Small caps round-up: Real Good Food, Ultrasis, Creston...

30th Nov 2010 12:03

Real Good Food Company reports progress across its three divisions making "great strides" toward "successful and profitable future growth", executive chairman Pieter Totté says.The sugar business Napier Brown is enjoying strong growth as a global shortage in sugar supply has driven prices to a 30-year high. The Renshaw division which supplies bakery ingredients "is having an exceptionally good year", with patisserie and desserts unit Haydens Bakery seeing its "turn-around" scheme come to fruition."We anticipate a strong Christmas trading period", says Totté, and are "on track to meet forecasts for the current year".Ultrasis, the healthcare company specialising in computer software, will move away from dependency on the NHS as the group continues to experience a "difficult economic climate" in the UK market, the group says.Revenue for the year ended July declined to £3.2m from £4.2 previously and pre-tax profit fell from £0.7m to £0.6m. The group will concentrate on new markets and product extension in the US due to the awaited change in policy direction in the NHS.Marketing firm Creston has entered into a conditional agreement to acquire Cooney/Waters and its subsidiary Alembic Health Communication for a cash-only consideration of up to £19.5m. Cooney/Waters is one of the highest ranked independent healthcare PR agencies in the US.In a separate statement, Creston's revenue for the half year ended September grew by 9% to £32m from £29.5m previously. Pre-tax profit increased to £4.2m from £0.2m.Shares in customers relations software developer Rubicon Software rose almost 30% Tuesday afternoon as the group reported a 32% rise in revenue for the year to £1.15m from £0.87m. However, this increase includes a one-time payment of £0.63m from First Response Finance and masks the low underlying revenue that has been generated in the period. The group says the alliance with Information Systems Associates and a consultancy project that was won in the early part of the year did not deliver the levels of business "that we had been led to believe would be forthcoming".Nevertheless, pre-tax profit grew to £44,000 from a loss of £194,000 previously.RPC's first half revenue increased by 9% to £381.9m from £351.9m due to sales volumes rising 3%. Increased selling prices reflected higher polymer price levels, "partly offset by the translation effect of the strengthening of sterling against the euro", the plastic packaging group says.A more efficient cost base coupled with higher volumes relieved pressure on gross margins which occurred as a consequence of record polymer prices. Pre-tax profit increased to £18m from £11.8m while earnings per share grew to 13.2p from 8.1p previously.