Flybe’s struggling shares soared today after the company confirmed it held ‘initial discussions’ with former Stobart boss Andrew Tinkler. Until now, the regional airline had only received an offer by a consortium of buyers comprising Virgin Atlantic, Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) and investment firm Cyrus Capital Partners. But today it confirmed it received interest from Tinkler, who was not looking to make an offer for the whole of Flybe. Flybe Group (FLYB) said Tinker’s offer was a ‘very preliminary, short and highly conditional’ alternative financing proposal, comprising a ‘capital injection and replacement of the funding’ provided by Connect.
Ryanair made losses of more than £17million in the third quarter of 2018 amid pilot strikes, cancellations and confusing new baggage rules, it has been revealed today. The Irish carrier booked a pre-tax loss of £19.3 million in the three months to December 31, which compares to a £98.8 million profit in the same period last year. This comes after the beleaguered low-cost airline finished bottom of the respected Which? annual airline survey for the sixth consecutive year. In the consumer champion’s poll passengers gave the budget carrier the lowest possible rating for boarding, seat comfort, food and drink, and cabin environment – leaving it with a dismal overall customer score of 40%. Ryanair Holdings (RYA) racked up net losses of £17.5 million, citing weaker-than-expected air fares among a host of challenges. The firm also blamed excess winter capacity in Europe for a 6% reduction in average fares to under 30 euros, while the airline also had to contend with higher costs from fuel, staff and compensation claims.
Patisserie Holdings (CAKE) has attracted interest from numerous bidders, including offers for the entire 206-store chain and ones for parts of it, administrators said today. With the deadline for bids now elapsed, David Costley-Wood, partner at KPMG and joint administrator, said: ‘We are encouraged by the scope of offers received from trade and finance buyers for all and for parts of the business. ‘We will now be taking a number of these offers forward, and hope to be able to make progress in short order.’ The update from KPMG follows reports that around 100 parties were in the running for the collapsed cake chain, with a piecemeal sale looking like the most likely outcome. The cake firm’s parent company Patisserie Holdings is on the market after it folded last month, following the discovery of a £42million black hole in its accounts which left it unable to keep up with payments.
Corporate raider now targeting Barclays (BARC) previously raked in £146m by breaking up one of Britain’s biggest investment firms. The corporate raider now targeting Barclays previously raked in as much as £146m by breaking up one of Britain’s biggest investment firms. Edward Bramson’s companies pocketed £87.1m in dividends and £58.8m of fees from his assault on London-listed Electra Private Equity, accounts show. He raked in the fortune by buying shares in Electra, forcing his way on to its board and selling its most prized assets. It is now being wound up. It will spark fears the 68-year-old is planning radical cutbacks at Barclays, where he has demanded a board seat and complained about the size of its investment arm. New Yorker Bramson claims a boardroom job would allow him to steer the bank towards higher profits. He controls 5.51% of Barclays shares and is set to demand a vote on his plans at the bank’s annual meeting in the spring.
Canadian record store tycoon is battling billionaire Mike Ashley to buy HMV. Doug Putman is understood to be holding talks with the administrators of the 128-store music chain, which collapsed just after Christmas. It pits the 34-year-old against billionaire Sports Director owner Ashley, who wants to add the carcass of HMV to his growing retail empire. Putnam owns Sunrise Records in his home country and snapped up 70 stores from the Canadian arm of HMV when it failed two years ago. The UK chain previously collapsed in 2013 and was saved from going under by turnaround firm Hilco.
Financial Conduct Authority plunged into centre of scandal of Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) treatment of small firms. The Mail on Sunday can reveal that an employee of the City watchdog set up the Government agency that oversaw parts of RBS’s controversial Global Restructuring Group, after the bank was bailed out in 2008 using taxpayers’ money. The agency’s primary focus was to safeguard the Government’s assets at a time when the group’s bankers stand accused of mistreating thousands of customers, many of whom saw their livelihoods ruined. One of the group’s alleged victims – property developer Oliver Morley – presented evidence to the High Court last week suggesting that an arm of the Treasury, the Asset Protection Agency, had ‘day-to-day’ involvement and ‘strategic’ control over the group and the way it treated some customers.
MIDAS SHARE TIPS: Could this Manchester-based small tech firm deliver sky-high profits? How often do you see something online, buy it and then find out the colour is quite different from what you saw on screen? The difference can be infuriating and it is caused because most TVs, computers and mobile phones cannot display certain colours with accuracy. Nanoco Group (NANO), a small, high-tech company based in Manchester, has worked out how to solve the problem, using nanomaterials that display light more effectively than any other products on the market and use less energy in the process. The shares are 44p and could increase substantially in value this year and beyond as Nanoco’s technology is increasingly put into practice. Midas verdict: Nanoco employs around 100 people, some 65 of whom have PhDs. This is a British-based firm with world-beating technology, recognised by businesses from Asia to America. Loss-making companies are risky but this one has spent years perfecting its ideas and should go from strength to strength. At 44p, the shares are a buy for the plucky and patriotic investor. MIDAS UPDATE: NWF is a robust firm that is more likely to benefit than suffer from Brexit. Midas verdict: NWF Group (NWF) is a robust business, which is more likely to benefit than suffer from Brexit, even if negotiations turn sour. At £1.69, existing investors should hold. New investors could take advantage of recent weakness and buy shares.
