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http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201104110700146491E

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201104110700146490E

SmartFOCUS snapped up for over £25m Date: Monday 11 Apr 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Marketing software group SmartFOCUS surged after the terms of its sale to on-demand software firm Emailvision Holdings were announced, valuing the company at £25.3m. The price represents a 61.3% premium over the closing price of SmartFOCUS on 8 April (15.5p). In a separate note, the group unveiled a 78% jump in pre-tax profit to £0.9m in the year ended 31 December, on the back of a 17% increase in revenues to £13.9m. The group saw strong demand for its ‘software as a service’ model (‘SaaS’) and a higher volume of customers who require a multi-channel marketing solution. “Since the year end, we have continued to trade in line with our expectations and the board views the outlook for this year with confidence,” said chief executive officer Curt Bloom. ab

Akers narrows losses after sales surge in 2010 Date: Monday 11 Apr 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Shares in screening and testing products group Akers Biosciences surged after the company reported a 72% increase in revenue after a “momentum-building” year. Revenue for the 12 months ended 31 December grew to $3.1m, from $1.8m in 2009, as a result of strong sales of its HIT-testing product (‘PIFA Heparin/PF4 Rapid Assay’), combined with the international distribution of products within its alcohol breathalyser franchise. Increased turnover and a reduction in administrative expenses helped the group to narrow pre-tax losses from $4.63m to $1.2m. Loss per share fell to 1 cents, from 4 cents previously. “2010 was a momentum-building year since the company's revenue and operating results significantly improved over those of 2009, and our development pipeline and subsequent commercialization efforts had numerous successes,” said president and chief executive officer Thomas Nicolette.

Carry on Rising !

Pinewood Shepperton receives bid Date: Monday 11 Apr 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Pinewood Shepperton, the film studios used for the James Bond films, has received a takeover approach from its biggest shareholder. Peel Holdings made a 190p a share approach for the company, Pinewood announced after the close of trading on Friday, after a sharp rise in its share price. The shares were up again today, climbing by 8p to 193.5p. “This approach may or may not lead to an offer being made for the company,” Pinewood said. “A further announcement will be made in due course.”

David Panter, Chairman, commented: "This has been an exciting and defining period for DouglasBay during which we have successfully realised value from our largest investment and delivered strong full year 2010 operating results in challenging markets. The revitalisation of TDG prior to its onward sale, all achieved in a little over two years, has met our expectations and demonstrated our wide ranging skills in identifying, acquiring, revitalising and managing active value investment opportunities. Current market conditions continue to create some strong new prospects and we are working hard in pursuit of opportunities where we believe our approach can deliver attractive returns." Alex Paiusco, Chief Executive Officer, commented: "2010 was a good year, with the successful disposal of TDG securing a very attractive return for DouglasBay, equivalent to an IRR of more than 30% over less than two and half years under our ownership. This is an outstanding achievement by the whole team given the difficult economic conditions that surrounded the company during the period of our ownership. We are now pleased to be in the position to reward the investors who have supported us over the past years through the proposed capital return. We will continue to work hard assessing new opportunities with a view to returning to the market to raise new funds for new specific investments, with the support of our seed investor Laxey Partners. 2010 has been a notable year but it's only the start of our journey."

