Dechra Pharmaceuticals shrugs off weak economy

6th Sep 2011 14:46

The reluctance of pet-owners' to neglect their animals despite tough economic conditions helped Dechra Pharmaceuticals post a rise in profits in the year to 30 June. Pre-tax profits climbed to £18.5m from £17.7m the previous year on revenues up to £389.2m from £369.4m. The full-year dividend rises

Read more

Tuesday tips round-up: Ladbrokes, Michael Page, Halma

12th Jul 2011 06:42

Ladbrokes' shares have suffered this year, by comparison with its main quoted peer, William Hill. One reason for this is William Hill's symbiotic relationship with the gaming IT company Playtech, capitalising on its high quality online and mobile gaming services. The shares do not look expensive, sa

Read more

Dechra expects slight miss in revenue

11th Jul 2011 14:57

Veterinary pharmaceutical group Dechra Pharmaceuticals expects sales for the year ended 30 June to be 5.1% ahead of last year, slightly under consensus forecasts. The trading statement implies that group revenue (at constant currency) will be around £390m, under Bloomberg consensus of £391.7m. fin

Read more

Dechra on steady growth path

10th May 2011 12:59

It was more of the same for Dechra Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter of its financial year as the first half's trends continued. The veterinary products group said group revenue in the first three months of 2011 - the third quarter of Dechra's financial year - was up 4.1% on the corresponding pe

Read more

North America boss offloads Pearson shares

2nd Mar 2011 17:47

Will Ethridge, chief executive of Financial Times publisher Pearson's North American education division, has sold a big chunk of shares in the company. He disposed of 33,000 American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) for $16.83 (£1,033p) a time or a total of nearly £350,000. News of the share sale comes

Read more

Friday tips round-up: National Express, Croda, Ashmore...

25th Feb 2011 07:00

Finally, some good news for much-troubled National Express. From the doldrums of a scrapped rail franchise and sharp financial losses in 2009, the transport group posted annual results for 2010 yesterday showing a return to profit and a proposed final dividend of 6p per share. National Express has

Read more

Small caps round-up: Medusa Mining, Kentz, Central Rand

22nd Feb 2011 14:59

Philippines-focused miner Medusa Mining saw earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation double to $63.3m in the six months to 31 December 2010 from $31.5m in the second half of 2009. Revenues surged to a record $78.3m from $41.3m the year before, due to increased gold production a

Read more

Weekend tips round-up: Petra Diamonds, Wasabi, Hilton Food...

16th Jan 2011 11:56

Petra Diamonds has benefited from a recovery in diamond prices - and it has put in a very strong share price performance over the past few months. The price of rough diamonds is now above the peak seen in 2008, before the credit crisis really hit home. Petra said last week that, in the six months t

Read more

Small caps round-up: Acal, Dechra, KBC Advanced Tech...

12th Jan 2011 12:11

Technology specialist Acal has bought German communication and fibre optic component provider CompoTRON for up to £7.1m. An initial cash consideration of £5.7m will be followed by another £1.4m in January 2013, subject to the company meeting performance targets. CompoTRON made £0.8m in 2009. Veter

Read more

Broker tips: Immunodiagnostic, Dechra, May Gurney

1st Dec 2010 13:03

Immunodiagnostic Systems (iSYS) has had a good run but Panmure Gordon observes that the stock has almost reached its target price, and so downgrades the shares. The diagnostic testing kits supplier reported strong interim results Tuesday, significantly better than the broker's forecasts with earnin

Read more

Broker snap: Dechra eyes European expansion

1st Dec 2010 12:46

Dechra Pharmaceuticals' latest acquisition has prompted finnCap to increase its expectations as the veterinary products group brings more products into its portfolio, offering the opportunity to expand its market. Dechra has bought the private veterinary pharmaceutical company Genitrix for £5.4m, w

Read more

Thursday tips round-up: BAT, Carpetright, CSR...

28th Oct 2010 06:06

Tobacco is one of the most defensive sectors in a downturn, for one simple reason. Smokers, particularly in the emerging markets, typically refuse to give up their habits, irrespective of how much companies raise prices. Certainly, the shares of British American Tobacco (BAT), the world's second-lar

Read more

Wednesday tips round-up: Sports Direct, Greene King, DS Smith...

8th Sep 2010 06:40

The main reasons for the discount on Sports Direct's shares are the two ongoing investigations into the retailer's activities, involving the Serious Fraud Office and Office of Fair Trading. While the retailer is co-operating fully with the inquiries, there remains the prospect of a surprise, such

Read more

Broker tips: Ashtead, Dechra, ProStrakan

7th Sep 2010 13:04

First quarter figures from equipment rental firm Ashtead should generate full year earnings estimate upgrades, Singer Capital Markets believes, with the outlook for the company looking promising. "First quarter profit before tax of £11.9m significantly exceeded consensus, and our own very bullish e

Read more

Broker snap: Dechra continues to grow

7th Sep 2010 12:00

The buy case for veterinary products group Dechra Pharmaceuticals is increasingly compelling, FinnCap believes, after the group posted a 10% rise in annual profit Tuesday morning and hiked its dividend 18%. Revenue growth of 5.5% year on year was in line with FinnCap's expectations and had been sig

Read more