PRICE comparison website Moneysupermarket expects to deliver a 26 per cent increase in profits for the full year, boosted by last year’s acquisition of Moneysavingexpert.
The firm said underlying pre-tax profits for the year to 31 December will rise to about £66 million, up from £52.6m the previous year, on revenues 15 per cent higher at £204.5m.
Fewer customers were using its savings comparison service because of reduced competition for retail deposits from banks, but the website said this had been offset by improved trading in insurance, home services and travel products.
Housing market holding Aga back
Fewer people moving home contributed to subdued sales levels last year at cooker manufacturer Aga Rangemaster.
The company also blamed a 2 per cent fall in revenues on its Irish business and unfavourable currency rates.
Chief executive William McGrath said there were signs of improvement in the housing market and the group was in a strong position for when the economy rebounds.
It said its tile and paint division Fired Earth finished the year well and five additional outlets have been opened in the past six months.
Wal–Mart promotes Asda chief McKenna
Asda chief operating officer Judith McKenna has been promoted to a senior role at parent company Wal-Mart.
The US group said McKenna, once tipped for the top job at the UK’s second-largest supermarket, will take up the post of executive vice-president for strategy and international development in April.
Investec analyst Dave McCarthy said her departure was a loss to Asda after she improved in-store standards and kept tight financial control over the business and “Wal-Mart appears to be grooming her for bigger things in the future”.
Gibbons looks to have market licked
Stamps firm Stanley Gibbons yesterday said it was expecting a boost over the year ahead as investors increasingly look to collectibles as an alternative asset class.
The group said the new GB250 stamp index rose by 11 per cent in 2012 and forecasted further improvements, “evidenced by the size of our current order book, as the economic climate results in a desire for investors to allocate more capital into tangible assets”. It added that its Hong Kong office had assisted in generating “substantial new business” in the Far East.