The sale of a 20% stake in TrafficMaster Plc for ú4.8m proved a substantial boost to Peek Plc’s interim figures. The company saw its profits rise ú189.3% to ú6.3m on turnover up 14.1% at ú64.6m following the sale of shares earlier this year, which accounted for an exceptional gain of ú3.9m. Peek, which has made some 34 acquisitions in recent years, said that it was now gearing up for yet another spending spree. Although, this time it said acquisitions would be on the measurement side of the business to build this sector rather as it had done with the traffic control division. The company said it was currently looking at half a dozen deals with both UK and US firms although no deals were likely to be struck this year. The measurement business is part of the field data division which made ú1.4m in pre-tax profits on sales of ú15.4m; 30% of revenues came from sales of its Husky ruggidised notebook computers. The traffic division, for which the company is best known, saw pre-tax profits of ú3.7m on a turnover of ú49.2m. We are pleased that the anticipated orders, sales and profits from Asia are beginning to materialise, Ken Maud said in his chairman’s statement. Peek has now won the second phase of a ú17m contract to build a traffic control system in Bangkok which it values at ú11m. It said that Thailand and China were now the most promising markets, with North America remaining steady, although Maud said that Europe has been slow with continued pressure on margins. Nevertheless, the company said its order book was still significantly higher than last year and its order backlog was on the increase. The GEC-Marconi Ltd transport systems division, which Peek bought in February (CI No 2,607), was now reported to be fully integrated into Peek Traffic and would make a positive contribution in 1996. The company now plans to launch an above ground traffic detection system, VideoTrak, in the US later this year and said that interest in the system had exceeded expectations. The board recommends an interim of 1.05p, the same as last half. Peek’s share price was unmoved at 103 pence.
