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Coming off highs of 320 - 330 twic at least this year then there is much scope with these results to return there in the not too distant

Geoff Wild, CEO of AZ, commented: "This strong set of results reflects AZ's ongoing ability to outperform the semiconductor and flat panel industries and benefit from the continued demand for faster, smaller and more powerful electronic devices. Our materials - high quality, high-purity speciality chemicals - are critical to the production process as well as helping our customers develop the next generation of technology. At the same time, our increased investment in innovation, close collaboration with customers and leading market positions are accelerating our progress into new growth markets and new products areas. As a result, we are confident of making further progress this year and believe that AZ is well positioned for long-term success."

Outlook The fundamental long-term demand drivers for our business are strong, notwithstanding current global macroeconomic uncertainty. We have seen some softening in demand in certain areas of our business as a result of inventory adjustments impacting utilisation. However, we expect demand for our IC Niche products to remain robust and to also benefit from further market share gains in Optronics during the second half. AZ has leading market positions in attractive long-term growth markets. We continue to invest in our business and work closely with our customers to capitalise on growth opportunities in a number of areas. Despite the challenging comparatives in the second half of the year, we expect to make further progress and our expectations for the full year are unchanged.

· Strong trading performance as the growth trends of 2010 continued into the first half of 2011. · Total revenue up 22% to US$391.8m (up 16% at constant currencies2); Adjusted EBITDA up 18% to US$129.5m (up 10% at constant currencies2). · IC Materials division revenue up 31% to US$269.2m, reflecting strength in demand for niche products used in the production of solid state memory. · Optronics division revenue up 9% to US$109.8m, with market share gains and continued growth in flat panel displays driven by consumer demand for mobile devices and TV displays. · Strong cash flow reduced net debt to US$402.2m; lowering net debt to Adjusted EBITDA3 multiple from 1.9x to 1.6x. · Interim dividend declared of 3.8 cents per share, with Board confirming intention of annual payout being circa 35% of 2011 adjusted earnings. · Expansion of AZ's Korean facility has commenced, targeted at localising supply of several major products from 2013, thereby further strengthening relationships with key customers.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201108250700149857M

Samir Brikho, Chief Executive and Ian McHoul, Chief Financial Officer discuss the results and the 2011 outlook in an interview which is now available at http://amec.tamarinduk.com, together with a transcript.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201108250705019939M

Chief Executive Samir Brikho said: "AMEC made good progress in the first half of 2011. A strong performance in mining and Power & Process and increased activity in the UK North Sea more than offset the anticipated reduction in activity levels within our oil sands and federal businesses. "Demand for our services and investment in our end markets remain strong, and we expect new contract awards to support future growth despite increased economic uncertainty. Margins are expected to be maintained at about 9 per cent in 2011. "Management remains focused on the delivery of our Vision 2015 strategy. We completed four acquisitions in the first half and integration is progressing well. Our balance sheet is strong and we continue to target further acquisitions."

AMEC plc 2011 interim results Operating performance in line with expectations H1 2011 results Operating performance in line with expectations · Revenue £1,484 million, up 4 per cent · EBITA1 £122 million, up 9 per cent; margin 8.2 per cent, up 40 basis points · Group EBITA margin2 expected to be maintained at around 9 per cent in 2011 · Diluted EPS from continuing operations4 28.8 pence, up 13 per cent · Operating cashflow5 £75 million, up £18 million Order book strong at £3.4 billion (December 2010: £3.1 billion; June 2010: £3.5 billion) · Order intake and forward visibility remain good Completed MACTEC and three other acquisitions for a total consideration of £261 million Interim dividend per share up 40 per cent, to 10.2 pence · Rebased in line with the 2010 final dividend increase

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201108250700209969M

Some coverage http://www.stockmarketwire.com/article/4209094/Aggreko-grows-revenue-but-pretax-profit-slips-in-first-half.html

Philip Rogerson, Chairman, commented: "Aggreko delivered a strong underlying performance in the first half of 2011, with revenue growing by 21% and trading profit by 17%. Reported revenue increased by 9% and reported trading profit decreased by 3%. Although the prospects for the global economy in the months ahead are uncertain, we believe that profit before tax and amortisation for the year as a whole will be higher than we indicated at the time of our Trading Update at the end of June; we now expect it to be around £315 million. This would equate to a rate of growth in underlying profits of around 24%." Rupert Soames, Chief Executive, commented: "We generated nearly £50 million of revenue from one-off sporting events in the first half of 2010, and consequently the headline numbers in 2011 were always going to make tough comparators. However, the underlying rate of growth in revenues is running at over 20%, and it is also encouraging to note that this growth is being delivered by both the Local business and International Power Projects. We are now well placed to deliver a strong second half."

