Northern Financial Review

Unite Group plc said its student accommodation developer Unite Students acquired an asset under development near the University of Durham for £34 million. The accommodation will open in September 2018 and…

Rotherham-based real estate and brownfield regeneration firm Harworth Group said it conditionally raised £27.8 million by placing 29.2 million new shares at 95p in order to…

Leeds-based healthcare software and information technology firm EMIS Group said its 2016 revenue rose 2% to £158.7 million and statutory operating profit rose 106% to £23.5 million “despite headwinds created by the NHS…

Toyota said it will invest a further £240 million in its car plant in Burnaston, Derbyshire to “improve plant competitiveness and … promote UK supply chain efficiencies.” But…

Leeds-based private equity firm Endless LLP said it backed the carve-out of Sheffield-based SIG plc’s Carpet and Flooring (C&F) business. C&F has turnover of around £100 million and employs…

The Peel Group-led consortium behind the £5 billion Liverpool Waters development unveiled the first glimpse of the new Central Docks neighbourhood at the MIPIM property conference in Cannes…

Select Property Group said it signed heads of terms on a joint venture partnership deal with the Greater Manchester Property Venture Fund (GMPVF) to deliver its…

Manchester-based drug discovery company C4X Discovery Holdings said it raised £7 million in a share placing to support the firm’s expansion plans. AIM-listed C4X said 8,235,294…

Winsford, Chesire-based surgical and advanced wound care firm Advanced Medical Solutions Group (AMS) said its 2016 revenue rose 20% to £82.6 million and profit before tax rose 12% to…

Aberdeen-based oil and gas services company Wood Group said it agreed to buy rival firm Amec Foster Wheeler for about £2.2 billion in an all-share “transformational” deal….

Manchester’s up-for-sale Co-operative Bank said on Thursday its statutory loss before tax, still impacted by legacy issues, was reduced to £477.1 million in 2016 compared to a…

Bradford-based supermarket group Morrisons said turnover in the year to January 29 edged up 1.2% to £16.3 billion and underlying pretax profit rose to £337 million — but warned…

Sheffield-based Benchmark Holdings, the aquaculture biotechnology and food chain sustainability company, said it signed a long-term agreement with major Norwegian salmon producer SalMar ASA “to provide genetics, health…

Manchester-based internet infrastructure firm Metronet (UK), backed by mid-market private equity firm Livingbridge, said it acquired London-based fibre network provider Venus Business Communications. The acquisition of Venus follows Metronet’s…

Manchester-based car dealer Lookers plc said 2016 revenue increased 17% to £4.3 billion and adjusted profit before tax increased 7% to £77.1 million as it vowed to continue looking…

Sheffield-based software and hardware firm Servelec said its 2016 revenue fell 3% to £61 million and profit before tax fell 29% to £9.5 million as delays in procurement…

Rotherham-based real estate and brownfield regeneration firm Harworth Group said its 2016 net asset value (NAV) rose 12.5% to £334.9 million — 115p per share — helped…

Newcastle-based Sage Group, the UK’s largest tech company, said it agreed to acquire Fairsail, the fast-growing cloud human capital management system for mid-sized businesses. Currently a minority…

Sheffield-based rail depot equipment manufacturer Mechan said it will be acquired by French railway infrastructure company CIM Group. “Our name, management and personnel will stay the…

Durham-based Atom Bank, the UK’s first bank designed exclusively for mobile technology, said it agreed a further £83 million in equity capital from major shareholders. The latest…

Durham-headquartered Banks Renewables, the renewable energy division of property and energy business Banks Group, said it secured a £210 million investment package to support the construction…

Merseyside-based soft drinks firm Nichols plc said Vimto sales helped its 2016 revenue rise 7.4% to £117.3 million and operating profit rise 9% to £30.3 million. “There is no doubt that the…

French utility Engie said it agreed to acquire the regeneration business of Doncaster-based social housing developer Keepmoat, which specialises in renovating buildings for local authorities, for about £330 million. Engie said…

Shares of Leeds-based International Personal Finance (IPF) fell about 10% after the home credit firm said its profit before tax fell 20% in 2016 to £92.6 million on revenue up 1.2%…

Newcastle-based train wi-fi company Nomad Digital said its chief operating officer Reece Donovan has been appointed CEO from March 1 after Andrew Taylor stepped down. Taylor will…

Liverpool Football Club filed annual accounts for the year to May 31, 2016, revealing that revenue increased £3.9 million to a record £301 million but that…

Skipton Building Society said its 2016 gross residential mortgage lending rose 8% to a record £4 billion, total assets rose 8.6% to £19 billion, and profit after tax increased…

Barrow-in-Furness marine engineering services company James Fisher said its 2016 revenue rose 6% to £466 million and underlying profit before tax grew by 11% to…

Oldham-based consumer goods firm Ultimate Products said its London Stock Exchange IPO price was set at 128p per share, which will equate to a market capitalisation of £105.2…

Manchester-based cyber security company NCC Group said Rob Cotton stepped down as chief executive and as an executive director of its board with immediate effect. Brian Tenner,…

Shares of Newcastle-based transport group Go-Ahead Group fell more than 13% after it said half year results to December 31 were in line with management expectations but that…

Newcastle-based bakery and “food-on-the-go” retailer Greggs said its 2016 sales rose 7% to £894.2 million and pre-tax profit excluding exceptional items rose 10% to £80.3 million. However Greggs shares fell 3%…

