GEORGE McCARTHY In The City .sx Palmerston House , E.C.2. London Wall 3431 .sx A SIXPENNY BARGAIN AT THE STOCK EXCHANGE .sx AN unchanged dividend of 300 per cent .sx is being paid on the Ordinary shares of Neville Developments .sx And thereby hangs a tale- and a great deal of money .sx Neville Developments is a Birmingham company run by shrewd chartered accountants .sx It has a number of operating subsidiaries , but its main function is that of an issuing house specialising in transforming private companies into public concerns .sx And highly profitable that business has proved .sx The company's shares are among the cheapest ever brought to market .sx Their nominal value is 6d .sx , but their market value is around 50s .sx Earlier this year they were worth more than +3 each .sx Profit figures for 1961 , out this morning , will prove rather disappointing to shareholders .sx They amount to +471,000 , which is a drop of +312,000 from the year before .sx But these shareholders are in no need of sympathy .sx They are in the big money .sx Let me briefly retrace the golden road .sx MAKING MONEY .sx In 1958 the then 2s .sx Ordinary shares are placed at 3s .sx each .sx In September , 1959 , they were divided into one sixpenny Ordinary share and three sixpenny Deferred Ordinary shares .sx The Deferred get no dividend until 20s .sx had been paid on the Ordinary .sx Anybody who invested +100 in these shares in 1958 would now have 666 Ordinary shares worth more than +1,300 , plus 2,000 Deferred shares- which have no market quotation yet but are surely going to be valuable later .sx BEER WEDDING .sx EVERY expert in the beer business has been prophesying that the trade will be concentrated into fewer and fewer units .sx Today the big Yorkshire combine , John Smith's Tadcaster Brewery , reports that it is having merger talks with Warwick and Richardson , the brewers of Newark , Notts .sx Already this year John Smith's has bought up Yates' Castle Brewery .sx The 5s .sx shares of Warwicks and Richardsons are currently quoted at around 22s .sx So the take-over terms should be interesting .sx SHARES MOVE UP .sx AFTER a dull start , prices moved ahead again yesterday on the Stock Exchange .sx Business was small , but some of the gains were worth having .sx Steel Company of Wales rose 1s .sx 3d .sx to 35s .sx 6d .sx , Pru 'A' 17s .sx 6d .sx to +23 18s .sx 9d .sx , and Threlfall's Brewery 2s .sx to 90s .sx In the paper section , Bowater put on 1s .sx 3d .sx at 46s .sx 3d .sx , while Penguins rose 10 1/2d .sx to 20s .sx 4 1/2d .sx Imperial Chemicals gained a further 1s .sx at 61s .sx 6d .sx and Typhoo Tea 1s .sx 3d .sx at 35s .sx 4 1/2d .sx In oils , Burmah , which announces a three-million-dollar share purchase in Great Plains Development Co. of Canada , and a 4,500,000-dollar option on more shares , rose 1s .sx to 34s .sx 1 1/2d .sx WHERE MONEY GOES .sx HOW do we invest the millions of pounds we all own as tax-payers ?sx A White Paper , out today , reports that expenditure on the programmes of the nationalised industries , the public corporations and the Post Office accounts for one half of all public investment .sx Largest absorber of capital is the electricity industry , followed by the British Transport Commission and the Post Office .sx About two-fifths of our public money goes to local authorities , who spend it chiefly on housing and education .sx Enormous sums are involved .sx Total investment this year is estimated at +1,755million .sx And next year- that is , the year ending April 1963- it might be +200million more .sx RISING VALUES .sx THE +1 Ordinary shares of Sopers of Harrow , Middx , the store firm , are worth +48 10s .sx each .sx That is what Debenhams , which already owns most of those in issue , are offering for the remaining 4,135 .sx Boom time- and Bank rate may be clipped .sx ALL was merry and bright along the golden pavements of the City yesterday .sx Everybody believes the Bank rate will be cut again today .sx If it is not , some bold speculators will lose money .sx Yesterday they were backing their fancy with hard cash , and shares enjoyed their best day for a long time .sx The