DouglasBay Capital plc (AIM: DBAY), the active value investment company, today announces final results for the year to 31 December 2010. Highlights § Successful disposal of TDG completed in March 2011 for a total cash consideration of £208m. Transaction secures a very attractive return for DouglasBay, equivalent to an IRR of over 30%. - TDG revitalised and transformed under DouglasBay ownership: - Underlying operating profit on a like-for-like basis¹ improved by 31% in just two years, in spite of economic recession - Rapid de-leveraging achieved; successful transition to asset light business model - Expansion in high growth specialist markets and important new business wins - Excellent overall 2010 performance § Strong 2010 full year results for DouglasBay - underlying operating profit up 14% at £25.7m; underlying EPS of 1.50p (2009: 1.34p), up 12%; basic EPS of 1.11p (2009: 0.89p), up 25%. § Substantial debt reduction achieved - net borrowing down by 58% to £36.5m at year end (2009: £86.7m). Following the disposal of TDG and further property sales, the Group is now fully de-geared and has a strong cash position. § In line with investment policy, a proposal to return capital to shareholders by way of a Tender Offer to buy back up to 1.23bn of ordinary shares at a price of 16.35p per share. Details of the Tender Offer will be forwarded to Shareholders later this week. § DouglasBay team now assessing in depth a small number of larger Majority Investment prospects; first Minority Investment made in high potential US social media business. New investments will be financed through existing cash resources and ad-hoc capital raisings and share placements, with underwriting support from Laxey Partners.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201104110700116342E

Douglasbay to buy back shares at a premium Date: Monday 11 Apr 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Value-based active investor Douglasbay Capital hit a new 52-week high Monday after announcing an offer to buy back shares at a premium to Friday’s closing price. The company, which is debt free following recent disposals, is proposing a tender offer to buy back up to 1.23bn shares in the company at 16.35p per share. At Friday’s close, the mid-market price of Doubglasbay was 13.75p. The announcement accompanied what the group described as a strong set of 2010 results, in which underlying operating profit, before exceptional items, improved by 14%, to £25.7m on revenues that grew to £678.3m from the previous year´s £662.1m. Underlying profit before tax jumped 39% to £18.9m from £13.6m in 2009. Reported profit before tax surged to £11.6m from £4.1m the year before as exceptional charges reduced substantially. Management was particularly pleased with the successful revitalisation and subsequent sale of transport firm TDG. The disposal of TDG, completed in March 2011 for £208m, equates to an internal rate of return of more than 30% over a period of less than 30 months. The DouglasBay team is now assessing a small number of larger investment prospects where it would take management control. “In terms of new investments, whilst uncertainty and volatility remain prominent features in the market, this year we see substantially more attractive risk reward profiles than in the recent past. In particular we feel that though many companies in the recession cleaned up their businesses and are now coming out stronger, in some instances this has not been reflected in their market prices, creating substantial value arbitrage opportunities,” the company said. The company is also contemplating taking minority stakes in what it sees as deeply undervalued listed companies or unlisted high growth businesses. In the case of the latter, the company will seek to protect its investment through the negotiation of extensive minority rights. The company does not pay dividends.

Commenting on the results, Lawrence Banks, Chairman of Ambrian, said: "A strong performance in the second half, driven by our equities business and a significant increase in profits from our investments, improved Ambrian's performance for the full year. Our recent expansion into biofuels and oil trading are good examples of how Ambrian's integrated and complementary client-focused equities and physical metals trading businesses in the natural resources sector offer excellent opportunities to develop and grow the business. In February 2011, Tom Gaffney resigned as Chief Executive to fulfill family commitments. I would like to thank Tom for his significant contribution to the Company and we wish him every success for the future. We are fortunate to have secured Robert Ashley, who had a distinguished career at NM Rothschild and has a wealth of natural resources expertise, as Chief Executive. We are committed to developing the Ambrian platform so the business can achieve its full potential."

Operating Highlights · Ranked 1st by number of retained corporate clients in the AIM Basic Materials Sector for the 11th consecutive quarter (Hemscott First Quarter 2011) · Raised more than £450 million for corporate clients during the year · Ambrian handled 242,449 tonnes of refined copper in 2010 compared to 213,882 tonnes in 2009 · Strengthened commodities business with entry into physical energy with senior hires and acquisition of biofuels business

