Warning brings Maiden down 10%

SHARES IN Maiden Group, the outdoor advertisers, slumped 10 per cent yesterday as the company issued a statement warning that first half pre-tax profits would be disappointing. The AGM statement follows a profit warning last summer which saw shares lose more than half their value.

Analysts, who downgraded forecasts to predict pre-tax profits of pounds 7.5m, said the warning reflected the volatility of the sector. One analyst said: "If advertising is looking a bit wobbly, outdoor is the first sector which gets cut. Maiden suffers from being the only quoted company in the outdoor sector so you can see what's really going on." Shares closed down 38p at 346p.