SHARES in Ultimate Leisure lifted slightly yesterday after news of an £8.75m acquisition.

The bar and club group said it had bought a number of venues from Gourmet Holdings, only two months after a shares placing to raise £25m for expansion.

The Newcastle-based company said it had acquired three freehold sites and one leasehold site, trading under the name Bel and the Dragon, from London-based Gourmet for £8.75m.

In the past financial year to June 25, 2006, the four food-led pub/restaurants reported sales of £4.5m and earnings before interest, taxes, and other deductions of £850,000. That figure is expected to be more than £1m this year. Ultimate chairman Mark Jones said the group was looking at other acquisitions.

He said: "Bel and the Dragon is an attractive business and the acquisition of these four sites would represent important progress in our aim of developing the food-led side of our business."

Shares in Ultimate have remained constant at 207½p since April 20, but lifted 6p to close last night at 213½p. The figure is the highest it has been since June last year and has picked up from the low of 162½p in November.

Last year, Ultimate invested in its bars and clubs after posting an 82 per cent fall in annual pre-tax profits.

In March, 14,792,900 new Ultimate shares began trading on the Alternative Investment Market at 169p each. The shares were bought by Ultimate's two largest investors - property magnates the Reuben Brothers and the US-based Dawnay, Day Group.

When the placing was announced, Mr Jones said: "With the repositioning of the business through an extensive investment in refurbishment, marketing and training largely completed, we are now looking to taking the group forward to the next stage of its development."