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Acquisition of Jobrapido by DMGT A&N Media, the consumer media business of DMGT, has acquired Jobrapido, one of the world's largest job search engines. Jobrapido will be combined with A&N Media's existing digital recruitment group, which is now renamed as Evenbase in order to reflect the wider scope and international reach of the enlarged group. This acquisition gives Evenbase - which includes Jobsite, OilCareers and Broadbean - access to one of the world's largest databases of job seekers and a global footprint with strong positions in a number of key international markets. The completion consideration is €30 million. The Jobrapido management team is incentivised to enhance this valuation over the next few years through an earn-out arrangement based on achieving agreed financial and business performance objectives. Jobrapido achieved revenues of c. €24 million and profits of c. €6 million during calendar year 2011. Jobrapido was established in Italy in 2006 by its Chief Executive, Vito Lomele. It is the second largest international job search engine in the world, delivering last year 660 million visits from job seekers (most recently 32 million unique visitors in March 2012) in more than 50 countries.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=20120416070000P3A63

Andor Technology, based in Belfast, was set up in 1989 after a group of PhD students at Queen’s University found the cameras they were using for their research were not quite good enough – so they developed their own. These were soon sought by other departments and then other universities. Andor has only two serious competitors worldwide. Fortunately, it tends to be better than both of them and over the past 15 years it has won a reputation for excellence. With just 330 employees, two-thirds of whom are in Belfast, the company has 10,000 customers in 55 countries. However, chief executive Conor Walsh unnerved some investors this month when he admitted that orders from America were lower in the six months to March 2012 than they had been a year earlier. Despite customers’ focus on quality, many are publicly funded and their budgets are under pressure. The situation has improved in recent weeks, however, and the group is powering ahead in Asia, particularly China and Japan, where demand is extremely strong. For The Financial Mail on Sunday´s Midas column, "Andor shares have fallen from 605p at the start of the year to 504 1⁄2p. At this price, they are good value. This small company serves a highly technical but growing market. Science is developing all the time and researchers need top quality equipment to do their work effectively. Andor is the best in the world at what it does. Buy."

Engineering consultancy and support services group WS Atkins has benefited from its toehold in the Middle East, while its UK operations appear to have stabilised. Last week, Atkins said it has "traded well" in the final quarter of the year so its full-year figures would be in line with expectations. At its UK operations, which account for about half of revenues, there was modest growth in its headcount in the second half of the year. This implies management has confidence that the business has turned a corner. Meanwhile, its North American consultancy, which generates about a quarter of revenues, has been sluggish, but margins are expected to have shown an improvement. Encouraging as well is the fact that the Middle East saw "strong market conditions". The company has focused on cash management and now has net cash of £120m, so the balance sheet is strong. The shares should be supported by the 4.1% yield, which rises to 4.3%. The current-year earnings multiple is just 8.4, falling to 8.1. First tipped at 727p on April 14 last year, the shares are essentially flat compared with a FTSE 100 down 5%. Questor says Buy.

Aggreko is a global provider of temporary power solutions in a world that is structurally short of power, writes The Telegraph´s Questor team this Sunday. That means that continuous investment in the amount of power available to hire is key to growth. However, while its net debt has risen by £63m to £428m as a result of investing ahead of the Olympics in the first quarter the amount of megawatt capacity on hire was 22% ahead in its international business. Furthermore, the company can easily invest out of its own cash flows and its balance sheet remains strong. As well, last week’s trading update showed a more positive outlook than Aggreko’s last statement. The international business also has a good bidding pipeline. Because of the upbeat start, consensus forecasts could rise. Every time one thinks the shares have reached a peak, they move higher, Questor points out. Indeed, they have soared by a staggering 385% since the start of 2009. The shares are highly rated, trading on a 2012 multiple of 21.2 times. However, the company is likely to see double-digit returns for some time as it operates in a global bull market. The shares are still a hold, but the firm will no doubt once again show Questor is overcautious.

Seymour Pierce reinstated coverage of Surface Transformers (SCE) with a "buy" rating and 17p target price. The carbon ceramic brake manufacturer impressed the broker with its renewed focus on the high end automotive market, building on existing relationships and winning new customers. Seymour Pierce also noted that the company has significant growth potential in the aerospace market over the medium term.

