COMMERCIAL COMPANY AND MINING NEWS AND REPORTS

Greymouth Evening Star, 2 September 1947, Page 9

COMMERCIAL COMPANY AND MINING NEWS AND REPORTS

Clutha River Dredge.— -The return for the week ended August 29 is as follows: Hours worked. 119.‘and gold recovered, 130 ounces. Grey River. — Return for fortnight ended August 27: 755.3 ounces from 162.360 yards, in 264 hours. Wellington Investment’s Year.— Volume of business had been maintained almost at last year’s total, said the chairman of directors of the Wellington Investment Trustee and Agency Company, Ltd. Mr G. G. G. Watson, in his address to the annual meeting of shareholders. Gross income from mortgage investment, commissions, etc., amounted to £10,309. compared with £10.524 last year. In view of the increasing difficulty experienced in obtaining suitable investments, earnings lor the veal" could be regarded as satisfactory. Newton King L*d.—-N-f (radinc profit of Newton King, Ltd, for the year ended April 30, 1947, was £52.481, compaied with £45.910 the previous year. With £34.750 brought in. there is £87,051 available. Provirion for income and social security tax takes £30,685 (£30,918); one year's dividend on preference shares, £9074: loss on Government war loan stock,. £25 (£212). This leaves £47,267 to be carried forward. The directors recommend payment of one year's dividend on the preference shares, payable on September 12, at the rale of £5 4s per cent, (statutorily reduced from £6 10s) less social security tax of Is 6d in the £. Booth, Macdonald and Co.— For the year ended .June 30, 1947, the directors of Booth, Macdonald and Company, Ltd, are recommending to shareholders payment of a 4 per cent, dividend on preference shares. N.Z. Drug Dividend.— The directors of Kempthorne, Prosser and Company’s New Zealand Drug Company have declared an interim dividend of 3A per cent, for the half-year ended July 31.— (P.A.) Paparoa Coal.— Shareholders in the Paparoa Coal Company, Ltd, have been advised, of an extraordinary general meeting to be held in Wellington on September 15 to consider winding up the company voluntarily. It is expected that early in t-w liquidation it will be possible to make a first distribution among shareholders of 15s a share. In April the company’s undertaking and assets, excluding liquid assets, were sold to the Crown.—(P.A.)

Bank of Australasia.—This bank is paying an unchanged interim dividend of. 3s 6d sterling a share, or 3iper cent., less British income tax of

9s in £l, on October 3. The yield in New Zealand is about 2.375 per cent. Final dividend last year was 5s a share, or 5 per cent. Broken Hill South, Ltd.—The net profit of this company was more than doubled at £650,180 for the year ended June 30, against £321.433 the previous year. The result is the best for 10 years. Profit is struck after providing £387,000 more lor taxation at £798,000, and £96,230 more for royalty at £157,230. Dividend of 2s a share, or 46 per cent., previously announced, requires less than half the profits. Milne and Choyce’s Profit.—A record net profit of £57,152, a rise of £18,068, is reported by Milne and

Choyce, Ltd, for the year ended July 31. The dividend is raised 1 per cent, to 9 per cent, on all classes of shares. The net result is struck after providing £75,550 for taxation, against £65.000 last year, and £5467 for depreciation, against £5348. Dividend lequircments are £22,500, leaving £34,652 to increase the undivided profits to. £78,329. The gross profit was £236,942, against £232,999, and sundry revenue and return on investments .was £15,460, .against £13,948. Partly .attributable to a wider assortment of merchandise, sales reached the record of about £1.000.000.

Public Trust Office.— Estates to tile value of £632,402 were reported and accepted for administration by the Public Trustee in July. The total value of estates and funds under administration by (he Public Trustee on March 31. 1947, was £66,833.004. The total number of wills now held in the Public Trust Office on behalf of living persons is 137.213.