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Big firms' mistakes cloud small companies' sun

By Nick Stride

Friday 6th September 2002

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Big asset writedowns grabbed the reporting season headlines for a second year running, masking strong earnings growth among many large and medium-sized companies.

The mistakes of yesteryear made, hopefully, their last dents in corporate balance sheets with a running total so far of $1.93 billion written off.

That total may yet top $2 billion when Tranz Rail Holdings reports next Thursday.

Telecom wrote off $850 million of the carrying value of Australian subsidiary AAPT but analysts said it may have to write off up to $1 billion more next year.

Air New Zealand wrote off the remaining $389 million of its Ansett investment and Fletcher Challenge Forests the remaining $324 million from the CNI Forests Partnership.

Baycorp Advantage wrote off $363 million from goodwill created on last year's merger and the value of its database but that reflected only a conservative tidying-up of the balance sheet. The company maintained its long-term double-digit core earnings growth.

Cinema group Force Corporation further wrote down its Argentina investment while Independent Newspapers wrote off restructuring costs.

The strong domestic economy drove double-digit earnings growth for a raft of smaller companies but analysts warned the crest had probably passed.

Rural services stood out, with Pyne Gould Guinness, Wrightson and Tasman Farms posting strong profit growth.

Among retailers, Briscoe Group beat prospectus forecasts. A strong result is expected today from The Warehouse.

Transport infrastructure did well with Auckland Airport, Ports of Auckland, Port of Tauranga and South Port turning in predictably sound results.

THL slumped to a loss, blaming al Qaeda among other things, but fellow tourism operator Shotover Jet turned in a strong turnaround at the operating level.

Fletcher Building delivered an impressive and well-signalled turnaround result. Cavalier, Nuplex, and Metlifecare rewarded shareholders with strong earnings increases.

Trans Tasman Properties' steady atrophy continued with an $8.4 million loss.

Sky Network Television, in its new "profits first, growth second" mode, reduced its annual loss and reiterated a forecast of profits in 2004.

A profit forecast downgrade just two months after floating sent packaging group's Vertex's share price plunging. Management said sales and cost projections for the technical injection division had proved unreliable.

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