Activist investor Cevian calls on Aviva to increase returns after building stake June 8, 2021 Activist investor Cevian Capital has called on Aviva to return £5bn in excess capital to shareholders after building a stake in the insurer. The Swedish investment firm today announced it holds 194,549,437 in Aviva, corresponding to around 4.95 per cent of the company’s total number of shares and votes. It makes the firm Aviva’s second-largest [...]
RSA Insurance bought for £7.2bn by Canadian and Danish buyers June 1, 2021 A consortium of Canadian and Danish buyers have completed the acquisition of RSA Insurance, in a deal worth £7.2bn. Under the terms of the all-cash deal, Danish buyer Tryg will take over the Swedish and Norwegian arms of RSA, while Canada’s Intact will have the Canadian, British and international businesses. RSA, which owns brands including [...]
Loyalty penalty on home and motor insurance to be scrapped May 28, 2021 Renewal quotes for home and motor insurance customers will soon not be more expensive than they would be for new customers, in a bid to tackle loyalty penalties in the insurance sector. Millions of home and motor insurance customers lose out if they renew repeatedly with their current providers, according to the city regulator. In [...]
Ranked: S&P Global’s $44bn mega-deal tops list of biggest 2020 acquisitions May 27, 2021 In what was a tough year for businesses across the world, it was a fruitful one for 6,000 mergers and acquisitions. While the pandemic threatened companies of all sizes, some managed not just to survive but to continue growing in the last 12 months. After a year unlike any other, which acquisitions were the biggest [...]
AJ Bell profit soars as it attracts new, younger customers May 27, 2021 AJ Bell has benefited from the renewed interest in investment, boasting record levels of new customers and inflows in the first half of the year. Revenue jumped 21 per cent to £73.9m in the six months to the end of March while profit before tax soared from £22.7m to £31.6m. It came as AJ Bell [...]
Daily Mail group revenue plunges £95m but investments offset the loss May 27, 2021 The group behind the Daily Mail has seen revenues tumble 12 per cent over the past six months, the newspaper group said this morning, but its investments may have offset the loss. The newspaper group raked in nearly £100m less in the six months to 31 March, earning revenue of £547m, down from £642m in [...]
United Utilities profits dip as lockdowns hit water usage May 27, 2021 United Utilities saw its annual pre-tax profit dip by 21 per cent to £383m as it navigated its way through the pandemic. The company, one of the largest publicly traded water firms in the world, said that profits were hit by lower water consumption and higher infrastructure spending. The drop in profit was in line [...]
Aviva reports highest quarterly insurance sales in a decade May 27, 2021 Aviva has delivered its highest insurance sales in the first quarter for a decade, while savings and retirement flows soared to a new quarterly record. The insurance giant said its core general insurance gross written premiums grew four per cent to £2bn while its core operating ratio fell to 90.6 per cent. Its SME sales [...]
Aviva Investors to shutter property fund over liquidity concerns May 19, 2021 Aviva Investors will shutter its suspended UK property fund this summer over concerns about liquidity and the value of the portfolio. The asset manager suspended the fund in March last year after the outbreak of Covid-19 sparked uncertainty over its valuation. In a statement today Aviva said it had become “increasingly challenging to generate positive [...]
Crest Nicholson sells stake in Surrey film studio for £45m May 14, 2021 UK property developer Crest Nicholson has sold its 50 per cent stake in a film studio joint venture for £45m. Crest Nicholson, which usually focuses on house building, said it has entered into an agreement with JV partner Aviva to sell its share of Longcross Studio in Surrey. The transaction, which is expected to complete [...]