Financial Times index rose by 4.6 points , which represents a jump of many millions in share values .sx Metal Box , the can giant , rose 2s .sx 4 1/2d .sx , Imperial Chemicals 2s .sx , Beechams 1s .sx 9d .sx , Typhoo Tea 2s .sx In banks , Westminster " B " and Lloyds both put on 1s .sx 9d .sx , while Prudential " A " rose +1 to +24 18s .sx 9d .sx Courage and Barclay frothed up 1s .sx 6d .sx and Bents Brewery rose 2s .sx There was less excitement in the gilt-edged market .sx But gains of up to 6s .sx 3d .sx were recorded .sx EXPANSION .sx SIR CLAVERING FISON'S report should be in the hands of his shareholders today .sx But it is already out of date .sx He reports that the capital projects approved total +13,500,000 , most of which is for the proposed great nitrogen plant at Milford Haven .sx Sir Clavering told me yesterday that this figure has now become an overstatement .sx The Milford Haven project has been modified .sx There is now no plan to raise fresh capital , certainly not in this financial year .sx Although group sales of this great fertiliser and chemical combine rose by +3million last year to +54million , the profit came down by +900,000 to +3,607,000 .sx Even so it was the second highest figure in the company's history .sx BOOMING BUTLIN .sx MR. BILLY BUTLIN was host last year to more than 600,000 paying guests .sx This year the figure should be larger still , because a new camp , in Minehead , Somerset , will be open .sx The joy in the chalets certainly spreads to the shareholders , who must regularly rise and bless the name of Butlin .sx Last June these lucky owners , having had a dividend for the year of 80 p.c. , learned that their shares were being doubled by a capital bonus .sx Yesterday , Mr. Butlin announced that the interim dividend on this new capital is raised to 15 p.c. , and he forecast a final of not less than 40 p.c.- a total of 55 p.c. He also revealed that the full figures for this year will show an increase in revenue of +1,500,000 .sx He added that the rise in the half-yearly dividend is small only because the Chancellor has called for restraint .sx PROFITS JUMP .sx THERE is surprisingly good news this morning from Sir Ivan Stedeford , master of mighty Tube Investments .sx He reports a jump in profits of +3million to a record +27million .sx The figure , of course , includes for the first time the profits of acquired Raleigh Industries , but we already know that these declined last year .sx In addition , the figures now out reveal that the earnings of a major subsidiary , British Aluminium fell last year by +1,500,000 .sx So the group profits make pleasant reading to shareholders .sx Dividend is 14 p.c. which is the equivalent of 18 p.c. paid last year .sx This news came after the stock market had closed .sx But it was greeted with a cheer .sx In after-hour dealings the +1 shares jumped 5s .sx to 67s .sx 6d .sx No wonder .sx A NEW WEAPON IS LAUNCHED IN THE LAGER WAR .sx FOUR big brewers have joined in an unequal partnership to produce and market a new lager , Harp .sx They are Guinness , Courage , Barclay and Symonds , Mitchells and Butler and the Scottish and Newcastle Breweries .sx And it was Lord Boyd , vice-chairman of Guinness- formerly Mr. Lennox Boyd- who in his best front-bench manner yesterday launched a campaign at the Dorchester Hotel to make us drink Harp on a national scale .sx Now nearly all the big brewers- Bass is a notable exception- are committed to the struggle for the new drinking market .sx BIG BUSINESS .sx HUGE money is at stake .sx Ind Coope is spending millions to make and market Skol .sx The four groups who will strum the harp have combined assets of over +200million .sx Can these huge investments pay off ?sx The brewers think so and they will be right if enough of the drinking classes change their taste .sx DIVIDEND SHOCK .sx SHOCK news for shareholders of Gas Purification and Chemical , the Grundig company .sx They are to get no dividend this year .sx Last time they were paid 35 p.c. No wonder !sx Against last year's profit of +811,000 , there is this year a loss of +15,000 .sx When the news broke yesterday the 5s .sx shares dipped