KEEP THE FAITH: TONY BLAIR PRAYS FOR GLOBALISATION WITH VALUES July 5, 2011 NEVER mind the JP Morgan advisory gig, Tony Blair’s real focus post-politics is his religious faith – despite being warned by former aide Alastair Campbell not to make a feature of his Christian beliefs. “We don’t do God,” Campbell growled to Blair, after the former Prime Minister’s Christian faith became the headline in one of [...]
Flybe profits hit by volcano June 30, 2011 SHARES in Flybe remained buoyant yesterday despite the Exeter airline reporting heavy losses after last year’s Icelandic volcanic eruption and arctic winter conditions disrupted flights. The company made an annual pre-tax loss of £4.3m, compared with a profit of £24.6m the previous year. Yet analysts remained upbeat, saying the results were “no surprise” after the [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HOW BAD IS THIS LATEST WARNING FROM C&WW? June 28, 2011 MORTEN SINGLETON | INVESTEC This has never been a story about near-term financials… which is just as well really. While the market reaction should be understandably negative this morning, we believe the potential remains for a doubling of value as a more radical approach is taken to the business. JONATHAN JACKSON | KILLIK & CO [...]
We will muddle through amid economic woes June 26, 2011 IT’S amazing how far we’ve come in a short period of time. Back in early February, financial markets were still pricing in the chances of a Bank of England rates rise in May. Now, with the release of minutes from June’s MPC meeting, a rate hike isn’t fully expected until July 2012. As a result, [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF MICRO FOCUS’ RESULTS? June 23, 2011 JONATHAN JACKSON | KILLIK & CO The figures were in line with previous guidance. Cash conversion was strong, at 113 per cent, and net debt fell to $14.9m. The final dividend was maintained to give a full-year increase of 7.3 per cent. Discussions are ongoing regarding potential offers, but there is no certainty any offer [...]
Go-Ahead ups forecasts on high demand June 23, 2011 BUS and train operator Go-Ahead said yesterday that its profit had been given a further boost as more motorists take public transport because of fuel price rises. Go-Ahead, which has a fleet of 3,800 buses and is part of a joint venture responsible for Southern, Southeastern and London Midland rail services, said its buses represented [...]
Go Ahead raises profit forecast as passengers increase June 23, 2011 Transport group Go-Ahead said it expected its full-year operating profit to be ahead of its previous expectations as passenger numbers increased on its Southern, Southeastern and London Midland rail franchises. “The previous consensus was around £108m and we’re ahead of expectations,” finance director Keith Down told Reuters in an interview. The company, which operates commuter [...]
Total sells its UK forecourts June 21, 2011 GERALD RONSON’S service station business is among a consortium that has snapped up 810 UK outlets from French oil giant Total in a deal worth hundreds of millions of pounds, the firms announced yesterday. Ronson’s Snax 24 business, which he set up 45 years ago, has teamed up with Investec and new investment firm Grovepoint [...]
MEET THE ADVISER: GROVEPOINT CAPITAL June 21, 2011 BRADLEY FRIED GROVEPOINT CAPITAL BRADLEY Fried led the advisory for Grovepoint Capital, which also raised finance for the deal. Born in South Africa, Fried began his career in New York with McKinsey & Co. He moved to London in 1999 to join Investec Bank in the UK. He was chief executive at the bank until [...]
Weatherford to pay BP $75m for Gulf spill June 21, 2011 Swiss-based oil services group Weatherford International, which provided equipment used in the doomed Macondo well, agreed to pay BP Plc $75m toward the cost of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. BP has agreed to indemnify Weatherford in relation to economic claims from people affected from the spill and environmental damage. However, the settlement – [...]