COMPANY AFFAIRS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 108, 10 May 1933, Page 4

COMPANY AFFAIRS.

TAUPIRI COAL MINES. INCREASED PROFITS. DIVIDEND 5 PER CENT. The thirty-fourth annual accounts of the Taupiri Coal Mines, Ltd., disclose increased profits as compared with those earned the previous year, but are less than half of those recorded in 1931. The directors, report, which is to be presented to shareholders on Wednesday, May 17, states that after making allowance for depreciation there is a credit balance of £6343, to which is added £4541 brought forward from last year, making a total of £10,884. Preference share dividends have been paid amounting to £1280, leaving a balance of £9604. The directors now recommend that a dividend of 1/ per share be paid to ordinary- shareholders, absorbing £6500, and that £3104 be carried forward to next year's accounts. The directors record with regret the resignation during the year on account of ill-health of Mr. R. E. Isaacs, who had filled the office of auditor from the inception of the company. Messrs. Hutchison, Elliffe and Cameron had been appointed in his stead. _ The retiring directors. Colonel H. D. Holgate and Mr. A. J. Parker, are renominated. Following is a comparison of the company's results and appropriations over the last three years:— I - 1931. 1932. 1933. Brought forward . £11.290 £10,232 £4,<541 Net profits 13,530 2,409 6,343 £24,532 £12,041 £10,884 Dividends— _ „ - rref S S 6 ~-o Amount .... 1,600 1,600 1,280 Ord 10 5 5 Amount .... 13,000 6,500 6,500 Carried forward . £10,232 £4,541 £3,104 The paid capital of the company is £150,000, outside liabilities total £6058, and £2430 is provided for income tax, Chief assets are: Lands, buildings and plant, £80,955; mortgages, etc., £10,818; New Zealand War Loan, £46,633; shares and deebntures in 'Waikato Carbonisation Co., Ltd., £34,750; sundry debtors, £8771.

BYCROFTS LIMITED. PROFITS STEADY. DIVIDEND MAINTAINED. A slight drop is net profits is disclosed in the annual accounts just issued by Bycrofts, Ltd., for the year ended March 31. The dividend ie maintained at last year's rate of 9 1-6 per cent. The report states that the result is very satisfactory, and is due to the solid entrenching policy which the board has steadily followed. Having made the customary ample provision for all contingencies, including an adequate anticipation of bad debts, income tax and depreciation, the directors recommend a dividend of 1/10 a share, of which one half was paid as an interim dividend in November. Reference is made to the loss the. company suffered by the death of Mr. Charles , Rhodes, who had been chairman for many years. Mr. A. B. Roberton. who had acted as deputy-chairman for several years, was appointed chairman and Mr. Eric Rhodes filled the vacancy on the directorate. The retiring director, Mr. E. Anderson, is offering himself for re-elec-tion. ~ Following is a comparison of the company's results and appropriations over the past three years:— 1031. 1932. 1933. Brought forward . £1,740 £2,987 £3,443 Net profits 10,530 9.622 9,489 £12,570 £12,609 £12.932 Dividend, p.c. p.a. 9 7-12 9 1-0 9 1-6 Amount ..*.... 9,553 9,106 9,166 Carried forward . £2,987 £3,443 £3,760 BURNS, PHiLP AND CO. "ENCOURAGING" RESULTS. DIVIDEND 10 PER CENT. The fifty-first annual accounts issued by Burns, Philp and Co., Sydney, for the year ended March 31, show that net profits have been increased and the usual rate of dividend -is recommended. The report states that trading conditions continued difficult during the year, but the net result of the company's operations was moije encouraging. The gradual improvement in the merchandise Beciion of the business anticipated by the directors in the report issued in 1932, duly took place, and the volume of sales shows a considerable improvement. Unfortunately, the improvement is counterbalanced to some extent by a reduced profit rate, due to intense competition. Earnings from shipping services were maintained, notwithstanding increasing foreign competition - . . , Following is a comparison of the company's profits and appropriations over the past three years: — 1931. 1932. 1933. Brought forw'd £31,075 £33,888 £30,295 Net pofits ... 227,213 202,407 208,531 £258,888 £236,295 £244,82.6 Dividend, p.c. 10 10 10 Amount ... 150,000 150,000 150,000 To reserve -. 75,000 50,000 25,000 Copra depreciation a/c . — — Staff bonus .. — — 20,000 Carried for'wd £33,888 £36,295 £24,820 The capital of the company remains at £1,500,000 in shares of £1 each. During the year £10,586 was added to the company' 6 insurance fund. TRADERS' FINANCE CO. PREFERENCE DIVIDEND. An interim dividend at the usual rate of 7 per cent per annum, now subject to the statutory reduction of 20 per cent, thus making 5 3-5 per cent per annum, on preference shares, has been declared by the directors of the Traders' Finance Corporation, Limited, of Auckland, for the half-year ended-March 31. Payment will be made on May 15. No announcement has been made with regard to ordinary shares, which have received no dividend for two years.

AUSTRALIAN EXCHANGES. YESTERDAY'S BUSINESS. SYDNEY, May 9. On the Sydney Stock Exchange to-day the tunover again was heavy with all round firmness due to the increasing confidence of anticipations as to the success of next Saturday's Legislative Council referendum. _ This morning's sales included:—Tooth s Brewery, 37/9; Dunlop, Perdriau, 16/10%; Broken Hill Proprietary, 33/4%. Sales this afternoon included: —Bank of New South Wales, £29 15/; Commercial Bank of Sydney, £15 15/; Colonial Sugar, £55 10/; Adelaide Steam, .21/6; "Associated New 6," 8/2; ditto, preference, 18/3; British Tobacco, 34/9; Goldsbrough, Mort, 23/9; Dunlop. Perdriau, 16/10%; Henry Jones, 37/9; Electrolytic Zinc, 18/; ditto, preference. 31/; Tooth's Brewery, 37/7%; Toohey's Brewery, 21/7%; Mount Lyell, 22/4%; Broken Hill Proprietary, 33/3; South Broken Hill, 50/. Melbourne sales included: — Metropolitan Gas, £12 11 ': Goldsbrough, Mort, '23/8; Electrolytic Zinc, preference, 31/; North Broken Hill, 77/; Mount Lyell, 22/3.