Light at the end of the tunnel for Psion as it cuts its losses March 4, 2010 TECHNOLOGY group Psion more than halved its full-year pre-tax loss as it made huge cost savings. Losses in 2009 were £3m, compared with £7.6m the year before. Sales fell 15 per cent to £170m, hurt by the impact of foreign exchange movements. However, the company’s operating margin moved from a negative in the first half [...]
EMIS AIM float is on for March March 4, 2010 HEALTHCARE software firm EMIS will launch on the Alternative Investment Market by the end of this month. The firm, which computerises patient records, said it will attempt to raise £50m. It will issue £25m worth of new shares with a further £25m being placed by existing shareholders. The group said it expects to have a [...]
Spirent bullish as ups dividend March 4, 2010 Telecoms testing firm Spirent Communications posted nine per cent higher 2009 pre-tax profit after operators resumed investing in networks in the fourth quarter, and said it made a solid start to 2010. Shares in the firm have more than trebled from lows reached in January 2009. Adjusted earnings per share of 6.91p beat expectations by [...]
Balfour says it is in a good place to grow March 4, 2010 BALFOUR Beatty, Britain’s biggest construction company said yesterday that underlying pre-tax profit in 2009 rose seven per cent to £267m from £249m in 2008. The firm, whose activities span engineering, construction, road and rail transport, said its order book rose 10 per cent year-on-year to £14.bn, which it said gives it “good forward visibility”. The [...]
Ignorance about bribery laws is no defence March 4, 2010 WHAT does bribery mean to you? How about corruption? Is greasing palms an essential part of doing business or an illegal and ethically unsound practice that needs eradicating? It sounds like a simple question and one to which the answer is obvious. Yet discussing the Bribery Bill currently passing through Parliament over lunch this week, [...]
BRITISH LAND GETS NEW RETAIL CHIEF March 4, 2010 BRITISH Land has appointed Charles Maudsley to head up its retail property business in a boardroom reshuffle it hopes will promote further growth in the £5.3bn portfolio. Maudsley, who currently serves as executive director for business expansion, will also assume responsibility for the group’s portfolio of retail parks and malls after joining the company from [...]
Amec suffers a profit fall but insists it will be able to deliver margin targets March 4, 2010 CONCERNS over project delays overshadowed strong 2009 results from British oil services and engineering group Amec, knocking its shares yesterday. AMEC posted a 13 per cent rise in 2009 earnings before tax, interest and amortisation (EBITA) and said it was on course for its 2010 margin goal in what it termed a “challenging trading environment.” [...]
Cobham confident for 2010 as results cheer March 4, 2010 AEROSPACE electronics group Cobham beat expectations with a 21 per cent rise in full-year profit, helped by robust military and government markets, and said it expects to make further progress in 2010. Cobham, whose equipment helps military vehicles such as the F-35 fighter plane communicate with one another, yesterday reported an underlying pre-tax profit of [...]
Goldman Sachs sells Prysmian March 4, 2010 Goldman Sachs has started the sale of its 16.8 per cent stake in cable maker Prysmian yesterday, nearing the end of a pullout that started in November. The US bank is selling its holding to selected investors, it said in a statement, but gave no details. The stake is worth about €396m (£263m). Goldman Sachs [...]
DS Smith beats expectations March 4, 2010 Packaging and office products company DS Smith said yesterday it traded above its own expectations in the third quarter, and was confident of meeting its full-year view. However, the producer of recycled packaging said it continued to face uncertainty over the strength of a revival in the economy and the need to recover rising input [...]
