Charter profit rises July 26, 2011 TAKEOVER target Charter International yesterday stepped up its efforts to resist an approach from manufacturing buyout firm Melrose, setting new growth targets and reporting an increase in first-half profit. The group, which rejected a £1.4bn approach from Melrose earlier this month, said pre-tax profit rose by 3.1 per cent to £75.6m, as a strong performance [...]
Cobham wins Boeing contract July 26, 2011 International aerospace and defence technology company Cobham has been awarded two subcontracts by Boeing worth over $73m (£45m). Boeing has been commissioned to produce 179 KC-46 tanker aircraft for the US Air Force, and Cobham will develop the refuelling systems. Cobham has customers in more than 100 countries, and an annual revenue of £1.9bn. This [...]
Globo revenues up 56.5 per cent July 26, 2011 Globo, the mobile, telecom and e-business software products company, has reported revenues of €19.61m (£17.34m) in the first quarter, up 56.5 per cent from last year. The company has said that this strong financial performance reflects continuous expansion efforts, particularly in its software as a service (SaaS) and mobile SaaS products, whose revenues represent 48 [...]
Brit Insurance profit falls 91pc July 26, 2011 A £95.4m bill from catastrophes this year caused first-half profit at Brit Insurance to slump 91 per cent to just £6.8m, it said yesterday. Brit, which was reporting its first results since being bought by private equity funds Apollo and CVC, said it wrote £845.4m in gross premiums, 2.1 per cent more than in the [...]
ARM warns of a light Christmas July 26, 2011 ARM Holdings, the Cambridge-based maker of chips that power the Apple iPhone and other smartphones, has reported a 25 per cent profit rise this quarter, but warned it is not counting on a Christmas sales boom. The firm’s technology, used by firms such as Samsung, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments, helped lift pre-tax profit to £54.2m, [...]
Informa beats market forecasts July 26, 2011 British business media group Informa said growth across all its divisions helped the company post first-half results above analyst expectations. The company, whose publications include shipping guide Lloyd’s List, increased its interim dividend to 5p from 4.5p. Chief executive Peter Rigby said in a statement: “Whilst many global growth indicators remain a concern for a [...]
Holidaybreak says suitor is Cox & Kings July 26, 2011 SHARES in Holidaybreak, the specialist travel company, climbed for a second day to close up 12 per cent to 411.5p yesterday after the group confirmed it was in advanced takeover talks with Cox & Kings, the Mumbai-based tour operator. Cox & Kings has made an indicative all-cash offer of 432.1p a share, representing a premium [...]
PZ Cussons hits its forecasts July 26, 2011 SOAP and shampoo maker PZ Cussons yesterday met forecasts with a seven per cent rise in annual profit as tough trading conditions and increased raw material costs were mitigated by higher selling prices. The maker of Imperial Leather soaps and Carex anti-bacterial hand washes said it made an underlying pre-tax profit of £108.9m in the [...]
GlaxoSmithKline turnover knocked but profit bounces back after legal charge July 26, 2011 SALES at GlaxoSmithKline fell four per cent in the second quarter, but the decline was slower than in previous quarters and profits were markedly higher than a year ago, when Britain’s biggest drugmaker took a huge legal charge. The company also said yesterday that an experimental drug for hepatitis C had produced positive results in [...]
Imperial Tobacco sees sales dented by price war in struggling Spanish market July 26, 2011 IMPERIAL Tobacco yesterday said it was continuing to see its profits dented by a price war in Spain. The world’s fourth biggest cigarette maker has already lowered its forecasts as a result of the competition. In a market update for the nine months to 30 June, Imperial yesterday said that tobacco net revenue had risen [...]