Highlights: · Both International Power Projects and the Local business delivered good growth. Underlying group revenues up 21% and trading profit up 17%. · Strong demand for International Power Projects; underlying revenues up 24% and trading profit up 17%. o Closing order book at record levels o 25 new contracts signed for 730 MW, including major new projects in Japan, Argentina and Tanzania. · Local businesses underlying revenues up 19% and trading profit up 17%. o North America and Australia recover strongly o Investment in fast-growing economies begins to pay off. · Increased pace of investment: fleet capital expenditure grew by £70 million to £169 million. · £151 million return of capital completed in July; in addition interim dividend to be increased by 10%.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201108250700199963M

Cant see too much wrong with these figures - drop today surely unwarranted

Roger Withers, Non-executive Chairman, said: "Playtech has continued to make strong progress in an uncertain market, winning new licensees, exploiting opportunities in existing and soon to be regulated markets and identifying valuable acquisitions which will add to the Group's offering." "Despite the complexity and uncertainty of moves towards regulation in Europe and the US, Playtech has positioned itself, both independently and through its joint ventures, to benefit from the continued growth of the online gaming market. As more jurisdictions move towards regulation, Playtech is able to offer new and existing operators a market leading suite of products and services, helping them to navigate the complexities of changing regulatory environments." "With a strong pipeline of new opportunities and the continued development of our offering, we look to the second half and beyond with optimism and are excited about the future as Playtech is increasingly consolidating its position as the supplier of choice for technology and services for the worldwide online gaming industry."

Current trading Playtech has started the second half of 2011 with a strong performance despite a traditionally slow Q3, showing daily average software revenues for the first 54 days up more than 23% in comparison to the comparable quarter in 2010, and over 2% versus the previous quarter. This has been materially influenced by both the introduction of casino games and poker cash table games in Italy, and the transition of players to our poker licensees due to the suspension of the second largest poker operator. In addition, service revenues introduced for the first time through the acquisition of PTTS, are trading strongly and in line with our expectations.

Operational highlights § Completion of the acquisition of PT Turnkey Services on 1 July 2011, enabling Playtech to deliver a fully integrated software and services offering to new and existing licensees; a significant extension of the Group's capabilities § Agreement to supply Gala Coral announced in July 2011 with a full range of gaming products and technology platform, providing full player management, player retention and back-office tools across its online gaming products § New regulation of cash poker and casino table games in Italy: new licensee Buongiorno launched casino; William Hill Online joined the iPoker.it network; and together with our existing licensees SNAI, SISAL, Eurobet, Cogetech, and BetClic, launched cash poker in the first days of the new market § Agreement to supply the California Online Poker Association ("COPA") with poker software ahead of any regulation of online poker in California. Sciplay, the joint venture with Scientific Games, will supply ancillary services to COPA § Playtech's wholly owned subsidiary, Videobet, and The Global Draw, a Scientific Games subsidiary, completed roll out of its software platform to over 20,000 Global Draw gaming machines in the UK including Gala Coral, Ladbrokes, William Hill and Tote betting shops § Acquisition of Intelligent Gaming Systems ("Intelligent Gaming" or "IG") in January extends Playtech's land-based reach for multi-channel integration § Agreement to acquire Mobenga AB ("Mobenga") in July 2011, the mobile sports betting enabler, which will add key capability in a channel viewed as being a major contributor to new player acquisition and future growth. Completion is expected at the end of August § William Hill Online continues to perform strongly with growth across its product portfolio. It also launched a mobile betting application with Mobenga just after the period end § Casino Gran Madrid received the first Spanish online operator license, authorising its activities in the Madrid region and is now operational with Playtech

CONTINUED MOMENTUM THROUGH THE FIRST HALF; POSITIVE OUTLOOK SUPPORTED BY SUSTAINED DEVELOPMENT AND SIGNIFICANT LICENSEE WINS Playtech (AIM: PTEC), the international designer, developer and licensor of software and services for the online, mobile and land-based gaming industry, today announces its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2011. Financial highlights § Gross income* on a continuing basis** up 19% to €95.0 million and 8% on an absolute basis (2010: €87.9 million) § Total revenues on a continuing basis** up by 18% to €76.3 million and 5% on an absolute basis (2010: €72.9 million) § Adjusted EBITDA*** up by 4% to €56.1 million (2010: €54.2 million), reflecting a margin of 59% on gross income (2010: 62%) despite loss of revenues from the withdrawal from the French market § Net profit after tax up 2% to €37.9 million (2010: €37.0 million). Basic EPS €15.6c (2010: €15.3c) § Continued high cash conversion supports robust balance sheet with €64.3 million in cash and cash equivalents as at 30 June 2011 § The Board has determined that due to exceptional joint venture and near term acquisition opportunities currently under discussion in certain key markets, it will defer a decision over the interim dividend until the final results for 2011, in order to retain maximum flexibility. Significant joint venture opportunities exist to create long term shareholder value in other regulated markets § The Board remains confident in meeting its expectations for the year

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201108250700239996M