Ian Coull, chief executive, said that Slough had not yet seen any recovery in rents and that there was still an imbalance between supply and demand.This pushed the shares down yesterday but the company did point to good occupancy rates and low gearing as reasons why it is poised to take advantage of any upturn.Yesterday's half-year figures showed a 6 per cent fall in profits to £71.8m. Buy.Good occupancy rates boost Slough EstatesThere have been a lot of bullish noises about the property market in the past week or so from the likes of Brixton and Hammerson.Slough Estates, which specialises in industrial property was slightly less bullish yesterday. With a forward price/earnings ratio of 9 the company is at the inexpensive end of the Lloyd's companies. The company reassured the City that as and when premiums deteriorate it will reduce capacity rather than take on less profitable business.Wellington's shares have been on a roller coaster ride this year, yesterday dipping slightly 2p to 91.5p. The timing was fortunate, as reinsurance has been a particularly profitable sector, and Aspen Re contributed £9.2m to Wellington's profits.Wellington's core Lloyd's business, which includes aviation, property and employment liability cover, and its US arm also performed strongly. The company's combined ratio of premiums to claims fell from 106 per cent to 92 per cent. The ratio needs to be below 100 per cent to signify profitability.Wellington last year restructured its business, stripping its volatile reinsurance arm out of its Lloyd's business and creating a separate vehicle, Aspen Re.

Lloyd's insurers have been able to retain the high premiums in many lines of business which were kick-started in the wake of the 11 September attacks in 2001.At the same time, they have had few claims on their policies because of the low number of natural disasters and other catastrophes in the past year.Wellington yesterday reported pre-tax profits of £23.3m in the six months to 30 June, up from just £3.7m in the same period last year. Hold.Wellington is cheap way in to Lloyd'sIn common with most Lloyd's of London insurers, Wellington Underwriting is having a good year. The company looks to be on a more stable footing, but with little upturn evident in the company's major markets there is no reason to buy now. The stock - 261.25 yesterday - trades on a forward P/E of 14. The biggest recent deal was the £154m purchase of car-parts maker Stackpole.Tomkins shares have had a good year, outperforming the FTSE100 index by about 25 per cent so far. Definitely for the chop is the materials handling division that installs conveyors systems. Offers have been received but have so far been rejected.Other bolt-on acquisitions are planned, though none are imminent.

The idea is to increase scale in Asia, with the business already opening an extra plant in China.Most of the non-core businesses have been sold but some anomalies remain, such as a business that makes baths and taps. This is sales of things like windscreen wipers to distributors rather than to manufacturers.Another plan is to reduce the exposure to the US, which currently accounts for around two-thirds of sales. Savings of £50m are forecast for 2004.He also talks a great deal about increasing sales in the so-called "aftermarket". There are no buns or guns now, just a business trying to be an automotive specialist. This is a tough market, and yesterday's half-year results showed the pain of a business reliant on car manufacturers and the US economy. Operating profits for the six months to June were down to £136m from £159m the year before. However, there was a £16.5m hit to profits from currency fluctuations.Jim Nicol, the American chief executive, talks about honing the company's "lean manufacturing" process, which involves reduced floorspace, using technology more efficiently and making staff cuts.

Little by little Tomkins is clawing its way back The old days of the sprawling conglomerate are gone. The average room rate slipped 0.3 per cent to £69.79.Separately, TUI, owner of the Thomson Holidays brand, also laid the blame for grim half-year figures on the global problems which have hit the travel industry.Europe's largest travel firm and said sales slumped to e51m (£25.3m) against e152m the previous year.. The terminals offer games such as roulette which casino operators claim fall outside the remit of bookmakers.Mr Michels said he expected to maintain "steady growth" in Ladbrokes' underlying business, though he added that results would be influenced by "any controls" placed on fixed odds betting terminals.Globally, revenue per available room, the standard measure of hotel profitability, fell by 4.9 per cent to £41.44 with occupancy down 2.9 percentage points to 59.37 per cent. Hilton's shares fell 4p to 198p.The effects of the still sickly hotels business was cushioned by robust revenues at Ladbrokes, the gaming business Hilton also owns.Analysts at Merrill Lynch also noted that profit growth at Ladbrokes, Britain's biggest bookmakers, were driven largely by fixed odds betting terminals, which are subject to a court challenge by casino operators. Recovery for the hotels industry battered by the Iraqi war, the outbreak of Sars and the general economic downturn is further away than many had hoped, according to Hilton, one of the world's biggest hoteliers. The company said it did not want to raise hopes with predictions of a "false dawn" because there was still a lot of uncertainty about the strength of the hotel market for the next few months.Hilton had predicted in May that the first signs of an upturn would be seen by the end of the summer, but yesterday it was painting a far more cautious picture.