Robert Wiseman, the Scottish dairy company, has milked the collapse of Dairy Farmers of Britain, its rival, to good effect after reporting a near 82 per cent leap in pre-tax profit to £21 million in the first half of the year.

The plight of Dairy Farmers, a co-operative that went in to receivership in June, will result in about 150 million litres of milk being transferred each year to Robert Wiseman, the company said. It was in bullish mood after raising its interim dividend by 15 per cent to 5¾p.

The results were above forecasts and, even factoring in higher capital expenditure in the second half, analysts were quick to raise forecasts. Numis Securities lifted its target price to 540p on the expectation of improved margins in 2010, while Panmure upgraded its target to a more modest 510p. However, shares in the company ceded early gains to close 7¾p lower at 475p as investors took profits.

There was a strong start for Avia Health Informatics, which moved to AIM from the Plus market yesterday and closed at 72½p, compared with its listing price of 60p. The company, which provides software used for rapid diagnosis of ailments over the phone or on the internet, is looking for markets outside traditional healthcare. This could include use in prisons to diagnose whether a patient needs to be transferred to a medical facility or can be treated on site.

Synchronica has landed its fifth order in Africa for Mobile Gateway, its mobile e-mail system, as it gained further momentum on the continent. The company has signed 12 contracts this year for its emerging marketsfocused mobile e-mail and data system. Shares in Synchronica rose ¼p to 3¾p.

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