Member Info for jange

The Diverse Income Trust is managed by Gervais William and was established in April 2011. As of July 31st 2012, the trust's net asset value had grown by 2.4% over one month, 0.4% over three months, 2.5% over one year and 1.1% since launch. As of the same date, its top five holdings as of this time were Zotefoams, CML Microsystems, Greencore Group, Quindell Portfolio and Abbey Protection with 2.2$, 2.1%, 2.0%, 1.8% and 1.7% stakes respectively.

Miton Group fund manager Gervais Williams' FTSE-listed Diverse Income Trust is edging closer to a merger with the Henderson Fledgling Trust. An update issued by the Diverse Income Trust on Friday stated that the board had agreed heads of terms with Henderson Fledgling Trust in respect of a future merger of the two companies. Under the scheme, the Henderson Fledgling Trust would receive new Diverse Income Trust shares valued at a premium of 2.5% to their net asset value (NAV) as at the effective date of the scheme. The consideration for the issue of new Diverse Income Trust shares would be the transfer to Diverse Income Trust of the entire investment portfolio of Henderson Fledgling Trust, following the setting aside of amounts as required to meet the company's liabilities, by way of a scheme of reconstruction. No cash exit is being offered as part of the scheme.

Greencore said the meat for the sauce was supplied by the ABP Food Group's Nenagh plant in County Tipperary, Ireland, an approved and regularly audited producer. The group is working with ABP to determine the full facts as they await the results of tests. The incident is the latest in a string of scandals over horse meat found in beef products. Tesco, Lidl, Waitrose, Sainsburys, Iceland, Co-Op and Dunnes have also withdrawn some beef-based meals. UK's Downing Street has criticised the reluctance of stores involved in selling the products to speak up about the affected goods. "It isn't acceptable for retailers to remain silent, sources from the government headquarters told the BBC. The Food Standards Agency will reveal test results for horse meat in UK processed meals later Friday.

Horse meat has reared its ugly head once again - this time in Greencore's beef bolognese sauce. Shares tumbled 14.91% to 87.00p at 10:12 Friday as the Irish food producer confirmed its Chosen By You 350g Beef Bolognese was withdrawn from Asda supermarkets following the detection of horse DNA. Three other Greencore products were taken off shelves "as a precautionary measure" but they did not test positive for horse meat. Items included the 600g Beef Broth Soup, 500g Meat Feast Pasta Sauce, and 400g Chilli Con Carne Soup. The bolognese sauce contributed circa 0.3m of 1.16bn turnover in Greencore's last financial year. The annualised revenue of all products withdrawn represents less than 1.0m. "The company is currently awaiting the results of further quantitative tests on the 350g Beef Bolognaise Sauce that will validate the presence and the extent of the equine DNA," the group said in a statement.

Banco Santander President Emilio Botin announced that the Spanish bank plans to open 200 new branches in Mexico over the next two years. Botin described the plan as its most ambitious growth plan in the country in the last 10 years. The local Mexican press has reported that Botin reiterated the group's commitment to development in the country, speaking at a meeting with Mexico President Enrique Pe�a Nieto. Botin also said that Mexico is one of the clear success stories of the global economy. He highlighted the country as one of the best investment opportunities that exists in the international scene. The Spanish bank President also pointed out that the Santander invested more than $7.5bn in the country over the last 15 years, making it one of the country's main financial institutions with over 1,100 branches, almost 13,000 employees, and almost 10 million customers.

Castings' shares were down 5.52% to 325p at 10:21 on Friday morning.

Castings, the FTSE All-Share-listed company which manufactures iron castings, has provided an update on its performance for the period from October 1st to January 31st, predicting its results will be 'marginally below current market expectations.' In the interim management statement Brian Cooke, Chairman of the company, said: "Since the last interim report, there have been further reductions in demand from many of our customers. These appear to have plateaued and we anticipate that the year end results will be marginally below current market expectations." He added: "In these uncertain times it is impossible to make forecasts for next year."

The consideration is 64.8m in aggregate and 58.4m is to be paid in cash once the deal is finalised. Sago will also receive a 1.9m seller note from Swiftpage and 4.5m in the form of a 16.1% equity stake in Swiftpage. As at September 30th, 2012, the related gross assets were 243.1m and earnings before interest, taxes and amortisation (EBITDA) for the year came to 4.8m. In Europe, Sage has received a binding offer from Argos Soditic for the sale of C&I, ATL and Automotive in France and Aytos in Spain. The 28.6m sale is subject to approval from the French Works Council.

Software giant The Sage Group is disposing of seven products it considers non-core units in a move to streamline business. The FTSE 100 company said it has reached an agreement to sell the products for an total price of �93.4m, of which �81.9m is payable in cash on completion. The items include three from its North American division, namely Sage ACT!, Sage SalesLogix and the Sage Nonprofit Solutions, and four software suites from Europe; C&I, ATL, Automotive and Aytos. "The sale of these non-core products is consistent with our strategy of focusing our business to accelerate growth and demonstrates significant progress in streamlining the portfolio, allowing regional management to focus on the considerable growth opportunities within their core markets," Chief Executive Guy Berruyer said. Contact management software products Sage ACT! and Sage SalesLogix will be sold to Swiftpage. Sage Nonprofit Solutions, the group's vertical software solutions for not-for-profit organisations, will be bought by Accel-KKR.

