Cvs Share Discussion Threads

[serotine] 02/2/2008 10:19

whonosewhy - I don't know if it is significant or if it is a sell/buy - sorry!. Investment companies buy/sell shares all the time so I don't take too much notice (unless it was Warren Buffet or Anthony Bolton or there was an indication that someone was building a significant stake...). If there were a few buys going though between £10 - £ 50 k then I would take more notice as it might indicate an individual knows something.

Pets should be fairly recession proof but interest rates/liquidity could impact negatively on the husiness as could a Foot & Mouth outbreak.

An announcement only needs to be made if certain thresholds in total stake size are breached by a company so no guarantee announcement will be made.

Personally I thnk the risk/reward is good and intend to purchase more. I may wait till the share price rises 20% as this demonstrates things are starting to happen or if the share price drops 20% as this could represent great value. Of course if they release significant good/bad news I would reconsider position. Am just taking things slowly at the moment as the market is all over the place!

[whonosewhy] 01/2/2008 16:11

I agree with you that the numbers are unreliable I was really questioning both is it significant? and is it a sell?

I have been watching this because I cannot think of many more recession proof things as us people looking after our darling pets !

I think we should see an annoucement if it is one buyer or seller.

[lomax99] 01/2/2008 13:01

Well the price isn't moving, if they were all sells we would be heading downwards. It is surprising how resilient the share price has been of late.

[serotine] 01/2/2008 12:51

whonosewhy - if you look at the second 'Holdings in company' in the news section you'll see that AEGON UK bought 320 000 shares on 11th Jan. You get to 320 000 by subtracting the before and after shares on the announcement. Then if you look under the TRADES section for the 11th Jan you'll see a 320 000 transaction listed as a SELL. Thats why I think buy/sell stats are unreliable

[serotine] 01/2/2008 11:59

looks like a big blip in volume. I have no idea whether they are buys/sells. Market Makers manipulate prices so well I feel impossible to tell. However if there is 'Holdings Announcement' at some point in the future we can tell then. Fingers crossed these are buys though!

[whonosewhy] 01/2/2008 11:16

compared to normal volume does this look significant?

over 1 million in sells?

[serotine] 01/2/2008 11:12

lots of large trades going through today.....

d90kjh - goto their website and download AIM submission document as it has all the answers to your questions there

[d90kjh] 14/1/2008 21:48

Please could someone answer some questions which are not available on advfn:-

How many shares in issue?
Market cap?
What is the net cash-flow?

I presume the cash-flow is negative as the co is in its aquisitive stage. Is there any idea when the co will become cash generative?

[ariane] 14/1/2008 11:42

RPT Bayer declines to comment on possible interest in Teva's animal health ops




(repeating to amend typographical error in sixth paragraph)
FRANKFURT (Thomson Financial) - A spokesman for Bayer AG declined to comment
on whether the company may be interested in buying Teva Pharmaceutical
Industries Ltd's animal health business, but affirmed the company is still
interested "in principle in acquisitions that make sense," especially in the
HealthCare segment.
"We cannot comment on concrete considerations," the spokesman said.
Teva earlier today said it is exploring strategic alternatives for its
animal health business, including a possible divestiture. This decision follows
the company's 2007 strategic review.
Teva's unit IVX Animal Health, which it acquired in early 2006, makes both
branded and generic products for pets and livestock, with a focus on substances
that kill bacteria, viruses and parasites as well as anti-itch drugs and
nutritional supplements.
The unit is one of the leading suppliers in the US. In addition, Teva's
units Novopharm and Abic make animal health products.
Bayer's animal health division, which makes products for both pets and
livestock, last year posted sales of 905 mln eur on the success of its Advantage
flea-control medication for cats and dogs.
The company has said it aims to achieve global leadership in the livestock
and pet markets through both organic growth and acquisitions.
"Animal Health regularly evaluates options for acquisitions or strategic
alliances to supplement our existing product range," the company said in its
last annual financial report.
Another possible candidate to buy Teva's animal health business may be
Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, which generated annual sales of about 360 mln eur
with animal healthcare in 2005, some analysts said.
Boehringer was not immediately available for comment. The company makes
medications for horses, cows, pigs, cats and dogs.
Both Novartis AG and Roche Holdings AG, based in Switzerland, declined
comment on whether they would be interested in acquiring from Teva the animal
health business.
But it is understood that neither pharma group deals in animal health.
[e-mail]
mas/slj/mas/slj

[lomax99] 12/1/2008 20:16

More information on Axiom Labs is available from their website www.axiomvetlab.com, as you say Serotine they look like a pretty good fit.

[lomax99] 10/1/2008 09:03

Yes I agree, and at just under 6YP it fits with the guide range on acquisitions.

[serotine] 10/1/2008 08:50

good to see another acquisition and looks like it dovetails seamlessly with the existing business

[serotine] 07/1/2008 08:20

Hi Lomax, the AIM submission document is a good read - lots of interesting info there. Richard Connell (non-exec Chairman of CVS) is also chairman of Dignity (DTY) so his experience will be invaluable. Also Simon Innes (CEO) appears to have a strong CV so looks like a well run company.

