Serco saga continues with promise to clean up for prison and custody services September 11, 2013 Serco's response to a government-wide review of its prison and custody services has today been updated. (Release) The review, announced in July and initiated by an independent audit by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), alleged fraud in government-contracted services provided by Serco and G4S: The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and the Directors of [...]
Upgrade work shuts out some Boris Bike users September 9, 2013 CASUAL users of Boris Bikes will not be able to use the cycle hire scheme on Saturday night or Sunday, as TfL upgrades the docking sites ahead of expansion in south and west London. TfL said the work will make it easier for members to view all the journeys they made in the past year [...]
Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct on track for FTSE 100 promotion September 8, 2013 THE FTSE 100 is set to become a more colourful place this week with Sports Direct – controlled by Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley – on track for promotion to Britain’s leading share index. Many pension funds that track the FTSE 100 will then be obliged to buy shares in the company, which has both [...]
Serco shares hit by fraud claims as probe looms August 29, 2013 SERCO had its worst trading day in 11 years yesterday after allegations it fudged performance figures on a £285m contract to deliver prisoners to courts across London. The Hampshire based business, which was awarded the contract by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) in 2011, has been placed on a three month probation to improve or [...]
Serco reports fall in profits and vows to work with government over overcharging allegations August 29, 2013 Outsourcing group Serco has reported a 2.6 per cent fall in pre-tax profits and an 11.2 per cent fall in earnings per share in the first half of the yar. Pre-tax profits fell to £106.1m from £108.9m, while basic earnings per share fell to 17.19p from 19.35p. Serco, which makes around 45 per cent of [...]
Serco caught in prisoner escort fraud claims August 28, 2013 THE chief executive of FTSE 100 security firm Serco said he was “appalled” last night after the discovery of allegedly fradulent behaviour by some Serco staff working on a prisoner transfer contact. Staff at the FTSE security firm are alleged to have recorded prisoners as having been delivered to court by its vans on [...]
G4S sells shares to push down £2bn debt pile August 28, 2013 SECURITY group G4S yesterday drew a line under the swashbuckling era of former chief executive Nick Buckles as it announced a series of drastic moves designed to avoid an embarrassing credit rating downgrade. G4S – whose reputation took a battering after it failed to supply enough guards for last year’s Olympic Games – yesterday raised £350m [...]
Bottom Line: New broom sweeps in a fresh start August 28, 2013 LET’S move past the disappointing set of numbers that G4S released yesterday for a moment – investors certainly did – and take a closer look at Ashley Almanza, tasked with the unenviable job of turning the firm around after Nick Buckles fell on his sword in May. Just three months into the role, Almanza [...]
Best of the Brokers for 27 August 2013 August 26, 2013 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com SERCO Panmure Gordon rates Serco a “buy” with a target price of 700p and predicts upbeat first half results on Thursday. However it calls for caution as analysts say “the fall-out from the electronic tagging contract is not clear in its core business”. [...]
London Week Ahead: Mark versus market in first public speech August 26, 2013 BANK of England governor Mark Carney’s keynote lunch speech to business leaders in Nottingham tomorrow has already been dubbed “Mark versus Market” – with market watchers dubious about Carney’s claims for long-term low interest rates. Rob Wood, economist at Berenberg Bank, said: “Growing momentum in the economy, rapidly rising house prices, and wide disagreements on [...]