Tuesday tips round-up: Intertek, Ultra Electronics, Xchanging
2nd Aug 2011 06:28
Intertek is the company you hire to determine whether the paint coating your mug is toxic. Or to find out whether Jeremy Clarkson's assertions about the mileage achieved by an electric vehicle are accurate. It is the world's largest provider of testing services. Good products, good management and ac
Read moreXchanging profits plummet
1st Aug 2011 14:58
Pre-tax profits at back office services group, Xchanging, plummeted 96% in the first half of 2011. The company said that in the six months to the end of June, profits before taxation fell from £19.6m in 2010 to £812,000 this year. It had previously warned that 2011 would be a year of transition; i
Read moreTuesday tips round-up: Kingfisher, William Hill, Homeserve
14th Jun 2011 06:37
It is not always appreciated that B&Q owner Kingfisher, which also has operations in Turkey, Russia, Spain and China, achieves 60% of its sales and profits outside the UK. This gives it a significant counterpoint to the woes of the high street here. The shares sell on less than 12 times this year's
Read moreXchanging buys two Cambridge firms for $71.7m
13th Jun 2011 08:16
Business processing firm Xchanging is acquiring two businesses from Cambridge Solutions for a total of $71.7m in cash. The Australian workers' compensation business, Cambridge Integrated Services Victoria PTY (CISV), and its Indian business process outsourcing business (CSLBPO) are currently 100%-o
Read moreXchanging happy to offload loss-making US business
1st Jun 2011 18:31
Back office processing specialist Xchanging has got shot of what it described as a "loss making and cash absorbing operation" in the USA. Cambridge Integrated Services Group, the US arm of its 76% owned subsidiary Cambridge Solutions, has sold its US workers' compensation and third party administra
Read moreTuesday tips round-up: Autonomy, Mears, RPC
17th May 2011 00:01
Autonomy is buying the digital storage assets of Iron Mountain, a quoted American company, for $380m (£234m). The City, which has an unsteady relationship with Autonomy, was generally in favour of the deal, not least because it clearly is an area the company knows well, which should mitigate risk. T
Read moreBrokers still bearish after Xchanging's improvement
16th May 2011 15:56
Back office processes outsourcer Xchanging has previously warned that 2011 would be a year of transition for the company, but performance so far has been a bit better than expected. Insurance (excluding the workers' compensation claims business in the USA) and Financial Services have performed slig
Read moreXchanging extends BAE contract until 2013
18th Apr 2011 16:33
Outsourcing specialist Xchanging has announced that BAE Systems Australia has extended its procurement services contract until the end of 2013. The group said it will manage over AUD180m of indirect spend for the defence firm over three years. "From an initial core objective focused on cost saving
Read moreBroker snap: Things are starting to look up at Xchanging
11th Apr 2011 10:45
Significant challenges at outsourcing specialist Xchanging do indeed remain following recent its recent troubles, but the recovery is now on track, according to UBS, who ups its target price from 55p to 85. "Following the February profit warning, the management changes and material share price fall
Read moreFidessa chairman reinvests past sale proceeds
10th Mar 2011 17:04
Fidessa chairman John Hamer has invested £327,000 in the financial software provider having sold shares last June for more than £3 a share less than his latest buying price. Hamer bought 20,000 shares at £16.35 each. This takes his stake to 35,594 shares. He has bought these shares early enough to
Read moreShaftesbury boss invests £100,000
4th Mar 2011 17:03
Shaftesbury chief executive Jonathan Lane has invested a further £100,000 in the property investor. Lane has bought 22,222 shares at 450p each. That takes his stake to 966,233 shares, which is worth £4.3m at the latest purchase price. Lane raised just over £99,000 from the sale of option shares la
Read moreWednesday tips round-up: Provident Financial, GKN, Fresnillo...
2nd Mar 2011 06:43
Long-term sceptics of doorstep lender Provident Financial say the big concern is Provident's capital position. The company again refused to give a figure for its surplus cash position - the concern being that it wouldn't be great news and could be as low as £20m rather than £50m or £60m that is ofte
Read moreXchanging promises a transition year after weak 2010
1st Mar 2011 14:58
Full-year results at global business processor Xchanging fell short of expectations and the market was underwhelmed as the company announced an "action plan" to turnaround the business in 2011. Adjusted operating profit fell 0.8% to £55.5m in the 12 months to 31 December, from £55.9m previously, wh
Read moreTuesday preview: Xchanging, UBM, Persimmon
28th Feb 2011 15:51
Results from troubled business process outsourcing firm Xchanging should be interesting, given its shock profits warning on 9 February which coincided with the abrupt departure of chief executive and founder, David Andrews. In terms of meeting expectations for 2010, everything is fine and dandy, w
Read moreWeek Ahead: HSBC, Standard Chartered, Xchanging
25th Feb 2011 11:37
The banking results season comes to a close next week with the two Asia-focused operators, HSBC and Standard Chartered, declaring full year figures. HSBC is first to declare, on Monday. The performance of the Personal Financial Services division is likely to be a highlight, as bad debt write-downs
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