to 5s .sx 9d .sx But they recovered later to 6s .sx 7 1/2d .sx , a fall of 10 1/2d .sx on the day .sx MORE DOWN .sx STOCK markets yesterday were still falling under the influence of recent adverse company news .sx Wiggins Teape , papermakers , tumbled 2s .sx 3d .sx to 50s .sx 9d .sx and Villiers Engineering , on bad results , 1s .sx 3d .sx to 6s .sx 9d .sx Full details of the merger lowered both Rank Organisation and Gaumont British by a shilling .sx HOLDING THE LINE .sx DIRECTORS of Ault and Wiborg , the makers of printers' inks , have continuing good news for their shareholders .sx Half year's profit to September 30 last is +14,000 higher at +515,000 and the interim dividend of 3 1/4 p.c. is the equivalent of 6 1/2 p.c. paid last year before the hand-out of a 100 p.c. capital bonus .sx NO BONUS .sx SHAREHOLDERS of Fry's ( London ) , makers of Enox hand tools , must do without a special bonus this year- last time it was 2 1/2 p.c. A final dividend of 10 p.c. brings the total distribution up to 17 1/2 p.c. compared with 20 p.c. a year ago .sx Reason for the cut is a +19,000 fall in profits at +54,300 WAGON TAKE-OVER .sx DIRECTORS of Winget , the Kent engineers , and the Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Company have at last agreed on terms for a merger .sx Winget will offer the following share-exchange terms to holders of Gloucester Wagon shares :sx two Winget Ordinary , plus +4 19s .sx nominal of Convertible loan stock , for every nine Gloucester shares .sx Last month Sir William Morgan , chairman of Gloucester Wagon , said that when existing orders are completed the company would stop making rolling stock for railways , and the main works would be closed down .sx The merger should alter things .sx HOME SEEKERS FACING BAD WINTER .sx WHAT do you do nowadays if you must buy a house ?sx One major authority on the subject today declares :sx " It will be a hard winter for the home buyer .sx " The authority is the Building Societies Gazette .sx And I agree with it .sx The facts are , as the Gazette points out , that when the banks and insurance companies are not lending money all home buyers turn to the building societies .sx BARGAINS .sx These , although they have large funds , haven't got anything like enough money to meet the huge demand .sx And building society managers are not keen to lend large sums on expensive houses .sx Some houses , it is true , might now fall in price , particularly the pre-1919 houses , since the Government's lending scheme on these has been abandoned .sx But the societies don't want to lend money on these old houses .sx So in that case , too , the young home-builders will be frustrated .sx For these houses , and some others , the winter could be a bargain time for the man with ready cash who can pay the full price .sx But how many young home-makers are in that position ?sx So young lovers move into a queue that goes on lengthening .sx Says the Gazette :sx " We wish them joy as they trudge from society to society .sx We wish that Mr. Selwyn Lloyd could go with them to listen to their interviews with building society branch managers .sx Or perhaps they would prefer more cheerful company .sx " Perhaps they could have the cheerful company of Mr. Lloyd's new right-hand man , Mr. Henry Brooke , whose set-the-people-free Rent Act brought about this remarkable situation .sx The tragedy is that he's proud of it .sx PROFITS SLIM .sx TWO major British companies , Courtaulds , the man-made textile giant , and Wiggins Teape , the paper-making combine , issue ominous statements .sx The theme is the same :sx higher sales but smaller profit .sx Cortaulds' sales for the half-year to September 30 were +3,600,000 higher at +83,451,000 but profit in the six months declined by nearly +2 million to +7,586,000 .sx And there is a small but severe shock for shareholders .sx Their interim dividend is cut from 10d .sx to 9d .sx - that is , from 4 1-6 p.c. to 3 3/4 p.c. Final dividend last year was 5 5-6 p.c. to make 10 p.c. for the year .sx " Present indications suggest , " say the directors , " that profits for the second half-year should be of the same order .sx "