The only negative is they are paying LIBOR + 1.5% on an existing 32 million loan plus the same (I think) for their 12 million drawdown facility so this may impact on profits. However if interest rates do fall (and LIBOR in tandem) then this could be good news for CVS.

[lomax99] 05/1/2008 13:56

The recent AIM listing documentation has EBITDA as £5.1M for the 12 months to 30th June 2007. Indeed the recent trading update confirms that:

'We started the financial year with 43 small animal practices operating from 120 surgeries and with one equine specialist practice and three veterinary diagnostic laboratories. In the period up to flotation in early October we acquired a further two small animal practices operating from seven surgeries which, together with the significant number of acquisitions made in the second half of last financial year, gave us a substantially higher EBITDA run-rate than the actual historic EBITDA of £5.1m achieved for the year ended 30 June 2007.'

So I would presume that the Panmure Gordon forecast, down as £7.7M for 2009, actually relates to the year ending on 30/6/08. With a current market cap of £120.4M, that puts it on a prospective PE of 15.6, somewhat different to the 29.6 quoted above for 2008!

[lomax99] 05/1/2008 13:40

This was one of Shares magazines tips for 2008:

'The veterinary group floated in October and we believe it could be a strong runner. CVS has bought 45 practices with 129 surgeries since 1999. It operates in the small pet market, typically dogs and cats. Not only does it treat animals but it also runs a laboratory testing business and is poised to expand its service range.

CVS has strong defensive qualities should an economic slowdown emerge in 2008. Pet owners are extremely loyal, not only to their furry companions but also to veterinary practices. Most owners are happy to pay for treatment as they regard the health of their pets as more important than the cost.

The company plans to keep acquiring practices, tapping into a market rich with owners wanting to sell out or retire. It only buys profitable businesses rather than seeking practices to turn around or building new outlets from scratch.

CVS has historically referred more complicated illnesses to specialist vets. It now plans to establish its own specialist operation, with capacity to handle both its own customers and take third-party work.

A fleet of cateries are planned. Chief executive Simon Innes believes owners would rather put their vets into short-term care with vets than an untrusted business. It may also seek acquisitions to develop pet crematoriums and grooming activities.

Laboratory work commands higher margins than core veterinary activities and accounts for 8% of revenue. Around 70% is non-CVS work and profits are growing at over 20% per year.

Profit before tax and amortisation is forecast to increase 117% next year to £5 million, rising to £7.7 million in 2009. The PE is pricey at nearly 29.6 for 2008 but drops to 19.8 the following year. House broker Panmure Gordon reckons the shares could rise 20% in the next year to 300p.

Summary - There is limited competition on the same scale as CVS yet it only has a 3% market share, offering substantial growth opportunies.'

[lomax99] 04/1/2008 16:31

Thanks serotine. I read somewhere else that they were looking to conclude new acquisitions in the the range of 4 - 6 YP. The purchasing criteria looks sensible, you need a decent critical mass to start with. I am in.

[serotine] 03/1/2008 05:44

Hi lomax99, thanks for info

From CVSG AIM submission document:

"Acquisitions that have been made to date have as a whole validated CVS's stated strategy, with the financial performance of businesses once they become part of CVS typically exceeding their performance for equivalent periods preceding acquisition by CVS, in some cases by in excess of 100 per cent."

They seem to have a similar strategy to Dignity that used a smilar business model for acuiring funeral parlours and that worked out well

Although there are 13 380 vets in the UK they focus on purchasing practices that meet the following criteria:

"l Minimum of four vets employed per practice, or three where out-of-hours service is shared with another practice.
2 Turnover of at least £500,000.
3 Established practices or smaller practices if near to an existing cluster."

[lomax99] 01/1/2008 14:04

I am quite interested in finding out a bit more about this group, does anyone have any idea what sort of PE they are acquiring at on average? I have had a look through their website/announcements and they are pretty coy, admittedly with good reason, about revealing detailed information on any deals. Clearly with centralisation of key back office functions (Accounts/HR/Payroll/Purchasing/Marketing, etc) this should have a reasonable impact in terms of improving post acquisition returns.

[serotine] 13/12/2007 10:08

bought into CVSG recently as the business model looks excellent and lots of upside potential for recruting existing vet practices and with only weak, localised competitiors. One thing that worries me though is that they are paying LIBOR + 1.5% on bank loans and this could be expensive given the current rate of LIBOR. Any views on this?

[jcxjr100] 15/11/2007 13:04

Just brought into CVSG. Seems a very well run company and defensive. I'm attributing the recent jump to increasing of institutional holdings.

[beaufort1] 14/11/2007 18:16

Any one know the reason for the sudden jump?

[ariane] 10/10/2007 11:47

enjoy your day

[hard work] 10/10/2007 11:28

morning...good start