Shore Capital reiterated its "sell" recommendation for Admiral (ADM) after the insurance company suffered negative publicity from the BBC's Watchdog programme. The show reported that a number of firms offer customers significantly higher renewal quotes than to new customers. The broker pointed to a particular case where Admiral's renewal offer was 2,000 pounds, compared to a new policy for just 960 pounds. Shore believes these revelations could be very damaging to the firm's goal of increasing policy numbers in order to preserve its premium prospective earnings rating of 13.5 times

Investec kept its "buy" rating for Daily Mail & General Trust (DMGO) with a target price of 578p. The newspaper and media company's shares have lagged behind its peers, which the broker attributed to lower advertising revenues in the first quarter. However, Investec believes the firm's performance could improve in the second quarter, benefiting from the Diamond Jubilee, Euro 2012 and Olympics. The broker forecasts revenues of 1.95 billion pounds for the year ending 30th September, with normalised pre-tax profits of 248.2 million pounds

PorvairBUY 11/04/2012 Miles Nolan Specialist filtration to environmental technology outfit Porvair (PRV) has made a good start to the year and is trading ahead of management expectations. In the four months to March, sales are 12% better than the same period last year, which has pushed pre-tax profits higher than estimates. Order books have strengthened throughout the year, and the outlook continues to be encouraging for the months ahead. Margins in the metals filtration arm continue to improve; moreover, sales in the same period are up 15%. Porvair is making good progress with its Selee CS-X aluminium cast house filters, and demand in the US for its iron foundry filters is also proving particularly strong. Last month it acquired Pell Industries, a manufacturer of products for the powder metal industry – the deal was immediately earnings-enhancing and Pell has already been integrated. In its microfiltration business, revenues have jumped 10%, with particular strength in the aerospace market. Interim results due on 26 June should provide a useful opportunity for the fully listed firm to update on trading. We placed a buy recommendation on the shares at 104.5p in January, which looks to be a smart move given the outlook. Buy.

Jefferies has this morning downgraded its rating for business software group Sage from buy to hold, saying it is turning a 'bit more cautious' despite continuing to favour the positioning and management of the company. 2012 expected growth rates have prompted a more neutral stance on the stock, with Jefferies forecasting just 3.4% organic growth, down from the previous estimate of +5%. "First-half licence sales are likely to have been particularly weak in Spain, as well as difficult in France and the UK."

UBS has raised its target price for luxury brand Burberry from 1,370p to 1,580p ahead of its fourth quarter sales update next week. The broker is expecting the company to report a 16.5% growth in sales (constant currency), significantly lower than the 23.7% growth seen in the first nine months of the year. While the price-to-earnings multiple of 19 remains in line with the three-year average for Burberry, UBS clearly thinks this is too expensive and retains a neutral rating with the stock trading at a 20% premium to the European luxury sector.

Robert Watson, Chief Executive Officer of Hilton Food Group, snapped up 100,000 shares in the company on Wednesday April 11, less than a fortnight after the company posted a 10% rise in pre-tax profits. Watson, who has held his position since 2002, purchased the shares at 280p each for a total outlay of £280,000. Fellow board members Colin Smith and Sir David Naish, both non-executive directors, also stocked up, buying 20,000 at 295p and 10,000 at 280p, respectively.

SP has been one way for years . The BoD says results are broadly flat - however they appear generally down... how much is written in to current SP?

Commenting on the results Norcon Chairman, Trond Tostrup, said: "I am pleased that Norcon has managed to deliver another good year, in spite of global economic pressures. Thanks to our long term relations with key customers and great work by our team we remain resilient. We have made investments into our future as the Company continues to increase its geographical reach, as well as the services we offer to our clients. I firmly believe that our core strengths support our long term growth prospects."