Ambrian Capital plc ("Ambrian" or "the Company"), the natural resources investment bank, today announced its final results for the year ended 31 December 2010. Financial Highlights · Total income of £22.65 million (2009: £18.78 million) · Profit before tax of £2.90 million (2009: £2.93 million) · Net asset value per share of 33.3p as at 31 December 2010 (2009: 33.3p) · Basic earnings per share of 1.99p (2009: 2.76p) · Final dividend of 0.75p per share recommended taking the full year dividend to 1.50p (2009:1.50p)

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201104110700136241E

Ambrian sells commodities unit for over £4m Date: Monday 11 Apr 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Corporate finance advisory and commodity stock-broking firm Ambrian Capital has agreed to sell Ambrian Commodities to INTL FC Stone for a consideration of £4.3m: equal to the subsidiary´s net asset value minus current debt load. Ambrian will apply the funds raised from this transaction to Ambrian Metals Limited, its physical metals business, and Ambrian Energy, its physical energy trading business. In a separate statement, the group saw total income rise by 21% to £22.65m in 2010, primarily due to gains in its investment portfolio. Revenues grew by 5.9% to £18.56m, but pre-tax profit slipped slightly to £2.90m, from £2.93m, as a result of considerably higher administrative expenses. These were associated with costs from discontinuing non-natural resources stockbroking activities and growth initiatives, the group said. Profit after tax fell to £1.87m from last year´s £2.65m, as taxation surged to £1.03m, from just £0.28m previously. "A strong performance in the second half, driven by our equities business and a significant increase in profits from our investments, improved Ambrian's performance for the full year. Our recent expansion into biofuels and oil trading are good examples of how Ambrian's integrated and complementary client-focused equities and physical metals trading businesses in the natural resources sector offer excellent opportunities to develop and grow the business," said chairman Lawrence Banks. The company has announced a final dividend of 0.75p per share which will take the full year dividend to 1.50p, the same as in 2009. ab

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201104111541386964E

Entertainment One Ltd. Statement in response to press speculation In response to press speculation, Entertainment One Ltd. (LSE: ETO), the independent international entertainment group, confirms that it is committed to developing content for Peppa Pig beyond series five and six of the animated series, which will bring the total number of episodes available to more than 200. Commissioned by Channel 5 and Nickelodeon in the UK, series five and six of the phenomenally popular children's TV show are currently in production and ensure broadcast up to end of 2013. Peppa was broadcast for the first time in the US during February and initial viewer numbers have been positive. The Group is currently working with animation studio, Astley Baker Davies, to explore the future opportunities that the property presents, and looks forward to developing new content and formats that will ensure that Peppa Pig continues to fulfil its ongoing potential.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201104111541286965E

Capita buys Tribal divisions Date: Monday 11 Apr 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Outsourcing giant Capita has conditionally agreed to acquire public sector service provider Tribal’s health and government divisions for £15.8m. Capita says the acquisition, which must be approved by Tribal’s shareholders, will add new capabilities to its health and consulting businesses. “The government consulting acquisition will strengthen our proposition for service delivery and technical support across central and local government, including policing, justice and housing,” said Capita chief executive Paul Pindar. “In addition, Tribal's health expertise fits with our strategic goal to provide support services to GP commissioning consortia.” Following the sale, Tribal will be focused on the education and training markets. “The board believes that opportunities exist to grow the revenues of the government and health businesses but that both require significant investment over a period of time in order to enable them to generate acceptable levels of profitability,” Tribal chairman John Ormerod said. “In these circumstances, the directors have decided that it would be appropriate for Tribal to consider a sale of the government and health businesses in order to create a group focused on the education and training markets and with significantly reduced levels of financial leverage.” Shares in Tribal jumped after the announcement.

Resumption of dividend payments In the context of the greatly improved results coupled with the outlook for the future, the Board has resolved to resume dividend distributions commencing with an interim dividend amounting to 0.25 pence per share for which the record date will be 27 May 2011 and the payment date 15 June 2011. The matter will be kept under review, but at the 2011 annual general meeting the Board expects to recommend to Shareholders that a final dividend of a like amount be paid during January 2012.