Companies: DSN   

Troubled liquid crystal display and computer maker Densitron Technologies confirmed it expects 2001 to show a loss of £750,000, in line with brokers' forecasts – after deductions for minorities' shares of joint venture profits – following two forecast downgrades in the space of two-and-a-half months last autumn, and the resignation of finance director Carl Thompson. Ben Cobley reports.

TechMARK-listed Densitron's update concentrates upon the performance of the two Taiwanese businesses in which it holds stakes. Hitech and VBest are both low-cost liquid crystal display makers, respectively 45 per cent- and 25 per cent-owned by the company. Unaudited profits at these two companies are said to be up by 15 per cent and 160 per cent during the last year.

However, Densitron says only that it expects to meet expectations for last year, not beat them. That means that shareholders will still be bearing a loss on their shares, with house broker KBC Peel Hunt expecting a loss of 2.1p per share after deducting 'minority interests' from the Taiwanese profits.

Analyst Peter Joseph has already been forced to reduce his 2001 forecast twice since the reporting of interim results in September, so the latest update might be seen as more of a reassurance than anything better. Joseph rated the shares as no more than a 'Hold' at 24p early on today, before they surged up to 28.75p in reaction to the news.

There is also the matter of corporate governance, with the company yet to replace Thompson, who departed the firm days before its profit warning in November. Before that Joseph expected 0.2p of earnings per share attributable to Densitron investors.