GoCompare owner Esure’s performance edges upwards in third quarter of 2015 but share prices take a dip November 11, 2015 Gross written premiums have edged up slightly for insurer Esure Group for its third quarter of 2015, standing at £155m, compared to £149.6m for the same quarter last year. The company, whose brands include Sheilas' Wheels, also reported positive year-to-date figures, with gross written premiums for the last nine months of £430.5m, compared to £410m [...]
Bosch-Dyson vacuum wars: European Court of Justice dismisses Dyson’s action over energy label regulations November 11, 2015 Are Europe’s vacuum wars over before they really got started? The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has dismissed legal action from Dyson hoping to change European energy label regulations. The ruling comes shortly after the British vacuum maker lashed out at rival Bosch, claiming it had cheated “like VW” in energy efficiency tests. Dyson had [...]
ICAEW grants 100th alternative business structure licence in a year to Essex accountants Tiffin Green November 11, 2015 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has awarded its 100th alternative business structure (ABS) licence, one year since it was granted the power to do so. The lucky recipient was Tiffin Green, a five-partner practice based in Essex with a focus on small and medium businesses. “ICAEW became a regulator and licensing [...]
Barratt Developments shares fall despite 20 per cent jump in sales November 11, 2015 Shares in Barratt Developments fell this morning despite Britain’s biggest housebuilder reporting a strong start to the autumn selling season thanks to “high levels of consumer demand” across all regions. Forward sales (including joint ventures) jumped by 20.7 per cent to £2.5bn across 11,033 plots in the 19 weeks to 8 November compared with £2.07bn [...]
Rightmove sees off threat from OnTheMarket.com as it increases market share November 11, 2015 More proof Rightmove is rising above estate agent bickering, after research by analysts Liberum found it's grabbed market share from new rival OnTheMarket.com. It was feared the property portal would be hit by the launch of OnTheMarket in January. One of the conditions of listing on the site, an estate agent-owned mutual designed to increase competition among [...]
AstraZeneca issues $6bn of bonds to fund ZS Pharma acquisition November 11, 2015 AstraZeneca has issued $6bn worth of bonds so that it can finance its acquisition of biotech company ZS Pharma. The British drugmaker said the move would have no material impact on its financial guidance for the year, and that it will help it to meet certain repayment obligations. The bonds will be released in a series [...]
John Lewis opens its first European store as it expands into the Netherlands November 11, 2015 John Lewis may be the chattering classes' favourite department store at home – but so far, it hasn't ventured into Europe. But that's about to change: today the retailer announced plans to open its first European offerings – in the Netherlands. The company said it will open three "shop-in-shops" in de Bijenkorf department stores. The first three [...]
Tullow Oil share price flat on slashed 2016 capex as plunging oil prices chip away at profits November 11, 2015 Embattled Tullow Oil has slashed next year’s expenditure by a third to tackle plunging oil prices that continue to eat away its profits. The figures The oil and gas producer said it expected full-year pre-tax operating cash flow to land at $1bn, while net debt will hit $4.2bn. Its capex forecast for 2015 remains unchanged at [...]
TalkTalk share price up as firm estimates cyber attack could cost £35m but raises dividend 15 per cent November 11, 2015 Embattled telecom firm TalkTalk has estimated that the massive cyber attack against it in October has cost it £35m, but the firm has surprised shareholders by raising its dividend. That pushed shares up more than 12 per cent to 244p in early trading. The figures Forget about the cyber attack for a minute: TalkTalk's revenues rose 4.7 per cent to £912m for the six months to 30 [...]
Miners weigh down the FTSE for second day – London Report November 11, 2015 The FTSE 100 finished down yesterday as miners continued to suffer losses. The blue-chip index closed the day 0.32 per cent down at 6,275 points. Yesterday’s largest faller was Anglo American, which saw its share price fall 4.54 per cent to 492.22p per share. Glencore also shed 4.24 per cent to close at 105.05p per [...]
