Melrose waits for GKN takeover to bear fruit as automotive revenues stay flat November 13, 2018 Turnaround investor Melrose said today that it is trading in line with board expectations after buying engineering firm GKN in an £8.1bn hostile takeover earlier this year. The FTSE 100 firm, which specialises in buying and improving underperforming businesses, told investors that GKN offers "an outstanding opportunity for value creation over the medium term". Melrose reported "strong" revenue growth in its [...]
National Grid ends lengthy dispute with US unions January 8, 2019 National Grid has struck a deal with unions to end a longrunning dispute at its US business. Shares in the FTSE 100 energy giant rose one per cent this morning after the company announced its agreement with Massachusetts Gas unions over employment terms and conditions. It said the agreement is for a five-and-a-half-year contract covering [...]
Is the Innovative Finance Isa worth it? We look at the pros and cons March 6, 2019 At barely three years old, the Innovative Finance Isa still has some proving to do. And for some savers, it’s a product that is deemed too risky. But how risky is it really? Of course, the IFISA is merely a tax-free wrapper, so the risk actually depends on the underlying investments held within. And while [...]
ITV names Microfocus finance boss as new CFO November 5, 2018 ITV today confirmed the appointment of a new chief financial officer. Chris Kennedy will join in February 2019 after finishing up his current role as CFO of Microfocus, where he has served only since January 2018. "This is an exciting time to be joining ITV,” Kennedy said. "I'm looking forward to working with the team [...]
Trade body says hardcore of ‘repeat offenders’ are failing to listen to investor views December 4, 2018 The trade body for UK investment managers has written to 32 companies on the Ftse-all share to register concern after they faced significant shareholder dissent for the last two years. The Investment Association (IA) said it was concerned that these companies had appeared on the public register, which tracks significant shareholder dissent, for the same [...]
BDO and Moore Stephens merger will create Britain’s fifth-largest accountancy firm November 25, 2018 BDO is preparing to merge with smaller accountancy rival Moore Stephens, in a move that will create a new fifth-largest auditor in the UK, bumping Grant Thornton off the spot. Partners at BDO, which currently holds the number six position, has approved a merger with Moore Stephens, currently the ninth-largest professional services firm in Britain, [...]
Warhammer creator Games Workshop shares hit record high after bumper first half January 14, 2020 Games Workshop shares hit a record high this morning after it enjoyed rising profits over the first six months of the financial year. In a continuation of the success which has driven its share price up more than 1,000 per cent over the last five years, the Nottingham-based company behind the Warhammer game series said [...]
Do not succumb to the ‘Fat Cat Friday’ outrage January 3, 2019 As if Greggs’ vegan sausage rolls hadn’t prompted enough misplaced shock and outrage for the start of a new year, you can expect more of the same this morning when campaigners declare it to be “Fat Cat Friday”. The High Pay Centre, which opposes current levels of executive remuneration, calculates that by this afternoon a [...]
Glencore increases cost savings forecast on stronger coal prices October 31, 2018 Mining giant Glencore expects to achieve 50 per cent more cost savings after being boosted by strong coal prices. As part of a two-year cost-cutting drive the Anglo-Swiss firm had expected to save around $300m (£235m) by the end of the year but could now make savings of more than $450m, it said on Wednesday. [...]
Royal Mail shares slump for second day in a row October 2, 2018 Royal Mail's shares have sunk to their lowest level since the company was taken private, putting the firm's membership in the FTSE 100 at risk. Shares are trading more than five per cent down today after falling off a cliff edge yesterday, losing 14 per cent and wiping more than £800m off its market value. So far, shares [...]