Member Info for jange

Earnings per share (EPS) are expected to be in the region of 43.29p and the all-important divi is topped to rise to 26.63p, which would give a yield of around 3.7%. The firm has committed to 4% real growth per annum in the dividend until 2015. Broker Charles Stanley is forecasting revenue of £1,274m and operating profit of £271m, with growth from the more defensive water utility (South West Water) offsetting a slightly weaker performance from the smaller more cyclical waste division (Viridor).

Water company Pennon, a firm favourite with risk-averse investors, is set to to release full year results on Tuesday. Market expectations are for profit before tax of £196.2m on revenue of £1.22bn.

"As 2012 looks set to be another fantastic year for the company, we look forward to reporting further operational success as we achieve our goal of developing our world class acreage, thereby creating further value for our shareholders," he added. The firm said it was eyeing a move from the Alternative Investment Market to the premium list "as part of establishing the company as one of the major independent exploration and production players listed on the London Stock Exchange".

Political publisher Dods said revenue fell to £15.3m in 2011 from from £16.1m the year before. The company widened its losses to £1.07m but said it was in a stronger position than the previous year due to changes to its business, including an increasing amount of revenue coming from digital and events. However, uncertainty surrounds the Civil Service Learning contract, of which Dods is part of the winning tender. "It is still not completely clear how the volumes from this contract will arise - and over what period," the firm said. "This will greatly influence the results for the current financial period."

Jersey-based real estate investment company Max Property said net asset value per share was up 2.6% to 133.4p per share in the year to March 2012. The company said this growth was primarily down to net rental surpluses. It said it had seen a noticeable drop off in take-up in all sectors over recent months as occupiers put off decisions due heightened uncertainty. But it added that "the pendulum of investor sentiment is likely to swing into negative territory setting the scene for better buying conditions".

GCP Infrastructure Investments, infrastructure fund that floated last summer, reported a net asset value of 100.9p per ordinary share and 98.30p per C Share for the six months to the end of March. It warned that with the pension fund industry "moving cautiously at best" and the continuing lack of long-dated infrastructure lenders, there were significant uncertainties surrounding both the structure and financing of future UK infrastructure projects.

As at March 2012, the group has a cash balance of £6.7m which it believes, along with the anticipated disposal proceeds, is sufficient to execute its growth strategy. "Since the period end we have announced the proposed disposal of the animal feed business, which will enable the group to focus on growing the condiments business further, particularly focusing on Xaka".

"We have identified an opportunity to become a major player in the Northern China condiments market and are committed to investing in the growth of the group." "Whilst the marketing expenditure will suppress profitability temporarily, the board is confident that the investment for the future will pay off.

Xaka, which has been selected by National Sports Training Institute of China as the preferred soya sauce supplier for the Chinese Olympic team, said the market for its products in Northern China is vast as it looks to increase its market share and broaden our distribution channels through new partnerships. McLean added that the Chinese consumer market continues to grow at a rapid rate, with branding and food safety being key concerns. China Food enjoyed a strong start to 2012 with trading of condiments in the first quarter up 10% from the same period in 2011.

The group served up a pre-tax loss of £338,000 in the year ended 31 December 2011 compared to a profit of £3.8m the year earlier. Revenue increased by 12.1% to £40.2m while gross margin increased by 9.4% to £8.6m. Chairman John McLean said: "2011 was a period of further sales growth for China Food, as the group increased its penetration into the condiments market in Northern China."

House broker finnCap said an exceptional profit on the disposal would be a "financial watershed" for the company. For McLean and his management team, it would also free up a lot of management time. The company made an annual pre-tax loss following costs related to the launch of its new Xaka soya sauce and marketing costs related to its expansion drive.

AIM-listed manufacturer of cooking and dipping sauces China Food Company expects to offload its animal care business before the end of the year to generate cash for a dash for growth. Company chairman John McLean told Sharecast that negotiations with an interested party have been underway for some time, since when other parties have come outof the woodwork to express an interest in the non-core division.

"With the support and help of the staff and unions, the face gap should not reflect on the longer term viability or profitability of the mine and we will work hard to mitigate the resulting impacts. The group has the depth, breadth and financial strength to work through this and we do not see this event having any material adverse impact on the medium or long term prospects for the group," Banham said.

Gordon Banham, Chief Executive, said he was confident that abandoning the mine was the right decision, adding that "there was nothing that could have been done by the mining team to foresee or avoid this situation."

Gerry Huitson, Production Division Director, said: "This is a very unusual situation and to our knowledge this has never happened before in Maltby's long 100 year history. No one on the mining team, including our independent expert geologist with 32 years experience at many different UK mines, has come across these conditions before. We will revise the mining plans to avoid this locality and it is highly unlikely that these conditions will be found again in any subsequent panels."

The firm was keen to emphasise that production will not be affected and no adverse affects should be seen in the results for May 31st 2012, but warned it was clear that the incident will result in a delay in the commencement of production on the T125 face. Current expectations are that the face gap between completing production on T15 and starting production on T125 could be between 12 and 16 weeks.

Prior to the announcement, brokers were forecasting a profit before tax for the year to the end of May 2013 of £62.5m. Current trading is unaffected and the group's performance for the current year will be in line with management's expectations. The market is expecting profit before tax for the current fiscal year of £47.6m.

Hargreaves Services lost around a third of its value after it issued a profit warning as a result of ongoing problems at one of its Maltby wells in South Yorkshire. The UK supplier of coal said further development on well T125 has had to be abandoned on health and safety grounds, and this will ultimately result in an adverse affect on profits for the year ending May 31st 2013 of between £12m and £16m.

Bought half a million of these last week,will be topping up again in the near future.......

Good luck all