Norcon plc (LSE/AIM: NCON), the global communications network specialist, is pleased to announce audited and final results for the financial year ended 31 December 2011. The results conclude a broadly flat year for Norcon as it worked to navigate the widespread global economic challenges; whilst at the same time continue to take an early advantage of steadily increasing LTE capital investments taking place in the telecommunications arena. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS Trading has been broadly consistent with the management team's revised FY expectations, as set out in the Trading Update of 15 February 2012: · Revenue of US$66.6m (FY 2010: US$68.6m) · Operating profits of US$6.2m (FY 2010: US$7.3m) · Profit before tax of US$5.4m (FY 2010: US$6.7m) · Profit after tax of US$3.5m (FY 2010: US$4.3m) · Cash at year end increased to US$12.5m (FY 2010: US$12.1m) · Pro forma earnings per share on a basic basis of US$0.07 (FY 2010: US$0.09) with the number of shares of 48,800,808 during the year compared to the weighted average number of shares of 47,174,875 the prior year · Dividend declared related to the final 2011 results of US$1m, a yield of 5% at the current share price OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS · Client engagements in core markets renewed, in addition to new mandates secured in key expansion territories · Organisation strengthened with the creation of the role and recruitment of a new Chief Operating Officer with further key personnel targeted to join in 2012 to support our geographical as well as services expansion · Strategy remains unchanged with increased focus on going into new verticals and new geographies · Favourable long-term market drivers are in place

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201204130700112590B

Board Change Following almost three years with the Group, Gareth Kirkwood has stepped down from the Board with effect from 12 April 2012. It has been agreed that Gareth will leave the Group on 30 April 2012 to pursue other interests. The Board would like to thank Gareth for his contribution and professionalism as Chief Operating Officer of Daisy Group plc and wish him all the success in his future ventures. Matthew Riley will be assuming Gareth's operational duties. Outlook The Group expects profit and earnings to be within the range of market forecasts for the year ending March 2012. For the year ahead, the Board is pleased with the progress to date across all key divisions, though remains mindful of the challenging market trends and macroeconomic outlook. The Group will announce its preliminary results on 19 June 2012.

Pre close statement and board change Daisy Group plc (AIM: DAY), a leading provider of business communications services, is pleased to issue the following statement for the period ending 31 March 2012, prior to entering the close period for its preliminary results. Highlights · Profit and earnings for year ending 31 March 2012 to be within the range of market expectations · Significant year-on-year increase in revenues and earnings · All businesses acquired in FY11 and FY12 are fully integrated and performing in line with management expectations Acquisitions and Integration The main focus of the Group's buy and build strategy over the financial year ending March 2012 has shifted to the effective integration of assets acquired over the previous 18 months. We are pleased with our progress in this area and the integration programme has been achieved in line with management's targets. Consistent with this, Spiritel, Outsourcery and Telinet/Ipitomi have each been successfully integrated into Daisy during the financial year. In addition, the Group has consolidated its mobile operations into one centre of excellence at its headquarters in Nelson, Lancashire. Current Trading All trading divisions have performed broadly in line with management expectations during the period ending March 2012, with the major trends demonstrating a continuation of those reported at the interim results in November. Our Retail Division has seen clear progress in both its mobile and data product portfolios. This has enabled it to partially offset the expected decline in fixed line call revenues, which reflect the market-wide trends of lower voice usage and the impact of lower mobile termination rates. Whilst the majority of this division has performed robustly, the Group has seen a moderate lengthening of sales cycles for some larger contracts, particularly in systems and large data installations, reflective of a more challenging macroeconomic backdrop. Our Wholesale and Distribution Divisions have benefitted from the availability of a wider product set and seen an improvement in cross selling trends amongst much of their product portfolios. Net debt at 31 March 2012 will be above March 2011 levels. This reflects acquisition and integration cash flows, together with an increase in working capital absorption associated with our mobile business and a higher proportion of larger customer deals

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201204130700122793B

Matthew Riley, Chief Executive Officer of Daisy Group plc, said: "Worldwide represents a strong strategic fit and clear growth opportunity for the Group. Its audio-conferencing solution creates a new revenue stream for Daisy, whilst driving further cross selling opportunities into our existing customer base and providing Worldwide's customers with access to the Group's full portfolio. Worldwide has demonstrated strong growth through its audio-conferencing technology in recent years. With many organisations now looking to reduce costs associated with business travel, we believe the audio-conferencing industry is an area capable of delivering sustained growth and we are excited to introduce this product into our customer base."