Company Notes
By LOTHBURY
THE report for the year ended October 2, 1965, from South Durham Steel and Iron is mildly encouraging, as work on the steel pipe side of the business should stay at a high level for at least
two years, while demand from shipbuilders and engineers is also likely to be well maintained. There are still £15 million of unused tax allow- ances. Had the company had to pay a 40 per cent corporation tax, the 12 per cent dividend would not have been covered. The bank in- debtedness has been reduced. The £1 shares at 18s. 3d., yielding 13 per cent, must still be con- sidered speculative.
Last year United Steel's output hit a new record, but costs continued to rise. The result was a fall in pre-tax profits from £14,535,000 to £13,606,000, but the dividend is maintained at 15 per cent. A falling-off in demand would have a serious effect on future profits, hence the yield of nearly 11 per cent on the £1 shares at 27s. 6d.
For the year ended September 30, 1965 —and for the third year in succession— Guinness reports the highest sales in its his- tory. But rising costs and the import duty on imports from the Irish brewery had the effect of reduc'fig the group profit by 7.3 per cent. The company embarked on heavy capital ex- penditure during the year amounting to £9 million. It has two overseas breweries, one in Nigeria. the other in Malaysia. The company's other interests include pharmaceuticals, confec- tionery and property. Guinness is still good for you, as at 18s. 6d. the 5s. shares yield 5.7 per cent on the 21 per cent dividend.
British Oxygen modestly improved its profits for the past year and rather surprisingly in- creased its dividend by one point to II per cent. The net profit after tax has, after various ad- justments, improved from £5.484 million to £6.620 million. The 5s shares at 9s. 74d. yield 5.7 per cent.
Since the reorganisation a year ago, S. Noton has made further progress; the net profit after tax of £40,000 is higher at £109,535. from which a dividend of 15 per cent is declared. The com- pany supplies a wide variety of travel goods under the name of Crown and Victor Luggage and also owns a company making textile and industrial containers. The chairman is confident for the future, as order bookings since the end of the financial year, September 30, have ex- ceeded those of a similar period for the previous year. At 10s. the 5s. shares yield 74 per cent.
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