Ferranti International Signal Plc shares nosedived 14 pence to 83.5 pence on Friday after the company warned that pre-tax profits for the year to March 31, due to be announced on July 14, are likely to be 20% down on those of a year ago, and therefore below market expectations. The company primarily blames problems at Ferranti Computer Systems, which culiminated in the company deciding to withdraw from several civil markets and to merge its civil and military computer manufacturing businesses. The poor results from these sectors, and higher than expected costs for some major civil development projects, led to a substantial downturn in profit contribution from the computer businesses. In addition, the company spent heavily on bidding for projects that haven’t yet come to fruition. The company is looking forward to launching its Zonephone Telepoint service in a few weeks’ time, but the news that the government is pushing ahead with the next-but-one generation of portable telephony has put something of a cloud over Telepoint.
