Latest news with #Goodbody
Irish Times
09-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
DCC seen getting £633m for tech unit – over a third lower than some initial estimates
DCC , the Irish conglomerate seeking to narrow its focus to energy, may end up securing just £633 million (€733.4 million) for its technology division, according to Goodbody Stockbrokers . The figure is about a fifth less than the £800 million Goodbody analyst Kenneth Rumph had originally expected the business to achieve when DCC said in November that it was examining 'strategic options' for it. It is substantially below estimates of more than £1 billion that some investment houses, including Deutsche Numis, had initially put on the division. Goodbody's revised estimate comes in advance of DCC's annual general meeting (agm) on Thursday, and follows a weak set of annual results for the division, revealed in group results in May and mounting concerns about the impact of tariffs and cautious consumers on its key US business. READ MORE Founded in 1976 by businessman Jim Flavin as a provider of venture capital for start-ups before floating almost two decades later, DCC revealed in November it was ditching its conglomerate roots with a plan to sell its healthcare division and review 'strategic options' for its technology business, in order to focus on its energy unit. DCC, led by Donal Murphy , agreed last month to sell the healthcare unit to HealthCo Investment, which is owned by funds run or advised by London-based private equity firm Investindustrial Advisors for £945 million in cash, plus £130 million in deferred payments. Leases, taxes owing and other liabilities transferring with the healthcare unit bring the total enterprise value of the transaction to £1.05 billion. That deal fell well short of the £1.3 billion to £1.6 billion some analysts had expected. The tech unit, which distributes audiovisual equipment to events companies and consumer tech gadgets, saw operating profits fall almost 16 per cent in the group's financial year to the end of March, dragged down by weak household demand for tech products. DCC also took a series of charges against assets in the division last year in an effort to restructure it and prepare it for sale. The division booked a £52 million charge against the loss-making French and Iberian arms of its Exertis business, which distributes tech gadgets from home security cameras to wireless keyboards. It also agreed in April to sell two units for what it called 'a modest consideration', and exited small tech distribution businesses in the Middle East and Scandinavia. DCC also took an almost £74 million goodwill impairment hit against its UK information technology business. A profit recovery in the business 'has taken longer than expected', it said, with market conditions 'showing little sings of improving'. The bulk of £37 million in restructuring costs racked up by DCC last year covered large 'optimisation and integration' projects in its technology division in North America and the UK. A number of analysts expect that DCC will sell the technology unit in two separate deals.
Irish Times
01-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
School fees: how to save €50,000 to pay for children's school or college costs
You won't get much change out of €50,000 for a six-year private education in Dublin these days, while sending a child to college away from home can cost about €60,000. Add on all the grinds, Gaeltacht trips and a possible master's that are now commonplace, and you could be looking at a small fortune to educate your children in Ireland. It's a lot of money, but, if your children are still young, there is a solution: start saving now. 'You know when this expense is going to happen, so you can plan for it. Planning for even a portion of it will take the pressure off,' says Grace Webster, a senior wealth executive at Goodbody. 'The big thing is to start early, as the impact will be less.' READ MORE Here are some tips on how to maximise your savings by starting early, and taking on some risk. And, for those children who don't end up going down the college route, we have some tips on how you can transfer those college savings, tax efficiently, to be used as a deposit on a house and so on. But remember, it's not all about the kids: you have to look after your own financial future too. 'Parents do feel pressure,' says Gwen Clarke, director of Gwen Clarke Financial Services in Kildare. 'But I say to people, 'Look after yourselves, enjoy your life. Don't be putting aside everything you have'.' 'There is definitely a big increase in people going to private or fee-paying secondary schools.' Photograph: David Jones/PA Wire Private school fees It's mainly a Dublin thing, although not exclusively: paying for private school, either at junior or senior level, or both. And, despite the obvious expense, demand is rising. 