Carlyle Group misses the Beats after fund stakes weigh on firm October 29, 2014 Buyout company Carlyle Group was undone by its non-buyout interests last quarter despite a boost from its $3bn (£1.86bn) sale of headphone maker Beats. The Washington-based company, which has a range of interests from buyouts, hedge fund investments and property, said economic net income (ENI) fell 15 per cent to $166m in the third quarter. [...]
Coats owner Guinness Peat is unravelled by pullover pain as shoppers shun knitwear October 28, 2014 Shoppers shunning chunky knitwear sparked a sales decline at Coats’ clothing division last quarter, leaving group sales growth at zero per cent. Guinness Peat, the listed vehicle which owns Coats, reported a 10 per cent fall in like-for-like sales at fashion unit Craft for the three months ending 27 October . Guinness Peat blamed the [...]
Barclay brothers’ Shop Direct taps into smartphone shoppers October 28, 2014 Littlewoods owner Shop Direct yesterday said booming online sales on mobile phones helped to double profits at the business last year. The online retailer, owned by billionaire brothers Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay, said nearly half of all online sales were made via mobiles last year. The boom helped pre-tax profits at the group [...]
Ex-Stobart boss back at the controls October 27, 2014 A NEW investment vehicle led by ex-Stobart boss Avril Palmer-Baunack and backed by blue chip investors braved choppy markets yesterday to announce a float of the business. Haversham, a specialist vehicle set up by executive chairman Palmer-Baunack and investment firm Marwyn, said investors from Invesco, Artemis, Aviva and Schroders will support the share placing, which [...]
Banks place leftover Mothercare shares to take haul to £100m October 27, 2014 RETAILER Mothercare raised a further slug of cash to boost its digital expansion yesterday after banks placed the leftover shares from its rights issue. The babycare specialist launched a fundraising last month to help it add a stronger online presence to its bricks-and-mortar offering. Banks underwriting the offering – Numis Securities, JP Morgan Cazenove and [...]
Shareholders to take on Lloyds over HBOS deal October 27, 2014 FORMER Lloyds TSB shareholders are gearing up for legal action over the ill-starred acquisition of Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS), in one of the largest funded actions ever started in the UK. Lawyers acting for thousands of retail and City institutional investors are looking for millions of pounds from the bank over claims it misled [...]
Serious Fraud Office asks for £26.5m more to fund “blockbuster” financial probes October 23, 2014 The City fraud squad yesterday asked for a 75 per cent increase in funding next year to help it pursue a range of financial probes, including its investigation into alleged Libor rigging. The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has asked Treasury ministers for an extra £26.5m next year, on top of its annual budget of £35.2m [...]
Soc Gen moves into the Wharf October 23, 2014 INVESTMENT bank Societe Generale is moving into Canary Wharf after it signed up to take 280,000 sq ft at the area’s new 1 Bank Street building. The bank will take the ground floor and floors one through seven, consolidating its three current locations into one development. The company will occupy the building on a 25 [...]
Bloomsbury share price dips as publisher feels the chill of last year’s blockbusters October 23, 2014 Publisher Bloomsbury yesterday said last year’s success of Khaled Hosseini’s bestselling novel And The Mountains Echoed overshadowed this year’s results. The publisher reported a fall in turnover to £46.6m for the year ending 31 August 2014, from £49.2m in 2013 when Hosseini’s book sold by the bucketload. Pre-tax profits also fell to £500,000 this year, [...]
In pictures: Here’s what Battersea’s stunning roof garden will look like October 22, 2014 Battersea Power Station yesterday unveiled the look of its Foster and Partners designed roof gardens, ahead of the third phase of the closely watched project. The developers of the scheme said the Battersea Roof Gardens and Prospect Park would house one of the biggest roof gardens in London. “We have worked on many gardens, but [...]