drop in its share price yesterday after its losses widened from £3.59m to £3.9m during the six months to 30 September. Chief executive Matthew Riley told City A.M. that the losses are part of a wider market trend: “Mainly due to the fixed [...]
Northgate plots more branches December 3, 2013 VAN HIRE firm Northgate is looking to open more branches in Britain next year after splashing out on new vehicles. Northgate said it has added 2,800 vehicles to its fleet in the last six months and launched two new outlets, with three more due by April. The FTSE 250 firm’s Spanish business, which has suffered [...]
ITE Group beats expectations as profit takes off in new markets December 3, 2013 EXHIBITIONS organiser ITE Group yesterday reported that its full-year profit beat expectations, helped by contributions from acquisitions and a jump in third-quarter revenue. ITE’s profits rose 8.3 per cent to £43.9m as the company expands in developing markets. “The group has now firmly established itself in the Asian exhibition markets through its investments in ABEC [...]
Petrofac signs pact with Nigeria December 3, 2013 FTSE 100-listed oil and gas services provider Petrofac yesterday said that, along with African oil and gas explorer Taleveras Energy Resources, it has signed a five-year memorandum of understanding with the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), a subsidiary of Nigeria’s state oil company. The agreement, which is extendable, allows the parties to explore options including [...]
Energy deals boost Sweett profit December 3, 2013 Aim-listed construction and property consultancy Sweett Group yesterday posted a 75 per cent rise in pre-tax profits to £2.8m for the six months to 30 September. The firm raised its dividend to 0.5p per share from 0.3p in the same period last year. “Our order book now stands at £101m and in addition we have [...]
Stratex completes Tembo funding December 3, 2013 Stratex International, the Aim-listed gold and base metals explorer, yesterday said it has completed its private placement in Canada-headquartered gold explorer Tembo Gold Corporation. Stratex’s subsidiary Stratex Gold has been issued 17.5m shares in Africa-focused Tembo priced at C$0.10 (6p) per share, in return for a subscription of C$1.75m. “We are delighted that the equity [...]
City Moves for 04 December 2013 | Who’s switching jobs December 3, 2013 Baker Tilly The professional services firm has appointed Suneel Gupta as partner in its South Asia advisory group, with a focus on the UK Asian business market and cross-border work between India and the UK. He was previously a partner at BDO, and qualified at PwC. State Street Global Advisors State Street’s asset management business [...]
