Lou Gutheil

We all know the recession is bad, but I was shocked today to see a headline that said  “One Shop Was Closed Every Hour Last Year.”  I immediately thought “That can’t be good for business.  How is that bloke going to make any income?  You’ve got to be open sometime.” Of course, then my rapier-sharp […]

I believe that if you’ve got a niche, you should scratch it.  That is exactly what specialty pharmaceutical Clinigen has done, and it seems to be working out quite nicely.  The relative newcomer to the London Stock Exchange (25 September 2012), witnessed a 10.9% jump in its share price following release of its interim results […]

“Good morning, Holmes.  Anything interesting in the news today?” “Yes, in fact, Dr. Watson there is.” “What is it, Holmes?  Are you not going to tell me?  Must I guess?” At this point, Holmes handed the disheveled paper to Dr. Watson and said with a sigh, “It’s Elementis, my dear Watson.  It’s Elementis.” Holmes had […]

Nat Rothschild left the Bumi shareholders meeting in London yesterday, 21 February, having lost a major battle, but vowing to fight on.  Nineteen of Rothshild’s 22 proposed resolutions were  rejected by shareholders.  The Bumi share price followed by continuing its year long 60% decline with a 21.3 pence plunge (5.44%) to 370.0 shortly past midday […]

No one in their right mind ever said that business is easy.  Even the biggest and best of companies suffer the slings and arrows of misfortune.  BAE Systems (LSE:BA.) is an example. Despite less than spectacular results for 2012, investors showed confidence in BAE today, boosting the company’s share price by 5.1% to 349.1.  Shareholder […]

The share price of mining giant BHP Billiton (LSE:BLT) has traveled an upward trajectory since May 2012, from 1,681 on 23 May to 2,236 at 19 February 2013.  Although the stock remained above its 90 day moving average from 25 July onward, the price hit a number of pitfalls along the way.  Today was one […]

Brammer plc (LSE:BRAM) may not be a household name, even to investors, but it is a company worth watching. Brammer released its preliminary results for the year ending 31 December 2012, this morning.  The results include an 11.9% increase in revenue to a record £639.6 million, up from £571.5 in 2011.  That alone might be considered reason […]

Japan breathed a sigh of relief this morning as the G20 summit in Moscow closed with no direct comment on the continuing decrease in the yen or its potential impact. The Nikkei 225 index (NIK:NI225) gained over 2% today as the yen weakened to 94.10 against the US dollar after reaching 92.25 at the close […]

Rolls Royce (LSE:RR.) turned in an astounding 24% increase in pre-tax profit on a 9% increase in revenue.   The reported full year profit of £1,429 million is not only up £272 million from £1,157 million in 2011, it is also the 10th year in a a row that the firm has recorded increased profits year-on-year. Revenue for […]

Household care products company Reckitt Benckiser (LSE:RB.) pleased investors today with its 2012 results and its plans for 2013 and beyond.  Its share price on the London exchange had risen by 91.0 pence (2.09%) to 4454.0 by 1:30 this afternoon. The company reported 2012 results in line with expectations with a 5% growth in operating […]