Roche buys InterMune for $8.3bn in Swiss firm’s biggest deal for five years August 25, 2014 Roche, the huge Swiss-based pharmaceutical company, has bought biotechnology company InterMune for $8.3bn (£5bn), in Roche’s biggest acquisition for five years. The deal will see Roche pay $74 a share for rare lung disease specialist InterMune in an all cash transaction. The price represents a premium of 38 per cent on InterMune’s closing price [...]
Carillion and Balfour Beatty deal off as deadline passes ending mega-merger – for now August 21, 2014 The 5pm deadline for Carillion to make an offer for Balfour Beatty passed yesterday not with a bang and barely a whisper. However, while the £3bn deal is dead for now, some analysts say it may not be buried. Commenting on BBC Radio Five Live’s Wake up to Money programme yesterday, Colin McLean of SVM Asset [...]
Record order book at £3.2bn cheers Costain August 21, 2014 COSTAIN group, the major UK construction and engineering group, announced yesterday it had achieved a record order book and solid growth in underlying profits, as it shifted its focus with more major contracts in the rail and oil and gas sectors. The forward order book for the company zoomed up to £3.2bn in the first [...]
Reorganising Kazakhmys beats forecasts August 21, 2014 KAZAKHMYS, the mining company with major operations in Kazakhstan, saw its earnings drop in the first half, but still handily beat analysts expectations. It is now driving forward a major restructuring that will see it divest a wide range of assets as it seeks to transform its fortunes. A shadow was cast over the results, [...]
Analyst Views: What do you think of the Kazazakmys’ results and restructuring plans? August 21, 2014 AMOS FLETCHER | BARCLAYS Underlying results were good, as earnings beat our estimates by 21 per cent. The key driver of the beat was the gross cash cost performance, with impressive cost control. This came despite slightly lower-than-expected copper sales volumes. The emerging new company, KAZ Minerals, is an interesting investment proposition. CAILEY BARKER | [...]
Premier Oil production soars as UK fields output up 50 per cent August 21, 2014 Production rose sharply at oil and gas explorer Premier Oil in the first half of 2014, with the company boosted by increased flow in the UK up more than 50 per cent. Premier Oil saw production rise to the equivalent of 64,900 barrel a day on average in the year to June 30th, up 11 [...]
Carillion gives up on unwilling Balfour Beatty August 20, 2014 IT WAS a case of third time unlucky for Carillion yesterday, as plans for the ambitious mega-merger between it and Balfour Beatty lay in taters. Carillion gave up its fruitless hunt for a deal yesterday afternoon following a third rejection from an unswayable Balfour Beatty. Markets expressed their disappoint as Balfour Beatty shares dived on [...]
Glencore share price rises as mining giant gives $1bn buyback to shareholders August 20, 2014 Mining and commodities giant Glencore kept to its commitment to reward shareholders as it announced a $1bn share buyback yesterday, with shares rising on the news and strong first-half results that saw its profits rise above expectations. The Switzerland based firm, founded in 1974, saw its underlying profit rise by eight per cent to [...]
Analyst Views: What do you make of Glencore’s results and major share buyback? August 20, 2014 MARC ELLIOT | INVESTEC With the key share buyback to return cash to shareholders, we note Glencore is the first of the diversifieds to make such a firm commitment. Operationally, marketing activities put in a solid performance, marginally ahead of expectations, as did industrial activities. CHRISTOPHER LAFEMINA | JEFFERIES Glencore reported slightly better-than-expected financial results [...]
Abramovich-backed AFC Energy appoints new finance director August 20, 2014 AFC ENERGY, the fuel-cell power company that counts Chelsea FC billionaire owner Roman Abramovich as a major shareholder, yesterday announced the appointment of Christopher Tawney as its new finance director. The Aim-listed company, founded in 2006, is focused on the development and production of alkaline fuel cells, and has recently won a large order worth [...]