'There is definitely a big increase in people going to private or fee-paying secondary schools,' says Webster. An Irish Times survey from late last year showed that annual fees at secondary level have climbed by up to 19 per cent, with charges for day pupils now costing €4,000-€14,000. [ Fees have jumped across many of Ireland's private secondary schools. Why? Opens in new window ] Sligo Grammar School, for example, charges €4,900 a year for day fees; Alexandra College in Dublin 6 is €8,726; Belvedere College is €7,500; and Wesley College in Dublin 16 is €7,690. So outside Dublin you could be looking at fees of €30,000, per child, for six years of secondary school, and about €48,000 in Dublin. And this doesn't even include those additional fees for transition year, books – remember: books aren't free in private schools – school trips, uniforms and activities. In addition, many private schools ask for additional sizeable voluntary contributions towards future development of the facility. Factor in private primary school and those fees will jump even more: St Andrew's College in Booterstown, for example, charges €10,900 a year, and Lycée Français in Foxrock charges €5,610 a year. And you will need to factor in that fees will rise from year to year. One way to hedge against such price hikes – as espoused some years ago by the Financial Times – is to ask the finance department of the school if you can pay for a number of years in advance. The risk here is that your child won't settle and you'll have to move – and will you get your fees back? But the upside is that you can save money on future price increases. Of course, this is only a possibility if you have the money already salted away. [ Carl O'Brien: Are grinds really worth it? Opens in new window ] Even if you don't consider private school, secondary school is expensive, with grinds, supervised study and school trips all adding to the costs. A one-hour weekly maths grind for fifth-year students, delivered by live stream at Dublin Academy in Stillorgan, for example, costs €1,099 for the year. Two weeks at Irish college in Uisce, Co Mayo, costs up to €1,700, while a transition year language trip to France or Spain costs several thousand euro. Living Language has a trip next spring to the west of France for €3,500 for five weeks – and air fares are extra on top of that. Unless your children qualify for a grant (to qualify, at least in part, household earnings should be €47,010-€115,000 based on four children), you'll be looking at a student contribution fee of up to €3,000 a year (though it was reduced to €2,000 this year), as well as all the associated living costs. TU Dublin estimates the cost of a student living away from home will be €14,402 a year, or about €5,300 for a student living at home. And it's no cheaper outside the capital. University College Cork suggests a monthly cost of €1,240-€1,880 for a student living away from home in Cork – or as much as €16,920 for the academic year. Young family of three with a toddler managing their budget,paying bills and taxes online and calculating monthly expenses at concept. Get into the saving habit When should you start saving? 'When a child is born,' says Webster. 'A great way to do it is to save [ Child Benefit ], if you can afford to do that, for at least 18 years.' By starting early, you give yourself time to ride out market corrections while the positive effect of compounding on your investment over the years 'can be quite substantial', she adds. Also bear in mind that your plan should be reviewed. And if you don't start early, don't despair. 'It's never too late; as with a pension, anything at all is better than nothing,' says Clarke. 'It's a case of, set it up, and when your circumstances are better, you can save a bit more'. Where once, many families outside urban areas bought a house or apartment to see their kids through college, Webster says this is not as common as it used to be, pointing to the sharp increase in house prices . Instead, people are looking at saving or investing. If ensuring you don't lose money when saving is a priority, you will probably be looking for a regular savings deposit account. Shop around for the best rates, as this will affect the outcome of your savings. Bank of Ireland and AIB, for example, offers a return of 3 per cent on savings of up to €30,000/€12,000 a year. Remember that you will need to shift the balance on an annual basis, as otherwise the rate of return might plunge. Clarke also suggests An Post, as returns are tax-free. And even if you start with a small amount, saving over the long term can generate a decent amount. With just €50 a month, for example, you could save almost €15,000 over 18 years – enough, perhaps, for a year or two of college if the child lives away from home. But you can potentially do better than this. In today's environment, with interest rates so low, Webster says 'you have to take a level of risk to get a level of return'. She suggests putting your money into a diversified multi-asset fund on a monthly basis. Minimum investment starts at about €100 a month. Provided you don't run the risk of having to encash the fund when the markets are down, you may end up doing better with your money. Over the 10 years 2014-2024, the Standard & Poor's 500 index of the largest American companies by stock market valuation has returned 11.01 per cent a year, or 8.87 per cent a year over the previous 20 years. Applying a rate of return of 6 per cent, for example, means you could boost the return on your invested child benefit to almost €23,000 after 10 years. If you're a bit wary of the markets, you could put 25 per cent into cash, and 75 per cent into markets, says Clarke. However, you will have to pay Dirt on anything you make on your savings. The tax applies to interest earned and is levied at 33 per cent. When it comes to an investment fund, the tax increases to 41 per cent. Under the gross roll-up regime, this tax may be paid out after eight years, but if you consider an investment of child benefit over 10 years, earning 6 per cent a year, you would have a bill of some €2,400. 