£32m knocked off plastic maker as contracts falter
Plastics maker Carclo saw £31.7m knocked of its value after issuing a double profit warning and announcing its chairman and finance boss would be stepping down.
shares in the company took a hammering after it was hit by a string of contract delays in its two key businesses. it plunged as much as 50pc in early trading before finishing down 34.7pc, or 43.3p, to 81.6p.
carclo said it had experienced an unexpected delay in the awarding of two large tooling and automation contracts in its plastics division. it said the arm was further hit after a key customer – which showed an interest in its moulded plastics business – failed to increase its orders.
its lED car lighting business didn’t fare better either. carclo said delays in the award of three new contracts would also reduce the division’s profit for the current year.
as a result, the firm said profits for the year ending March 2018 would be ‘ significantly below expectations’ and reduced its profit expectations for the 2018-19 financial year.
Following the shock update, carclo also said its group finance director, Robert Brooksbank, would be leaving the firm after 14 years to pursue other career and business opportunities.
investors were also dealt another blow after it revealed its chairman Michael Derbyshire will also retire from the board after nearly six years at the helm.
the FTSE 100 fell 0.12pc, or 9.50 points, to 7769.14 while the
FTSE 250 finished down 0.13pc, or 26.58 points, at 20,832.77.
the discovery of a 910-carat colourless diamond sent shares in
Gem Diamonds rocketing 15.6pc, or 12.6p, to 93.2p.
the miner said the diamond was the largest found at the letseng mine in the southern african kingdom of lesotho. Heat treatment supplier Bodycote soared after lifting its full year guidance and announcing it expects to benefit from President trump’s tax reform.
Bodycote said trading in the final quarter of 2017 was better than anticipated and it now expects its full year profits for 2017 to fall in the upper range of its £117m – £126m estimates.
the FtsE 250 company added that while it is still examining the full effects of recent Us tax legislation on future results, it expects a significant non-cash tax credit for 2017. shares leapt 3.4pc, or 32p, to 983.5p as a result.
News that its boss of 15 years would be exiting the business sent shares in construction company
Watkin Jones plunging. the firm dropped 10.2pc, or 23p, to 203p after chief executive Mark Watkin Jones said he would be stepping down due to personal reasons. the company is on the hunt for a successor and Watkin Jones will step down once a replacement is appointed.
His departure will mark the first time a non-family member will run the company, which has been run by Watkin Jones’ family for more than 227 years.
Watkin Jones and his family have a combined 30pc shareholding in the firm, worth around £168m.
His departure comes after the student-housing builder more than tripled its profits for the year to september 30 to £43.3m from £13.3m. sales jumped 13.1pc to £ 301.9m. the company also announced it would be proposing a final dividend of 4p per share, compared to 2.67p last year – with its total dividend for the year up 10pc to 6.6p.
Payment tech firm Safecharge rose 0.8pc, or 2.5p, to 311p after its subsidiary safecharge Financial services was granted a license by the Financial conduct authority as a payment institution.