Fisons soars on sell-off
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Shares leapt by 13 per cent in Fisons as the drugs group announced the £202m sale of its Scientific Instruments business. City observers said the move immediately makes Fisons itself more attractive to potential predators.
The shares added 17p to 146p as the company confirmed that the purchaser of the division, which made £11.7m losses last year, was Thermo Instruments Systems of the US.
"This is very good news," said a City pharmaceuticals specialist. "Scientific Instruments has been looked on as one of the biggest cans of worms at Fisons, deterring potential bidders, because it was looked on as a black hole. It makes a bid for Fisons more likely."
City pundits also believed Fisons had achieved a good price for the business, and that it indicated that chief executive Stuart Wallis, who joined last September from Bowater, the packaging firm, was determined there would be no sacred cows in his assessment of ongoing operations.
The Scientific Instruments business employs 3,000 worldwide, and capital employed at the end of 1994 was £128.5m. The division includes VG Instruments and Fisons Applied Sensor Technology in the UK, Applied Research Laboratories in Switzerland, Gebruder Haake in Germany, CE Instruments in Italy, and Kevex in the US.
Mr Wallis said the sale was a big step "in reshaping the group to focus on its best long-term growth prospects".
Proceeds of the deal will be used to reduce borrowings. Fisons is due to announce its 1994 trading results next Tuesday, with analysts predicting pre-tax profits of £54m.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments