17 Jul 06. CodaOctopus Group, Inc. announces the recent acquisition of Martech Systems (Weymouth) Ltd, the first acquisition since the launch of CodaOctopus Group, Inc., in 2004, as a US public company. This marks an important milestone in the execution of the Group’s growth strategy and underpins its plans for expansion into defence markets. Based in Weymouth on the south coast of England, Martech Systems is a sub-contract engineering services provider to the nearby defence establishments. Since 1988, the company has developed a strong reputation for high integrity engineering development of electronic, software and mechanical systems and is an ISO9001 accredited company with secure facilities. Capitalizing on its key strengths of engineering excellence with a reputation for reliability and quality, Martech has also diversified into other high integrity non-defence markets and its client base includes some of the finest cutting-edge technology companies and organisations in the world, including Thales, Harwell, EADS, Bayer Diagnostics, Ultra Electronics and the UK Atomic Energy Authority.
18 Jul 06. United Technologies Corp. second-quarter earnings rose 13.6 percent, helped by strong demand for its jet engines and other aerospace components. The company, whose shares rose 1.5 percent in premarket trade, also raised it full-year sales and earnings forecasts, citing the robust second quarter. United Tech, whose operations range from Pratt & Whitney jet engines to Otis elevators, posted a profit of $1.1bn, or $1.09 per share, up from $971m, or 95 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time gains of 7 cents a share in excess of restructuring charges, the earnings were a penny a share higher than Wall Street analysts had expected, according to Reuters Estimates. Revenue rose 10 percent, to $12.26bn from $11.15bn a year earlier. Analysts had expected $11.85bn, according to Reuters Estimates. Citing the strong results, the company raised its full-year forecast to earnings in a range of $3.55 to $3.65 per share on revenue of $47bn. Its previous forecast was $3.50 to $3.60 per share on revenue of $46bn. Analysts’ average forecast was $3.62 per share on revenue of $46.15bn,
according to Reuters Estimates. Second-quarter results were driven by strong demand for the Hartford, Connecticut, company’s aerospace products, which include Pratt & Whitney jet engines and Hamilton Sundstrand airplane electronics and power systems. Operating profit at Pratt & Whitney, United Tech’s largest unit, was up 45.4 percent on 20 percent revenue growth. Hamilton Sundstrand operating profit rose 24.7 percent on 13.8 percent revenue growth. (Source: FT.com)
19 Jul 06. The Carlyle Group may opt to sell its controlling stake in Avio Holding, the Italian aerospace engine maker, through a private placement rather than a planned initial public offering on the Milan stock exchange. Saverio Strati, chief executive of Avio, said yesterday that the company was in “advanced talks with some private equity funds” to buy Carlyle’s stake, although he did not rule out an IPO. (Source: FT.com)
20 Jul 06. Thales concludes agreement to sell its GPS Navigation business to Shah Capital Partners. The divestment supports refocus of Thales’ portfolio and provides a compelling investment opportunity for Shah Capital Partners. Thales and an investor group led by Shah Capital Partners have signed an agreement regarding the divestment from Thales of most of its navigation business. Under the agreement, Shah Capital Partners will fully acquire Thales Navigation for $170m and rename the company to Magellan Navigation, Inc. Thales Navigation is a leader in the consumer, survey, GIS, and OEM GPS navigation and positioning markets. The company is the creator of the Hertz NeverLost® car navigation system, the award-winning Magellan® RoadMate™ series portable car navigation systems, and ProMark™, the best-selling single frequency GPS survey family on the market. The co