Doors business sale boosts Spring Ram after from disposal sale

Spring Ram, the troubled kitchens and bathrooms maker based in Bradford, is boosting its finances by slightly more than pounds 22m by selling most of its loss-making Crosby doors business to Premdor of Canada.

Roger Regan, chairman of Spring Ram, which nearly collapsed three years ago, said: "The proposed disposal of Crosby represents an important step in the group's programme of divesting non-core operations.

"This programme, once fully implemented, will free management resources to focus fully on exploiting the strong market positions of the group's core kitchens and bathrooms divisions."

Premdor, one of the world's biggest makers of doors, is paying Spring Ram pounds 12.3m cash and assuming pounds 9.8m of Crosby's debts. Spring Ram will retain a 20 per cent stake in Crosby.

Spring Ram also forecast that, in the absence of unforeseen circumstances, the group's interim loss before exceptional items and taxation for the six months ended 29 June 1996 will be not greater than pounds 9.8m, of which approximately pounds 4.6m relates to Crosby. In the comparable period last year, Spring Ram lost pounds 1.1m before tax, which climbed to pounds 43.6m by the year- end after the company made charges of almost pounds 31m for an accelerated and increased cost-reduction programme.

The core kitchens and bathrooms divisions improved their performance over the second half of last year and this trend is expected to continue, the company added.

Spring Ram's shares closed unchanged at 14.5p, valuing the company at just pounds 66m.

COMPANY RESULTS

Turnover pounds Pre-tax pounds EPS Dividend

Ashtead Group (F) 95.9m (67.3m) 16.8m (13.6m) 13.3p (11.3p) 3.07p (2.47p)

BAA (Q1) - (-) 130m (127m) 9.5p (9.3p) nil (-)

Coral Products (F) 8.82m (6.13m) 1.6m (1.23m) 7p (6.8p) 2.25p (2p)

Kode International (I) 9.61m (10.2m) 0.21m (0.64m) - (4.4p) 0.75p (nil)

ISA (I) 122m (106m) 3.70m (2.98m) 5.9p (4.8p) 0.88p (0.73p)

Moorepay Group (I) 2.72m (2.34m) 0.85m (0.67m) 7.52p (5.88p) 2.2p (3.2p)

NECA Hldgs (I) 3.88m (11.3m) 0.02m (0.20m) -0.6p (2.3p) nil (-)

Porvair (I) 25.0m (15.3m) 1.54m (1.26m) 4.1p (5.4p) 1.9p (1.7p)

Regal Hotel Grp (I) 21.6m (5.60m) 2.92m (0.49m) 1.69p (0.86p) 0.325p (-)

(F) - Final (I) - Interim (Q) - Quarterly adjusted