OFT accepts Travis sell offs
10th Dec 2010 16:05
The Office of Fair Trading has accepted undertakings from builders' merchant Travis Perkins that will resolve the competition concerns about the merger with BSS Group. There were no competition concerns at a national level but there were in 20 local areas. The builders' merchant has offered to s
Read moreWednesday tips round-up: Severn Trent, Travis Perkins, Renold...
24th Nov 2010 06:48
Behind the as-expected headlines, water firm Severn Trent has a good story to tell. Most importantly, given the new pricing structure, Severn Trent's cost-cutting plans are on track. Operating expenditure is also in line with forecasts, and below the level set by the regulator. With a price-earnin
Read moreTravis offers to sell stores to gain merger approval
26th Oct 2010 18:23
The Office of Fair trading says that it is considering Travis Perkins' offer to sell stores in order to gain approval for its bid for plumbing supplies firm BSS Group. The OFT does not believe that the merger will cause competition problems at a national level because it still has a number of riva
Read moreTuesday tips round-up: Wood Group, Travis Perkins, YouGov...
12th Oct 2010 06:39
Wood Group, the oil and gas services company, would have looked pretty good even without yesterday's confirmation of a $152m (£95.4m) contract with GWF Energy to build and commission the conversion of a gas turbine plant in California to combined cycle. There is still headroom with the shares trad
Read moreLondon close: Footsie limps higher
11th Oct 2010 16:38
Footsie closed just a few points higher Monday after a sluggish day's trading that saw the leading share index fluctuating in a narrow range just above the zero mark. Oil services group Petrofac firmed on the back of a lucrative contract win. The government of Sharjah has appointed the company t
Read moreLondon afternoon: Stocks tread water
11th Oct 2010 14:34
The blue-chip index trod water over the lunchtime session with the majority of leading stocks consolidating the morning's gains. Oil services group Petrofac is firmer on the back of a lucrative contract win. The government of Sharjah has appointed the company to take over operational responsibilit
Read moreFTSE 250 movers: Travis Perkins on track but shares fall
11th Oct 2010 13:35
Travis Perkins' announcement this morning that the builders' merchant and Wickes' owner is on track as sales improved again in the third quarter has been given a cool reception. EasyJet got off to a good start after the budget airline said it had agreed a settlement to its acrimonious dispute with
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie crawls higher
11th Oct 2010 12:06
Footsie traded in a narrow range throughout the morning session and started the afternoon in marginally in positive territory, boosted by expectations of a moderately firm opening on Wall Street. Oil services group Petrofac is leading the market's far from vigorous advance. The government of Sharja
Read moreLondon open: Bright start fizzles out
11th Oct 2010 08:46
Early gains for Footsie have quickly fizzled out and the index is almost back where it started. Builders merchant and Wickes' owner Travis Perkins is on track as sales improved again in the third quarter. Turnover for the nine months to end of September rose 6%, driven by the merchants businesses a
Read moreLondon pre-open: Positive start likely
11th Oct 2010 07:36
Friday's rally above 11,000 on Wall Street looks enough to convince City traders to start buying this morning. The futures market points to a 20-point gain for the FTSE 100 Monday following gains in the US on hopes of additional stimulus government stimulus after weak monthly jobs numbers. In comp
Read moreTravis boosted by merchant arms
11th Oct 2010 07:01
Builders merchant and Wickes' owner Travis Perkins is on track as sales improved again in the third quarter. Group turnover for the nine months to end of September rose 6.0%, driven by the merchants businesses and a modest improvement at Wickes. Both divisions increased market share. Wickes' total
Read moreFriday tips round-up: Rolls-Royce, Aegis, Travis Perkins
30th Jul 2010 06:55
Rolls-Royce is among the FTSE 100's band of defensives. The shares trade on a multiple of 15.5 times forecast earnings for 2010, putting the stock at the top of end of its historic range. While that may worry some, it's just a reflection of the market's preference for what is a relatively safe and
Read moreBSS set to outperform
29th Jul 2010 13:23
Plumbing supplies firm BSS Group, in the process of being taken over by Wickes owner Travis Perkins for £558m, has had a strong start to the new financial year. Total revenue for the 17 weeks to 28 July was up 11.5% on a year ago at £435.3m and 7% better on a like for like (LFL) basis compared with
Read moreTravis Perkins recovers but wary
29th Jul 2010 12:51
Travis Perkins beat expectations as underlying first half profits jumped by a quarter, but the Wickes owner says trading patterns still remain hard to predict. In July, for instance like-for-like sales are 10% ahead in merchanting but Wickes core like-for-like sales are down 1.5% and K&B ordered sa
Read moreINTERVIEW: Travis Perkins Sees Slowdown On Consumer Caution
29th Jul 2010 09:01
By Anita Likus Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--U.K. builders' merchant and home improvement retailer Travis Perkins PLC (TPK.LN) expects a slowdown in growth in the second half of the year due to increased consumer caution, Finance Director Paul Hampden Smith said Thursday. "L
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