Perth-based Coote Industrial snuck a $124.6 million annual loss into the late June 30 reporters yesterday.
The company explained the loss in its statement to the ASX as being due to significant write-downs on its assets.
Coote, which runs five businesses providing technical services to industries using heavy machinery and rolling stock, revealed $118.9 million worth of impairments, write-downs and losses on sales of assets in the year to June.
The loss result compares to a $4.5 million loss in the previous year.
Excluding the one-off items, Coote posted an annual underlying loss of $5.7 million, a turnaround from an underlying profit of $2.5 million in the 2009 financial year
"The operating loss was impacted by a number of factors including difficult economic conditions and severe working capital constraints under which the Company operated for some time," the company said yesterday.
"The Company has also written off a substantial amount of goodwill associated with prior years acquisitions and has also written down the value of its inventory, work in progress and fixed assets following a detailed review of the carrying value of these assets."
"Previous guidance provided by the Company in its ASX release of 3 August 2010 of an expected loss of between $45 million and $55 million was subject to further write down of assets expected at completion of the audit."
At the December halfway mark the company reported net tax after profit down 70% to $2.19 million.
For the full year revenue was down $90 million at $227 million.
Chairman Dale Elphinstone said the result was disappointing.
"Despite this year’s result and the requirement to make substantial asset write-downs and impairment charges, we remain confident of the future prospects of our key businesses and look forward to a much improved operating performance in FY2011 in terms of both revenue and profit," he said in yesterday’s statement.
Net debt at June 30 was $103.5 million, down from $147.3 million a year earlier, and bank facilities have been renegotiated to at least February 2011, Coote said.
Coote shares rose half a cent to 19.5c.
And another Perth-based company, minerals tester, Ammtec Ltd has rejected a revised takeover offer from Brisbane-based testing group, Campbell Brothers, saying it undervalues the company and does not reflect Ammtec’s strong earnings outlook.
"Ammtec’s directors believe the revised offer… continues to materially undervalue Ammtec’s shares and, in particular, ignores the very strong earnings outlook for the Company in FY2011 (financial 2011)," Ammtec said in a statement to the ASX yesterday.
Campbell Brothers this week increased its cash offer from $3.35 per share to $3.80 per share on August 30 valuing Ammtec at $139 million.
Campbell Brothers also increased its alternative all share offer to a new ratio of four Campbell Brothers shares for every 33 Ammtec shares.
Ammtec shares were last traded at $3.80, steady, but had been 2c higher during trading. Campbell shares closed at $31.86, down a cent, after being lower during the day.
Campbell launched its takeover attempt in May and Ammtec has managed to avoid finality.
Campbell now has 11% of Ammtec’s shares and says that if it gets 30% by later this month, it will declare the offer unconditional, meaning it is willing to sit on the Ammtec share register as the biggest shareholder and make life difficult.
Ammtec, an analytical and metallurgical services firm, claims it is worth more to Campbell Brothers than reflected in the revised offer.
"Campbell Brothers did not approach the Ammtec Board seeking our support and recommendation because it knew the revised offer was not going to be seen as appropriate value for shareholders.
"Instead, Campbell Brothers is flagging a new strategy, indicating it will drop its offer conditions on securing just 30 per cent acceptances, and seeking to influence or control Ammtec from a minority position."
Ammtec’s said activity was at record levels two months into the new financial year.
"We continue to see a very strong pipeline of new contract opportunities over and above that factored in to our FY2011 earnings guidance."
And James Hardie is expected to launch an immediate appeal after losing a $368 million tax case in the Federal Court yesterday.
It said in a statement to the ASX yesterday that it was considering its position and had 21 days to file the action.
The company gave a heads up on Monday that the decision was imminent.
Justice Margaret Stone dismissed a suit by a wholly-owned Hardie subsidiary, RCI Pty Ltd, against the Australian Taxation Office.
No cash payment will be required at this stage if the company files an appeal within the 21-day deadline.
James Hardie said on Monday that if it lost the case, ‘‘a charge is likely to be required to be recorded while the company continues any appeal process".
If the charge had been raised on its last reporting da
