Waltons Confident Of Rise In Earning Rates

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31500, 14 October 1967, Page 18

Waltons Confident Of Rise In Earning Rates

(N.Z. Trett Arrociotion—Copyright) SYDNEY, October 13.

The directors of Waltons, Ltd, are confident that profit and earning rate will increase in the current year, they said in their annual report. The challenges of the past year have been met and the foundations laid for substantial improvements in future sales and profits.

They said they were confident that Marcus Clark would contribute significantly in this and future year* to the company’s increasing profits. “The advantages of the Marcus Clark acquisition are manifest. “Waltons gained at once, and at minimum cost, needed facilities whose profit potential is undoubted, as well as experienced staff and additional customers. “The development., represented by the acquisition of the Marcus Clark group could only Otherwise have been achieved over a considerable period of time and at a much greater cost,” they said. The directors said the coming year was expected to be one of continued and profitable growth for F.N.C.8.Waltons Corporation, Ltd, as many of its development plans had been completed. The premium income of Waltons’ Insurance Company, Ltd, which began to underwrite and to issue its own policies in 1966-67 exceeds slm a year. Profit taken into account for the year was $11,350.

Dalgety Whale Industries Ltd has exceeded profit forecasts made at time of the successful take-over from Dalgety and New Zealand Loan Company Ltd. Whale, N.S.W. pastoralist, earned a profit of $300,916 in the year to June 30 compared With the drought-induced loss of $141,941 the. previous year. The profit compares with a forecast profit of $275,000 made by directors when recommending acceptance of the Dalgety offer. Dalgety paid $2,247,000 for Whale, or 75c cash for each 50c share.

The latest profit represents a return of 13.4 per cent on the capital outlaid by Dalgety to acquire the company.

Oil Search British Petroleum will pay Oil Search Ltd’s share of the cost of an-oil exploration programme in Papua, up to a maximum of $3.4m in Oil Search areas not already farmed out to Esso Standard Oil.

Under this agreement, Oil Search will transfer to BP

shares in its operating companies, Australiasian Petroleum Company and Island Exploration Company. v After the exploration ,TOOgramme, Oil Search will still hold just over half the capital of the companies. As a result of the agreement Oil Search’s interest in its areas already farmed out to Esso will be reduced to 25 per cent if the farmbut is carried out Gold Fields

The Mount Goldsworthy iron ore project in Western Australia earned at pre-tax profit of $4,812,000 in its first full year iff operation to June 30.

This is indicated ip the annual report of Consolidated Gold Fields Australia, Ltd, Which has a one-third interest in the project. The report says that C.G.FA.’s interest in the profit amounted to $1,604,000.

However, only $1,158,000 of the amount was included in the group’s 1966-67 results, the remainder being retained by Goldsworthy Mining, Ltd, the operating company jn ,the venture. ' '