Lloyds begins hunt for new finance chief September 19, 2011 LLOYDS has kicked off the search to replace its chief financial officer Tim Tookey after he quit to move back into the insurance industry at Friends Life. Tookey’s departure makes him the third executive to fall by the wayside during chief executive during Horta-Osório’s seven-month tenure, completing a clean-out of the executive board that was [...]
Buxton: Vickers’ bad ideas will drive our banks to Asia September 19, 2011 A MAJOR investor in British banks has slammed the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB) as “completely unnecessary” and likely to drive HSBC and Standard Chartered to Asia. Speaking during a web-conference, Schroders’ head of UK equities Richard Buxton (pictured), who manages a £2.9bn UK fund, said: “On a three-year time horizon, is it extremely likely [...]
Ocado slumps as its margins are squeezed September 19, 2011 ONLINE grocer Ocado said yesterday that sales growth slowed in the third quarter and full-year profit margins were likely to be lower than expected as the company ploughed cash back into the company. The company, whose stock floated at 180p in July 2010, said growth was held back by capacity constraints. Ocado said gross sales [...]
French Connection boosted as profits begin to recover September 19, 2011 FASHION group French Connection said it was firmly back on a growth path, highlighting major overseas opportunities as it posted a rise in half-year profit yesterday. The retailer, which has sold off or closed a string of underperforming businesses, including Nicole Farhi, made a pre-tax profit of £700,000 in the six months to 31 July, [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS OCADO’S GROWTH STRATEGY WORKING? September 19, 2011 PHILIP DORGAN | PANMURE GORDON As growth rates slow and returns remain low, it is not appropriate to value Ocado as ‘another Amazon’. Increasingly, we believe that it will be valued relative to its multichannel competitors. This appears sensible, but it is not supportive of the current share price. JONATHAN PRITCHARD | ORIEL SECURITIES The [...]
Tesco’s head of clothing jumps ship to Dunnes September 19, 2011 TESCO’S head of clothing in the UK and Ireland, Richard Jones, has left the company to join Irish retailer Dunnes. Jill Easterbrook will repleace Jones, who was with Tesco for two years. Last month the retailer reshuffled its clothing team, appointing former M&S director Bernadette Lusher as buying director for UK clothing.
Trading is hard but improving at PZ Cussons September 19, 2011 CAREX and St Tropez maker PZ Cussons said yesterday that trading over the summer has been in line with forecasts, with strong cash generation since June. But margins continue to be hit by higher raw material costs and more special offers, PZ Cussons said ahead of its annual shareholder meeting, where all resolutions were passed.
Royal Mail to take on 18,000 Xmas workers September 19, 2011 ROYAL Mail is hoping to take on 18,000 extra workers from November to help cope with the traditional Christmas rush, in addition to its 130,000 permanent posties. Last year, the group took on 20,000 staff in its sorting offices at first, plus 3,000 extra workers to cope with disruption linked to the snow storms in [...]
DAIRY CREST AHEAD IN FIRST HALF September 19, 2011 DAIRY Crest Group, one of the biggest producers of British milk, said it expected overall profits for the first half to be slightly ahead of the comparative period last year as selling price increases offset the impact of input cost pressures. Sales of the group’s five top brands, including Cathedral City and Clover, were up. [...]
ENTREPRENEUR’S FILM AMBITIONS BACKED BY DOWNTON ABBEY STAR September 19, 2011 DAN STEVENS may have commanded a handsome fee to play Matthew Crawley in the second series of Downton Abbey, but he is not above lending his skills to smaller acting projects for free. Earlier this month, Stevens joined actresses Romola Garai and Imogen Stubbs to shoot a short film as a favour to its producer [...]
