PCF.L Share News (PCF)

Dow Jones smallcap news is now on Twitter, allowing you to catch up on the news away from your desk. Go to http://twitter.com/DJ_UK_Smallcaps EMERSON ELECTRIC CO. (EMR), a U.S. power and industrial-automation company, Tuesday returned with a sweetened offer to buy CHLORIDE GROUP PLC (CHLD.LN) for almost GBP1 billion, after the U.K. secure power systems company rebuffed an earlier bid and backed a better deal from Swiss engineer ABB Ltd. (ABB). At 1110 GMT, Chloride shares +41.2 pence, or 12%, at 389.7 pence. CARPETRIGHT PLC (CPR.LN), a carpet and floorings retailer, said its full fiscal-year sales rose 7% on the year, partly due to new partnerships with insurers and house builders, which it hopes to expand. At 1111 GMT, shares -73 pence, or 10%, at 637 pence. PRIVATE & COMMERCIAL FINANCE GROUP PLC (PCF.LN), a finance provider, said it is on the hunt for new funding that would allow it to write more business, improve operational gearing and take advantage of acquisition opportunities in the specialist finance sector. At 1114 GMT, shares +0.13 pence, or 1.5%, at 8.75 pence. PURSUIT DYNAMICS PLC (PDX.LN), an industrial technology company, said its technology is being tested by major brewers and it expects to secure formal deals with at least three this year. At 1115 GMT, shares -7.25 pence, or 3%, at 235.75 pence. ASSURA GROUP LTD. (AGR.LN), a healthcare company, said it is still enjoying rent increases on its properties despite a squeeze on public finances in the U.K. It reported a sharply narrower fiscal-year loss and said it will resume dividend payments this fiscal year. At 1110 GMT, shares flat at 42.5 pence. INFRASTRATA PLC (INFA.LN), a gas storage company, said it signed a preliminary agreement with U.S. natural gas company eCORP International LLC to help fund the construction of its flagship Portland project on England's west coast. At 1109 GMT, shares +7.75 pence, or 18%, at 50.25 pence. PLASTICS CAPITAL PLC (PLA.LN), a plastics maker, swung to a full-year pretax profit, boosted by a foreign exchange gain, and said its order books are stronger than at any other time in the last 18 months. At 1109 GMT, shares +1 pence, or 3.3%, at 31 pence. PINEWOOD SHEPPERTON PLC (PWS.LN), a film and television production company, said it has the backing of the majority of its shareholders, after its second-largest shareholder called for the company's chairman to quit. At 1109 GMT, shares flat at 143.5 pence. CH2M HILL COS. LTD., a U.S. engineer, offered to buy smaller U.K. peer SCOTT WILSON GROUP PLC (SWG.LN) for about GBP189 million, trumping an earlier offer by rival U.S. firm URS Corp. (URS). At 1108 GMT, shares in Scott Wilson were up 5 pence, or 2%, at 258 pence. JACQUES VERT PLC (JQV.LN), a womenswear retailer, reintroduced a final dividend for the first time since 1995 as it swung to a full-year profit, but said trading in the coming fiscal year will likely be "unpredictable." At 1108 GMT, shares +3.5 pence, or 25%, at 17.25 pence. BRITISH POLYTHENE INDUSTRIES PLC (BPI.LN), a polythene products company, said first-half earnings will be lower than a year earlier due to a rise in raw material costs and weak demand for its silage products. At 1108 GMT, shares -14.5 pence, or 6.9%, at 197 pence. DJ UK Smaller Cos -0.9% AIM -0.9% -By Jason Douglas, Hannah Benjamin and Rachael Gormley, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 (0) 20 7842 9272; uksmallcaps@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 29, 2010 07:30 ET (11:30 GMT)