Windfall for Amberley shareholders

SHARES in Amberley jumped 16% today after the former chemicals group unveiled plans to return up £11.5m to shareholders. The company is aiming to buy back up to 60.5% of all shareholders' holdings at 32p a share.

The move is one of the final stages of a programme, launched last year, to break up the company and return cash to investors.

Amberley, based in Tamworth, Staffordshire, decided on the strategy after tough conditions across the chemicals sector put pressure on margins. Growth was also restricted by the share price, which dipped below 20p in September 2000 and reaching highs of more than 113p in 1998.

It has sold all its subsidiaries and today said that as well as the share buyback, it was exploring other ways to unlock value for shareholders. These could include further buybacks, dividends or even a company reversing into Amberley's listing.

Chairman Roger Fletcher said: 'Following the completion of our programme to dispose of the group's operating subsidiaries, the board's objective was to consider all options to best realise shareholder value.

'Over the next 12 months the board expects to complete the necessary actions to pay off the outstanding liabilities and convert the group's assets into cash.'

Following the sale of the subsidiaries, group turnover fell 27% in the 13 months to April 30 to £49.3m. Bottom-line pre-tax losses, which were hit by one-off costs including those incurred by the disposal of discontinued businesses, came in at £28.4m against pre-tax profits last year of £15,000.

Shares in the group rose 3 3/4p to 29 1/4p.