Asda boss Andy Clarke’s 4 top leadership tips February 5, 2014 Speaking last night at the British Retail Consortium’s Future Retail Leader’s event, Asda chief executive Andy Clarke gave an account of his journey to the top – starting with the day he left school with just one O Level in English at 15. Realising he had spent too much time on the rugby pitch in [...]
Qatari Harrods owners cash in with £118m dividend payment October 30, 2014 Luxury department store Harrods paid out a £118m dividend to its Qatari owners after making record sales of £794m in the year ended 1 February 2014, up from £716m in the previous year. The business also paid a £35.6m royalty to Harrods Corporate Management. It said the year had seen a “confirmed programme of significant [...]
Countrywide expects strong full year profits after record quarter October 30, 2014 PROPERTY services firm Countrywide saw its shares climb 2.4 per cent yesterday, as it reported record profits for the third quarter of 2014. Income at the group was £188m, up 22 per cent compared with the same period of last year, and the company said it was on track to deliver full-year results in line [...]
Shell’s revenue dips after year of streamlining as Chad Holliday announced as new chairman October 30, 2014 Oil company Shell yesterday reported revenue of $108bn (£67bn) for the third quarter of 2014, down from $117bn in the same period of last year. Shell, which also announced yesterday the appointment of Charles Holliday as its new chairman, paid a third quarter dividend of $0.47 per share, up four per cent compared with [...]
Conoco boosts oil production October 30, 2014 US OIL firm ConocoPhillips posted earnings of $2.7bn (£1.7bn) for the third quarter of 2014, up from $2.5bn last year. Third-quarter production from continuing operations was 1.473m barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed), an increase of 25,000 boed on the same period of 2013. Conoco said growth was primarily due to new production from [...]
Afren takes hit in third quarter October 30, 2014 SHARES were down by 15.6 per cent yesterday at Afren, as the oil group reported reduced production. The firm delivered average net production of 31,147 barrels of oil per day (bopd) in the nine months to September 2014, below full-year guidance range of between 32,000 to 36,000 bopd. Afren sacked its chief executive earlier this [...]
Apollo reports fall in revenue October 30, 2014 FUND manager Apollo Global Management reported revenue of $241m (£151m) for the third quarter of 2014, down 79 per cent on the same period of last year. The company said this was due to a decrease of $1bn in incentive business revenues. Apollo’s assets under management grew to $164m, compared with $113m in 2013. Chairman [...]
Oaktree capital at six-year high October 30, 2014 CAPITAL raised at Oaktree in the third quarter of 2014 was $4.1bn (£2.6bn), bringing the trailing 12-month total to $16.6bn, the highest in six years. The company attributed this growth largely to “newer investment strategies”, and also reported that assets had climbed to $93.2bn in the quarter, up from $79.8bn last year. Howard Marks, Oaktree [...]
Standard Life share price dips as annuities drop but revenues rise October 29, 2014 Insurer Standard Life stated yesterday that it was well placed to deal with changes to UK pension laws, despite reporting a 55 per cent reduction in annuity sales for the year to date (YTD). Annuity sales were down 67 per cent for the third quarter of 2014 when compared with the same period of last [...]
Analyst Views: What were the standout points in Standard Life’s quarterly update? October 29, 2014 EAMONN FLANAGAN | SHORE CAPITAL The interim management statement was cautiously upbeat, in our view, with the group reporting total continuing assets under management (AUM) of £290bn. Encouragingly, total platform AUM grew to £22.4bn with further growth in intermediaries and customers using the wrap offering. Auto-enrolment continues to be a key driver of future potential [...]