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WH Ireland pares loss
WH Ireland chairman Rupert Lowe
Stockbroker WH Ireland is ‘cautious’ about prospects after reducing annual losses from £4 million to £2.4 million.
The Manchester-based broker, which handles mostly smaller to medium-sized companies and now provides private wealth management as well, saw turnover on continuing and discontinued operations fall 8.6 per cent to £29.7 million in the year to November. AIM-quoted WH Ireland has been going through a major reconstruction and its continuing operations alone showed a 16 per cent reduction in losses to £2.1 million on turnover down 8.2 per cent to £24.6 million.
The company, which last year parted with its two former lynchpins Laurie Beevers and David Youngman over an abortive tie-up with fellow broker Blue Oar (now Astaire), spent £700,000 on restructuring in 2008-09, involving the departure of 43 staff. But that should lead to annual cost savings of £2.1 million, argues chief executive Richard Ford.
WH Ireland also made a £400,000 profit on selling 39.3 per cent of its loss-making Australian associate, mostly to management, taking its remaining stake to 37.3 per cent. Ford says the company, which acted for 58 AIM companies and six others last year, has been building up its mergers and acquisitions capability.
He attaches particular importance to private wealth management, which showed a 4.5 per cent increase to £1.2 billion in assets under management. Lindsey Hamilton joined from Allied Irish Banks to head this division.
Chairman Rupert Lowe says WH Ireland remains ‘cautious in our outlook, particularly with an impending election' and warns that markets are likely to remain ‘volatile’, while low interest rates make wealth preservation ‘increasingly difficult to achieve’. However, he stresses the company now has ‘an appropriate cost base’ for the future.
Floated at 115p 10 years ago, WH Ireland shares have fluctuated between 84p and 35p over the past 12 months. Now 42.5p, down 2.5p this morning, they value the company at £8.95 million.
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