"We are deeply concerned by this finding and that, despite the written assurances we and our supplier received, we have had this breach of our supply chain. We are working with the Food Standards Agency and the Food Safety Authority of Ireland to establish the details of what happened and to ensure it doesn't happen again." The company said that the horse meat contaminated product had not been supplied to any mainland UK sites and said it was undertaking a DNA testing programme across its processed meat products. Rangeland Foods' specialises in producing beefburgers and describes itself as "committed to operate with due care and regard for the environment" on its website. It is accredited by the European Food Safety Inspection Service higher level.

FTSE 100-listed contract catering company Compass has admitted that Horsemeat DNA has been found in the burgers of one of its suppliers, Rangeland Foods. The company reported that a minor amount of hourse DNA had been found in a sample of the withdrawn product, which was on sale in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Compass said that Rangeland, the firm which produced the burgers, had given it written assurances that none of the identified horse DNA had entered its production. However, Compass was informed to the contrary when one of its Irish suppliers told the group that it had supplied one burger product from Rangeland Foods to a small number of sites in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "We immediately took the precautionary measure of withdrawing this product and we stopped any further purchases. We subsequently carried out a DNA test on a sample of the withdrawn product, which identified a minor amount of horse DNA." The company said: "This is totally unacceptable. We have informed all of the affected sites of these developments, explained the actions we have taken and issued unreserved apologies.

Whitbread said that it would work with the Food Standards Agency to implement a testing programme to prevent the occurrence happening again. Whitbread is the latest in a growing list of companies to have issued statements revealing the presence of equine DNA in products over the past fortnight. The company's brands include Premier Inn, Beefeater, Table Table and Brewers Fayre.

Pub and hotel chain Whitbread has admitted that horse DNA has been found in two of its products, making it the the latest company to admit that the equine ingredient slipped into its food chain. Whitbread reported that two of the 30 products it tested for equine DNA on Thursday came out positive. The products, namely beef lasagne and a beef burger, were subsequently immediately removed from Whitbread's menus, the group said. "They will not be replaced until further testing has been undertaken and we are fully reassured of the integrity of our products. "We are shocked and disappointed at this failure of the processed meat supply chain. As an industry it is clear we need the supply chain to deliver products to the highest standards of food integrity and quality that we and our customers expect."

Positive Points: Kraft expects to end its financial year with $1.3 billion in cash. Cost savings are likely to remain a management focus. Food manufacturing remains relatively defensive in uncertain economic times. Kraft Foods Group Inc became a new public and independent company on 1st October 2012. It is North America's fourth largest consumer packaged food and beverage company.

Negative Points: Total restructuring programme costs in 2013 are expected to be approximately $300 million, up from approximately $240 million previously declared. The company continues to operate in a highly competitive environment. The group is exposed to various ingredient or raw material costs. Whilst the company hedges against rising agricultural commodity costs, the firm's hedges may prove insufficient. The company is exposed to weaker than expected demand for its products due to weak consumer purchasing power. The group lacks the geographical diversity of rivals.

Fourth quarter financial update: Kraft Foods Group Inc, the new independent company has today provided a financial update but not full quarterly results. The company said this was due to complexities related to the spin-off from the company now known as Mondelez International Inc. The group said fourth-quarter revenue is projected to be 10.7% lower than last year, largely due to reductions in trade inventories. Analysts estimate revenues of $4.75 billion for the period. Fourth quarter operating income is expected to be approximately $260 million, which Kraft added would include the negative impact of approximately $225 million of restructuring charges and $46 million of unrealised losses from hedging activities. In addition, Kraft has updated its 2013 guidance, and now expects earnings per share to be about $2.75, up from its earlier guidance of around $2.60. Management said full year 2012 results will be published by 29th March

Positive Points: Accompanying management outlook comments highlighted trading which was in line with current full year expectations. Severn Trent is subject to occasional takeover speculation. The group's defensive nature provides investor attraction when set against an uncertain economic backdrop. In the present low interest rate environment, a progressive dividend policy currently yielding over 4% remains attractive.

Negative Points: Profitability from Severn Trent's core water business is dependent on the group's ability to meet tough regulatory efficiency targets. Group net debt as of 30 September 2012 was reported at £4.05 billion, up from £3.96 billion as of 31 March 2012. Customer bad debts are expected to be around 2.2% of group turnover for the full year

Financial Highlights: In line with previous guidance, group expectations for net capital expenditure (after deducting grants and contributions) will be towards the low end of the £555 million to £565 million range, including an estimated £10 million related to private drains and sewers. The level of net infrastructure renewals expenditure included in this range is anticipated to be £140 million to £150 million.

Interim statement: Severn Trent said performance in its regulated business for the period since November 2012 has been largely as expected and outlook for the full year remains as previously indicated. Within its regulated business, total revenue for the full year and operating expenditure continues to be in line with management's expectations. Operating costs are expected to rise year on year, due to the impact of inflation, a full year of operating private drains and sewer assets, and increases in quasi taxes, offset by efficiency improvements. The group has forecast a bad debt level around 2.2% of turnover for the full year. Within Services, (non-regulated operations) water purification and operating services is expected to deliver mid-single digit revenue growth for the full year, with profits impacted by investment in Operating Services and Balpure (ballast water treatment), which will offset the underlying growth in the business. On 8 February the company announced the sale of Severn Trent Analytical Services (also known as Severn Trent Laboratories) to ALS Limited. Severn Trent Plc will publish full year results on 30 May 2013