'If they don't use it for college, it can be used to help them with the property market.' Illustration: iStock Watch out for inheritance tax Of course, not all plans work out as envisaged. 'The children will change the plan themselves,' says Clarke, adding that some kids might opt to postpone college. If they do, the fund can remain invested. Others won't go at all. But the funds can still be used for something else. 'If they don't use it for college, it can be used to help them with the property market,' says Clarke. Bear in mind that you might need to consider the possible impact of inheritance tax . Applying current tax-free thresholds, a child can inherit €400,000 tax free from their parents over the course of their lifetime. In practice, this is often used upon death when the child inherits from the estate of the parent(s). This means that a lump-sum you save for a child's house deposit may be liable to CAT of 33 per cent. But there are ways around this. The small-gifts exemption allows each parent to gift a child €3,000 each – so €6,000 combined – tax free each year. Saving €3,000 from birth to the age of 18 could result in a tax-free lump sum of €54,000-€108,000. The key, if you're hoping to pass this gift tax free to your child, is that the money must be given to the child each year – rather than simply accounting for it at one point in time. Typically, parents will often do this by setting up a specific bank account and transferring the funds each year, or by holding the money in a bare trust for the child until they turn 18. These can be set up through institutions such as Standard Life. If grandparents are keen to contribute to the cost of educating your children, they can also avail of this exemption.
Irish Times
11-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Wealthiest 10% of Irish households have net wealth in excess of €1m
The wealthiest 10 per cent of households in the State have a net wealth, over debt, of at least €1,024,000, up from €838,000 in 2020 and the highest ever recorded. The wealth divide was highlighted in the latest household finance and consumption survey from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), which found that the bottom 10 per cent of households have a net wealth of at most €2,400. The figures, which relate to 2023, show that more than two-thirds, 67 per cent, of all households owned their main residence in 2023, either with or without a mortgage. This is down from 69.6 per cent in 2020. The median value of the residence was €340,000, an increase of €80,000 or 30.8 per cent on the €260,000 reported three years prior. READ MORE The CSO's survey indicated that the median or midpoint net wealth value of Irish households in 2023 was €256,900, an increase of €58,500 or 29.5 per cent since 2020 when it was €198,400. [ 'Retired households' hold 27% of net wealth in Ireland, says Goodbody Opens in new window ] The only household age group to see a fall in median net wealth was those under 35, where median net wealth fell from €27,600 in 2020 to €23,400 in 2023. Households where the reference person was aged 65 and over had a value of €404,200. The CSO warned that, with the overall share of the over 65 population growing from 12.3 per cent in 2020 to 15.3 per cent in 2023, can result in a 'higher net wealth at a national level' but can also 'hide trends' in younger households. Net wealth was found to be highest in the eastern and midlands region, which includes Dublin. The region had a median value of €264,400 in 2023. It was followed by the southern region at €251,700, and the northern and western region at €239,000. Net wealth is calculated by adding the total value of assets, such as a home, shares, pensions and cash savings, and subtracting debt owed or liabilities. Renters The survey found that owner-occupiers had a median net wealth of €391,600 in 2023 compared with €10,200 for those who rented. This gap has widened since 2020, when it stood at €303,900 for owner-occupiers and €5,300 for renters. Property is the primary source of wealth in Irish households, 46 per cent of gross wealth came from the value of the main residence. The CSO found that 30 per cent of households had a mortgage on their main residence with the median outstanding balance being €117,900. While households with mortgages had a median loan-to-value ratio of 45.2 per cent in 2020, that fell to 36 per cent in 2023, driven by house price increases in the period. Amid rises in the cost of living, the number of households that reported expenses higher than their incomes in the past 12 months almost doubled. In 2020, the figure stood at 7.5 per cent, rising to 13.6 per cent of households in 2023.
