Company Notes
By LOTHBURY
MR. ALEXANDER Ross. chairman of United Dominions Trust, advises shareholders in his report for the year ending June 30, 1965, that owing to the Government's request for the restriction of credit his company has had ,to turn down an increasing amount of profitable
business. In spite of this and that the Bank rate was 5 per cent for some time during the period, the group has managed to raise its pre-tax profits from £4.4 million to just over £5,000,000. The chairman gives various good reasons why in the current year the company will acquit itself well. It is in a favourable position to expand its business when current credit restrictions are relaxed. Barclays Bank has a large interest in this company, which possibly accounts for the yield of 6.7 per cent on the 5s. shares paying a dividend of 20 per cent, as this yield is below the average of 7.2 per cent for this group.
Sutcliffe Speakman, brickmakers and manufac- turers of plant for the recovery of industrial solvents, has after a four-year standstill in profits increased them' (before tax) from £150,547 to £190,754, with earnings up from 44.5 per cent to 56.7 per cent. In view of the uncertainty of the tax situation the dividend stays at 20 per cent. The chairman, Mr. Stothert, points out that for the first time in many years the sales for the brick-making equipment exceeded those from the solvent recovery plants. It seems therefore that the 5s. shares at 16s. 3d. are now fairly valued to yield 5.9 per cent.
The activities of Weston-Evans cover a num- ber of industries including engineering, paper- making, laundries and textiles and the manufac- ture of mechanical handling equipment. The group supplies world markets with many of its products and it is sufficiently adventurous to sell to countries behind the Iron Curtain. For the year ending March 31, 1965, pre-tax profits improved from £184,927 to £251,922 and the dividend from 274 per cent to 30 per cent, twice covered by earnings. The 4s. shares at 17s. yield 7 per cent.
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