Blinkx sees its shares tumble November 14, 2011 Video search firm Blinkx yesterday experienced a delayed-reaction tumble, as investors appeared to change their minds about its results last week. The Autonomy spin-off saw its shares plummet nine per cent after negative sentiment gathered over the strength of its core business, once the acquisition of US-based ad network Burst Media is stripped out. Collins [...]
DOWNTON LORD LANDS IN THE LAP OF LUXURY November 14, 2011 HE SURVIVED the Great War and Spanish flu and yesterday Lord Grantham – aka the actor Hugh Bonneville – made his first public appearance since the end of series two of Downton Abbey to present the Walpole awards for excellence. No austerity measures at the luxury body’s annual gathering, held in association with Coutts – [...]
Olympus break-up looms November 14, 2011 PRIVATE equity funds or trade buyers are likely to snap up the medical arm of scandal-hit Olympus, investors and customers said yesterday. Fund managers said the importance to hospitals of the lucrative endoscope arm means it is the equivalent of a bank which is “too big to fail” and would be bought if it becomes [...]
Hungry Lion roars back into black November 14, 2011 ASSET manager Liontrust is on the hunt for more acquisitions as it tries to restore its fortunes by entering new asset classes. Chief executive John Ions told City A.M. the firm has a £15m cash pile to spend on deals as it looks to grow organically and through buyouts. Liontrust is trying to rebuild its [...]
Colfax gets yes vote to buy Charter November 14, 2011 SHAREHOLDERS in engineering group Charter International accepted the £1.5bn takeover offer from US rival Colfax yesterday in two votes showing majority support for the cash and shares deal. More than 91 per cent of shareholders equivalent to nearly 88 per cent of all voting rights voted to accept a 910p per share offer from Colfax, [...]
Eversheds revenues up 7pc November 14, 2011 LAW firm Eversheds said yesterday that its performance in the first half of the year had been positive, with revenues climbing seven per cent compared to the same period last year. Revenues increased by £11.5m on the first half of 2010, leading to a £10m increase in net profit. Litigation services at the firm did [...]
Saba launches UK office November 14, 2011 SABA Capital, the $4.7bn hedge fund set up by ex-Deutsche Bank proprietary trader Boaz Weinstein is launching a new office in London as part of its first expansion outside of the US. Prakash Narayanan, former head of leveraged finance trading at Deutsche Bank, will run the UK office, which will focus primarily on research in [...]
Premier shares hit by food bug November 14, 2011 SHARES in Premier Foods tanked yesterday after its one of its Loyd Grossman curry sauces was recalled in a botulism scare and UBS downgraded its shares to a “sell”. The UK’s largest food producer has recalled tens of thousands of korma jars as a precaution, but its shares fell 11 per cent to just 5.74p [...]
Shell sells off two Nigerian oil blocks November 14, 2011 NIGERIA’S state-oil company NNPC has said that two local firms have completed the purchase of 45 per cent stakes in two onshore oil blocks, previously owned by Shell, Total and Eni. First Hydrocarbon Nigeria, owned by FTSE 250-listed Afren, bought a 45 per cent stake in the OML 26 block owned jointly by Shell, Total [...]
CHINA DRIVES LIFT IN SALES AT JAGUAR LAND ROVER November 14, 2011 THE TURNAROUND at Jaguar Land Rover looks set to continue, as growing demand from China’s luxury market drove a 30 per cent year-on-year sales rise at the UK car manufacturer. Jaguar Land Rover, which announced last week it was hiring 1,000 workers at its factory in Solihull, said yesterday revenues had hit £2.9bn in the three [...]