Dennis future— adjourned meeting
Page 52
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
on February 24
Ar a Press conference held in London on Monday, Mr. A. R. Stewart, chairman of Dennis Bros. Ltd., announced that he would not be prepared to continue on the board if the Matthews/Maxted group were elected at the adjourned annual general meeting of the company due to be held on February 24.
Earlier Mr. Stewart had considered that a compromise solution was possible with the "rebel group" as suggested at the earlier meeting (COMMERCIAL MOTOR, January 28), but on more mature consideration he now rejects this as a possibility. One could not hope to succeed with any business, he maintained, when one half of the board wanted to carry on and the other half wished to break up the business.
In a further comprehensive statement to shareholders, dated February 7, the chairman sets out the issues at stake together with further statements by a management consultant, the Dennis works convener and a summary as to the constitution of the present board. The claim made by Mr. Matthews that on valuation figures the company's assets, if sold, would realize 36s. a share, is discounted in favour of a realizable value of 17s. 6d.
Questioned at the Press conference as to the company's prospects, Mr. Stewart said that he expected Dennis to make a profit this year, though the reorganization necessary after a company had been allowed to decline took time.