Silentnight profits alert proves rude awakening for investors

The bed and furniture maker Silentnight warned yesterday that it would miss profit estimates for the year, sending its shares down 10.5 per cent, less than a week after its chairman and chief executive quit.

"It is evident that trading conditions have become more challenging across most of our businesses and that this will impact on our second-half results," the company said. Its shares plunged 16p, or 10.5 per cent, to close at 136p.

Silentnight said it now expects to report a profit for the year, before exceptional items, of at least £5m – well beneath analysts' estimates of about £8m.

The alert came six days after chairman Keith Ackroyd and chief executive Bill Simpson caved in to pressure from the firm's controlling shareholder and quit. The Clarke family, who own 50.5 per cent of Silentnight through their Famco Holdings vehicle, had called a meeting to have the pair removed after pulling out of talks to take the firm private.

Silentnight said it believed it was still Famco's "longer-term" intention to take the business private. "However, their immediate concern is for the management to address the pressing commercial requirements of the business," it said.

The firm said its first-half figures would include a £2m goodwill write-off, a £3m asset impairment charge, and a £1.1m charge to cover the fall in value of shares in a share option plan.