Car insurers see shares dip after premiums fall April 9, 2014 THREE of the biggest motor insurers in the UK saw their share prices fall yesterday after Confused.com and Towers Watson reported a significant drop in premiums, greater than had previously been expected. Direct Line, Esure and Admiral all saw a dip in shares of 2.26 per cent, 8.85 per cent and 0.57 per cent respectively, after [...]
Focus On… Wimbledon: A game of two halves July 10, 2014 AS THE Championships drew to a close last week, it wasn’t just Novak Djokovic who was counting his prize money. Savvier residents in the leafy, south west London suburb who rented their property out for the fortnight also earned themselves a tidy profit, according to estate agents Hamptons International. “Many home owners choose to let [...]
Golf Comment: McDowell has skills to thrive at Hoylake and don’t discount Tiger July 16, 2014 A FEW weeks ago I was asked who my tip was for the Open. At the time I thought Graeme McDowell, and the only reason to doubt that prediction now is that he won in France two weeks ago, so you wonder whether he could have peaked too early. I really fancy a player with [...]
Porta Communications snapping up media agency Redleaf Polhill April 23, 2014 PORTA Communications yesterday bought a majority stake in smaller rival agency Redleaf Polhill as part of its effort to expand further. Aim-listed Porta, which this week announced a new office in Doha, said it will pay £1.8m for a 51 per cent holding in Redleaf, with an option to buy the rest over the next [...]
Can O’Brien do it again at world’s greatest flat race? June 7, 2014 RUPERT TREVELYAN EPSOM MANAGING DIRECTOR THE Investec Derby Festival is about celebrating sporting prowess at the unique and attractive venue of Epsom Downs Racecourse. Winners of the two Classic races, the Investec Derby and the Investec Oaks, are acclaimed and admired around the world as racing has become more and more international. The Investec Derby, [...]
Brass Ring value to spring a surprise in Goodwood Cup July 30, 2014 BILL ESDAILE PREVIEWS DAY THREE OF GLORIOUS GOODWOOD THE ARTEMIS Goodwood Cup (3.10pm), part of the QIPCO British Champion Series, has been a good race for punters in the last 10 years, with seven favourites obliging. The Queen’s horse Estimate is set to start as market leader this afternoon, but the 2013 Ascot Gold Cup [...]
Aaron Swartz: Reddit founder and internet’s own boy in new documentary August 27, 2014 "He was the internet’s own boy and the old world killed him”. This eloquent epitaph is provided by journalist Quinn Norton, an ex-girlfriend of Aaron Swartz and one of many who talk tearfully of Swartz in a documentary, The Internet’s Own Boy, released this weekend. Swartz was indeed the internet’s boy but it was his [...]
Bottom Line: Swann’s SSP could prosper in City’s search for quality June 16, 2014 THERE was a telling comment last week during a session held at the Royal Institution of Great Britain examining initial public offerings. “We’re going to go through a rather different period now,” EY’s Richard Hall, a veteran of last year’s bumper Royal Mail float, told an audience of private equity investors. “There are still some [...]
Leading Light to spoil royal party in Gold Cup June 18, 2014 BILL ESDAILE PREVIEWS DAY THREE OF ROYAL ASCOT FOR MOST the highlight of last year’s Royal Ascot was seeing the Queen’s Estimate win the Ascot Gold Cup – a race still regarded by traditionalists as the centrepiece of the whole five days. Ryan Moore rode the Sir Michael Stoute-trained mare into the record books, becoming [...]
AbbVie’s cash wins Shire’s heart in year’s biggest cross-border drug takeover July 14, 2014 UK drug maker Shire relented to US rival AbbVie’s takeover attempts yesterday and accepted a sweetened £31.4bn offer for the group, opening the door to the biggest cross-border drug takeover this year. Shire’s board, led by ex-M&A banker Susan Kilsby, will recommend the £53.20 a share offer, which is comprised of £24.44 in [...]