Planners have called for local authorities to be given additional powers to ensure that the developers of large-scale housing projects are not merely obtaining planning permission for the purpose of 'flipping' the sites and turning a profit.

Shares in recruitment firm Cpl rose 7.75% as it posted a 23% rise in profits which showed little effects so far of Brexit uncertainty.

The owners of Ashford Studios in Co Wicklow are hoping that they “can strike lucky again” after the conclusion of filming of the ‘Vikings’ series at the studios.

Operating profits at the firm behind the Milano chain of pizza restaurants fell by 3.5%, to €4.66m, last year due to continued cost pressures and increased competition.

Mixed martial arts superstar, Conor McGregor’s main Irish firm last year plunged into the red.

Irish wind-farm operator Greencoat Renewables swung back into profit in the first half of the year, generating an after-tax surplus of €11.7m against a loss of just over €3.9m for the same period last year.

Grafton Group shares rose by over 2% on the back of the builders merchanting business posting better-than-expected first half profits and saying it remains on course to meet full-year growth targets.

Ryanair has booked a solid increase in full-year profits, but warned that rising oil prices could take the gloss off its performance over the next 12 months.

Lakeland Dairies has reported strong financial results having ended 2017 with an operating profit of €16.6m.

The owner of fashion retailer Primark, which trades in Ireland as Penneys, has said profit growth at the fashion retailer would accelerate thanks to a boost from the weak US dollar and a better buying performance.

Shares in TalkTalk have tanked after the telecoms group warned over profits while unveiling plans to roll out full fibre broadband to three million homes and businesses through a joint venture with Infracapital.

BP’s profits more than doubled in 2017 to $6.2bn (€4.98bn) powered by higher prices and output of oil and gas, allowing the company to resume share buybacks as it recovers from a three-year downturn.

Pre-tax profits at the Irish arm of fast food giant, McDonald’s last year increased by 13% to €15.8m.

The publisher of the Irish Times has said it made an operating profit of more than €1m last year thanks to a surge in digital revenues.

Pre-tax profits at the company that operates the five-star Conrad Hotel in Dublin fell by 22% to €1.78m last year.

Shares in betting services group Paddy Power-Betfair dropped a further 4% yesterday after it posted first-half earnings which fell short of analyst expectations.

Cautious comments by British budget airline Easyjet on the outlook for summer pricing hit its shares and those of rival airlines yesterday, overshadowing an increased profit target after a strong quarter.

Facebook has reported a forecast-beating first-quarter profit of 3.06 billion dollars (£2.4bn).

Bank of Ireland has announced underlying profits of just over €1bn for 2016.

British insurer RSA is targeting a return to profit in its Irish operations this year, after reporting a 61.5% rise in operating losses for 2016.

Sales of Jameson Irish Whiskey increased by 20% in value and by 16% volume-wise in the six months to the end of December, significantly boosting parent group Pernod Ricard in the first half of its current financial year.

Tullow Oil boss Aidan Heavey has said the company should return to profit this year after reaching the end of a four-year cycle of cost write-offs.

ESB's reporting a profit of €287m for the six months of 2016.

E-commerce payments business Payzone Ireland’s operating profits rose to €5.3m last year despite a drop-off in sales. Its operating profit, before exceptional items, surpassed the €3.2m figure the previous year.

Shares in Permanent TSB, which have shed more than half their value this year, rose to their highest level since before the UK referendum, as pressure appeared to ease for it to quickly dispose of a large UK loan book worth £2.3bn (€2.74bn).

Shares in Irish packaging company Smurfit Kappa fell by more than 3% yesterday despite a significant uptick in profitability in the opening six months of the year.

Pre-tax profits at Northern-based building and engineering group, John Graham Holdings increased almost three-fold to £17.16m (€20.5m) in its last financial year.

British soft drinks group Britvic has reported continued growth in its Irish operations, with third-quarter revenues — covering the three-month period to the beginning of July — up 10.6%.

Investment banking giant Citigroup has reported a 17% fall in second-quarter profit on lower revenue from consumer banking; still beating analysts’ estimates as fixed-income trading rebounded and the firm dedicated less money to soured loans.

Pre-tax profits at the Irish arm of pharmacy retailer, Boots last year increased by 23.5% to €24.7m as revenues soared.

Shareholders in Aviva Health shared a €12.5m dividend payout from the Irish company last year as its profits increased by close to 45%.

French multinational food and nutrition group Danone has forecast profitability will improve this year as it contains costs to adjust for difficult markets such as China and Russia.

Accumulated profits at Amy Huberman’s ASM Entertainment company topped €100,000 last year, newly filed accounts show.

Tipperary Co-op reported a trading profit of €2m for 2015, from a turnover of €175.6m, with strong retail sales driving a solid performance in a challenging year globally for dairy.

The National Asset Management Agency made an after-tax profit of €1.8bn last year.