Financial services firm tops Profit 50
Birmingham life insurance and pensions provider Phoenix Life is the most profitable company in the Midlands, according to the Profit 50 list in November’s Midlands Business Insider magazine. The feature, based on the findings of Insider’s in-house research team, reveals that Phoenix - which has taken over the business of a number of its insurance rivals - climbed ten places to the top spot having finished in 11th place in the 2009 Profit 50.
The company recorded a pre-tax profit of £790.1m in the year to 31 December 2009. Another financial services company, Stratford’s NFU Mutual, has also made the top ten this year - a new entry at number five on the back of pre-tax profits of £366m in the year to 31 December 2009.
Coventry-based energy giant E-ON UK, which topped our table last year, has to make do with the runner-up spot this time around. Market watchers suggest the results demonstrate tremendous resilience from companies across a wide range of sectors against a difficult backdrop.
Graham Muth, head of the Birmingham office of law firm Cobbetts, said: “2009/2010 has been eventful for business in the Midlands, and the Profit 50 should make for fascinating reading. Manufacturing has clearly experienced a devastating decline in the region and in the UK as a whole.
“But while the old school might struggle, those businesses that have filled a real niche or that have established themselves in high-tech sectors are pulling ahead.
"Meanwhile, the retail and leisure industries have been in recovery for some time. UK-based leisure businesses in particular have been able to maximise on the rise of the ‘staycation’. The next 12 months will be the true test. Whatever their sector, companies with strong balance sheets, top management teams and smart strategies - indeed, many of the companies that will have made the Profit 50 - will be poised for their success to gather pace in 2011 and beyond.”
The Profit 50 table is based on reported accounts from Midlands companies for year ends after July 2009.
* For the full table and analysis see the November 2010 issue of Midlands Business Insider.