Chesire-based workwear and linen rental company Johnson Service Group (JSG) said its 2016 revenue rose 36.4% to £256.7 million and profit before tax soared 49.7% to £25.9 million. JSG…

Liverpool Football Club announced that Peter Moore will become its new chief executive officer in June and report directly to the club’s owners, Fenway Sports Group. Liverpool-born…

Shares of Chester-based price comparison website company Moneysupermarket.com fell about 5% after it said its revenues were currently behind last year amid low interest rates. The company said 2016…

Newcastle and Edinburgh-based challenger bank Virgin Money said its 2016 statutory profit before tax increased 41% to £194.4 million and its gross mortgage lending grew 12% to £8.4 billion, giving it…

Selby, North Yorkshire-based power company Drax Group said it is “participating in separate processes” for the acquisition out of bankruptcy of the operating assets of Texas Pellets and Louisiana…

York-based housebuilder Persimmon said its 2016 revenue increased 8% to £3.14 billion and profit before tax rose 23% to £774.8 million as it delivered 15,171 homes across the UK, an…

Land Securities said it completed the sale of The Printworks landmark city centre leisure complex in Manchester to DTZ Investors for £108 million. Redeveloped in 2000, The…

Boeing said it plans to open a new £20 million production facility in Sheffield to manufacture high-tech components for its next-generation 737, 737 MAX and 777 aircraft. Boeing…

Newcastle Building Society said its gross mortgage lending rose 46% to £496 million in 2016 and and net lending increased from £10 million to £195 million. Newcastle…

Nissan said it reached a milestone of nine million cars built at its Sunderland plant — which employs 6,700 — since production began in 1986. The company…

Chinese life sciences company Lianhe Chemical Technology Company (Lianhetech) agreed to buy Middlesbrough-based chemicals manufacturer Fine Industries from Manchester-based private equity firm NorthEdge Capital and Fine Industries…

The UK government’s business and energy secretary Greg Clark announced £229 million worth of investment in the development of cutting-edge advanced materials and a new…

Bolton-based online electrical retailer AO World said chief operating officer Steve Caunce would succeed company founder John Roberts as its CEO, effective immediately. Roberts, 43, who founded AO World in 2000 and…

The UK government’s Northern Powerhouse Minister Andrew Percy called on the North of England to come together to tackle the “massive” challenges facing the region….

Investment to improve east-west transport links is the key to unlocking the North’s economic growth, the UK Northern Powerhouse conference in Manchester was told. The UK…

Manchester-based McBride plc, the manufacturer of private label household and personal care products, said it was considering expressions of interest to acquire its aerosols business. McBride, which employs about 5,000 around…

Mercia Technologies plc, the investment firm that focuses on the UK regions, said it was successful in its bids, via its subsidiary Enterprise Ventures Limited, to manage two of the British…

Unite Group plc said its Unite Students division, a developer of student accommodation, has exchanged contracts to acquire a development site near the University of Manchester for about £41 million on…

Leeds Building Society said it delivered record profits before tax for the fourth consecutive year as it grew its assets to £15.9 billion in 2016 from…

Shares of Manchester-based cyber security company NCC Group have fallen more than 40% since it issued a surprise trading update late on Tuesday, initiated a strategic review, and abruptly cancelled…

The World Bank said in a new paper that economic policy uncertainty in Europe and the United States is contributing to a decline in world trade…

Newcastle-based utility consultancy Utilitywise, which employs around 1,600 people, said in a trading update for the six months to January 31 that it “performed in line with management expectations…

Leeds-based Asda, a subsidiary of US retail giant Walmart, said its comparable sales declined 2.9% in the fourth quarter ending December 31, excluding petrol. But the figures showed an…

Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank owner CYBG said late on Monday that it notified Royal Bank of Scotland that it has withdrawn its preliminary non-binding proposal for,…

Leeds-based car leasing and fleet management firm Zenith said its new owner Bridgepoint acquired Contract Vehicles Holdings Limited group (CVL) from its shareholders “as Zenith builds the…

Rotherham-based fishing tackle retailer Fishing Republic, which had an IPO in 2015, issued a trading update for the financial year to December 31 and said its website sales…

North Wales-based firm Qioptiq has won a new £82 million contract with the UK’s Ministry of Defence. “The deal with Qioptiq in St Asaph, North Wales, will see…

Dutch multinational firm AkzoNobel — owner of brands including Dulux and Polyfilla — said it will develop a new €12.6 million research and innovation hub at…

Unilever and Kraft Heinz announced in a joint statement on Sunday that Kraft Heinz “has amicably agreed to withdraw its proposal for a combination of…

UK-Dutch consumer goods giant Unilever — owner of brands including Dove, Flora, Hellmans, PG Tips, Knorr and Persil — rejected a potential offer of around $143 billion from The Kraft…

Student accommodation developer Unite Group plc said it would sell 13 properties comprising 4,175 beds to a Brookfield-managed fund for £295 million, with Unite’s share of the deal…

Swiss company Stadler said it signed a deal with Merseytravel worth up to £700 million to build and maintain 52 metro trains on the Merseyrail network…

Shares of Selby, North Yorkshire-based power company Drax Group fell more than 5% on Thursday after it said earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA)…