Sage sells its health unit for $320m September 22, 2011 SAGE has agreed to sell its healthcare business to Vista Equity Partners for $320m (£207m). The software firm says it will return all of the proceeds to shareholders through a buyback scheme, adding that the move will enable it to focus on its core US customer base. It said yesterday it had reached a definitive [...]
Breedon to step down from Legal & General September 22, 2011 CHIEF executive Tim Breedon is retiring from Legal & General at the end of 2012, by which time he will have spent 25 years at the insurer. “With the company in excellent shape I feel that next year will be the right time to retire from the company. By giving notice of this now, the [...]
END OF AN ERA AS CITY SAYS FAREWELL TO TOP LINKLATERS PARTNER September 22, 2011 IT WAS “hangover central” in the City yesterday, said one mole, thanks to some enthusiastic networking at the City A.M. awards that continued into the early hours of Thursday morning in the basement nightclub in the Grange Hotel at St Paul’s. However, the retirement party for Linklaters senior partner David Cheyne on the same evening [...]
Omega gets a fresh merger proposition September 22, 2011 SHAREHOLDERS in the loss-making Omega insurance group were yesterday presented with a third takeover proposal for the group. Barbican Insurance, a private group backed by Carlson Capital, said yesterday that it was proposing to be bought by Omega in an initial all-share deal, with no acquisition premium to be paid out to Barbican’s shareholders. The [...]
Insurer needs to exploit bid interest September 22, 2011 YOU wait ages for a bus and then three come at once, or so the saying goes. Shareholders in Omega, the insurance group headed by Richard Pexton, must feel similarly. The loss-making group, which has been on the radar of Canopius for many months, now has three proposals to consider after rival Barbican yesterday confirmed [...]
FedEx pares outlook despite rise in profit September 22, 2011 FEDEX, the world’s second biggest package delivery company, last night reported a higher quarterly profit that slightly beat forecasts but pared its outlook for the full year, citing fuel prices and moderate global economic growth. Analysts had expected the company to lower its earnings guidance based on a tepid domestic economy and slower international trade [...]
Board moves to safeguard Molton Brown September 22, 2011 LUXURY skincare firm Molton Brown has moved to break off deals with key contractors who threaten to jeopardise its upmarket reputation. Parent company Kao Prestige has highlighted concerns over the behaviour of firms which could damage Molton Brown’s “brand value”. “This could be caused by poor quality products, poor customer service or inappropriate sales channel [...]
Ed Wray poised to stand down as chair of Betfair September 22, 2011 BETFAIR co-founder Ed Wray is set to step down as chairman of the betting exchange – just months after the firm’s chief executive said he would quit. Betfair yesterday said it had begun to search for a new deputy chair, who will replace Wray at an “appropriate time” in the future. It is unclear whether Wray [...]
Have faith in hedge funds, says IAM boss September 22, 2011 THE CHIEF executive of £2.8bn International Asset Management has hit back at the “loss of faith” in hedge funds after the industry endured a grim August. Morten Spenner, who runs a fund of hedge funds, said the sector had generated consistent returns and dampened volatility since last year. “Since the debacle of 2008 and the [...]
Manufacturers’ hopes high in face of falling demand, but concern mounts over 2012 output as stock builds up September 22, 2011 MANUFACTURERS’ order books shrank in September, but they expect output to keep growing over the next three months, according to a survey published yesterday by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). Thirty one per cent of firms reported “below normal” orders in September, against 22 per cent who said they were higher than usual. In [...]
