Sharewatch: Carlton And Granada Rise As Shares Delisted

Carlton and Granada were among the best performer’s in last week’s media market rising by 10.39% and 5.44% respectively as the formal completion of their merger drew closer. Shares in Carlton and Granada were desisted at the end of trading on Friday to make way for ITV plc, which made its first appearance on the stock exchange this morning with a share price of 143˝p (see ITV Enters New Phase With Merger Completion).

However, John Nelson, the former investment banker tipped as chairman for ITV plc, is understood to have withdrawn his candidature for the post. Reports suggest Nelson withdrew his name before Christmas, despite being seen by some non-executives and investors as an ideal candidate.

Highbury House Communications, publisher of Front and Fast Car, also performed well with shares rising by 9.30%% after issuing an upbeat trading report showing that its consumer operations were performing well (see Highbury House Profits In Line With Market Forecasts).

Meanwhile, Capital Radio was seen in focus rising by 4.21% week on week following the release of the latest RAJAR listening figures for the fourth quarter of 2003. However, GWR was less fortunate with stock falling by 2.58% and Chrysalis dipped by 1.85% (see RAJAR Results: Q4 2003: Heart Keeps Capital Under Pressure).

The worst performance in last week’s media market came from Maiden, which saw shares decline by 7.21% after revealing that it expects full year pre tax profits to be lower than forecast, at between £5.3 million and £5.5 million (see Maiden Issues Profits Warning As Pre-Tax Profits Dip).

The closing prices of media company shares on Friday were: