Hyder Consulting Share Discussion Threads

[grigor] 06/4/2011 12:48

In time, the previous high of roughly £6 will be overtaken

[don carter] 06/4/2011 08:08

No wonder they upgraded.Trading statement out this morning. All is well at t' mill. On target after all, so, if we accept that, they are hugely undervalued [eps 40p x pe of 12?].

[nellie1973] 04/4/2011 14:05

Broker upgrade to Buy

[qs9] 22/3/2011 22:14

CHeers Spot...so looks an interesting move in price ahead of it then IMO!

[spot1034] 22/3/2011 22:10

Pre-close statement was on March 30th last year.

[qs9] 22/3/2011 22:03

hopefully ticking up ahead of pre-close statement must be due soon? ANyone think they may be vulnerable to a bid at this price as well given its lack of debt??

[wjccghcc] 15/3/2011 11:03

Bought mine back at 302p.

[wcjan26] 15/3/2011 10:58

poor chart aside, anyone venture an opinion to why these are so badly hit?

[don carter] 28/2/2011 15:08

Good call Rivaldo. Always best not to lose sleep over a share, especially on holiday. Must admit to not losing any over these, even in recent times.

[rivaldo] 28/2/2011 14:38

I've just returned from holiday, but must admit I got nervous at the start of last week given HYC's exposure in the likes of Bahrain given the trouble there and potential for trouble in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, together of course with the downturn in Dubai and the natural disasters in Australasia.

Fortunately I managed to find a PC and sell online at around 420p-425p, so it's worked out rather nicely, with hindsight so far anyway.

I may well buy back in, but HYC is just a little vulnerable at present to sentiment (even if it's exaggerated), so best to take profits and not lose sleep on holiday!

[don carter] 28/2/2011 14:22

Agree with post 930: "crazy over-reaction". Bargain at 385p this morning. Couldn't see reasons for not buying more, so I did. Why wait?

[stevemarkus] 24/2/2011 16:52

I think that's very unlikely indeed. Much more likely to be Carillion or Balfour Beatty, aside from the existing bidder Costain, who would be interested in Mouchel.

Cheers,
Steve.

[spot1034] 24/2/2011 13:08

Unless they are the mystery name behind a possible tie up with MCHL.

[chrisb1103] 24/2/2011 13:01

Crazy over-reaction to middle east concerns imo. Not even any volume to selling. Wonder whether some negative broker comment may have prompted this - anyone seen anything?

[rivaldo] 16/2/2011 12:43

New appointment - hopefully something that can be rolled out countrywide:



"Hyder Consulting have been engaged by the Vale of Glamorgan Council to conduct a very exciting Recycling Evaluations Campaign, to monitor their current recycling kerbside collection schemes throughout the county. The campaign will commence on 28th February and will run for 6 weeks."

[rivaldo] 14/2/2011 10:32

HYC wins a German contract:



"Hyder Germany wins contract to reconstruct 18th Century listed school site in the Anhalt-Bitterfeld District

Located in the eastern German city of "Kothen", the Ludwig Gymnasium School boasts several historical buildings some which date back to the latter 18th Century. The existing brick buildings are about 100 years old and whilst some need to be partially renovated, others must be completely rebuilt and renovated for future use.

Hyder's long standing history and high calibre expertise in designing, building and reconstructing high profile infrastructures around the world gave us the kudos to undertake such a project.

The district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld commissioned Hyder Consulting to undertake different design services for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the Ludwig Gymnasium. Services include the architecture and design of outdoor facilities, structural engineering, building services and building physics.

Ludwig Gymnasium consists of several historical buildings in the redevelopment area of the city. The ensemble of the UNESCO project school includes three school and two administrative buildings. Two school buildings, house one and two are located at the "Wallstraße", and the third house at "An der Rüsternbreite".

The project brief is for the school to be housed on one central location, therefore, the central building between building one and building two will be reconstructed as house three.

The base area of all buildings combined is 5,400 square meters. The entire school site is a listed building, which is also one of the special challenges of the project. Completion of the project is for December 2013."

[rivaldo] 09/2/2011 07:28

Good posts chris, thanks.

HYC are certainly in the frame as both predator and a possible bid target. HYC have as you say a substantial cash balance, and should be able to pick up decent bargains in this market. At the same time, bid activity in HYC's areas of expertise (SWG, MCHL etc) make it obvious that this is a fast consolidating sector.

As well as the huge potential for World Cup work for Qatar, one might think that the reconstruction of Eastern Australia might now offer further opportunities for HYC?

[chrisb1103] 08/2/2011 21:17

I was thinking about the comment "remains very well positioned for the next growth cycle" and considered this alongside their EPS history which shows HYC have remained so resilient through the downturn and moved to a possible net cash position at year end of around £10-12m+ (£16m net debt 2009).

2006 18.86p
2007 26.49p
2008 33.36p
2009 33.82p
2010 34.81p
2011 c40p+?
2012 c44p+?

That's v impressive given the turmoil faced by the sector and leaves me also thinking that HYC should easily hit the "double digit EPS growth prospects" to reach and beat the EPS targets going fwd. So thinking ahead, today's current in-line statement leaves ample room to surprise on the upside given that "margins have improved and results are above plan in the second half" and the possibilities of more strongly recovering new business or acquisition opps imo. Finally given the quality of HYC along with their cash you can never rule out possible bid interest. Other views?

[chrisb1103] 08/2/2011 20:01

And addtionally:

Andy Hanson, an analyst at Northland Capital, was a bit more bullish.

"Hyder produced a reassuring statement considering the group generates 31% of revenues from Australia. The continuing difficult environment in the Middle East should be offset by the improved performance in the UK," Hanson said.

"We continue to believe Hyder has the best geographic exposure when compared to its listed peers. The shares trade on 10.7x our 2012 EPS forecast. We reiterate our BUY recommendation and 480p price target," the broker said.

Numis Securities is more bullish still and has lifted its target price from 472p to 537p following Tuesday's trading update.

"The ongoing scope for margin/efficiency improvement (across all geographies) and the organic growth prospects (c70% of revenue faces growing International markets - notably AsiaPac and the recovering Middle East) enable Hyder to deliver double digit organic earnings per share growth prospects, even before the icing on the cake of a bolt-on acquisition strategy (enabled by strong finances)," Numis analyst Francesca Raleigh reckons.

[rivaldo] 08/2/2011 19:05

EVO are keen, Panmure less so. Numis' 537p price target above would be more on the mark imo given 44p consensus EPS for the year about to start:

"Panmure Gordon maintained its "hold" recommendation on Hyder Consulting (HYC), the multi-national advisory and design consultancy, with a 445p target price. The broker notes the group's trading update that suggested it continues to trade in line with expectations with "minimal disruption" to its Australian business following the recent floods. That said, although progress in its Middle East business remained slow, Evolution was encouraged by the margin progress made in its UK business and high cash conversion, and, subsequently, thinks the company remains "very well positioned" for the next growth cycle. Hyder shares lost 25.5p to 426.5p."

[chrisb1103] 08/2/2011 17:02

Yes agree Rivaldo, solid and reassuring statement i thought, though i guess some were probably expecting more - all in good time... Net cash balances increasing, overseas revenue/profits contribution still looking v v good. Nice upgrade from Numis, chart still strong, every reason to hold/add with confidence here.

[25babies] 08/2/2011 16:48

Rivaldo - hence a buying opportunity for you.

I am happy with today - share price will continue its upward trend given the strength of this performance - assuming the FOOTSIE does not tank.

[rivaldo] 08/2/2011 07:17

Excellent trading statement just out:



"The Group has continued to perform well and is trading in line with the Board's expectations."

Interesting to see the UK division with improved margins and results above plan.

The overriding point is:

""We have performed well in mixed markets. Our broad geographic spread, with over 70% of our revenues and approximately 80% of operating profits coming from overseas, together with our strong balance sheet, positions us well for the opportunities ahead." "

[spot1034] 07/2/2011 11:12

Indeed it could well be - the focus in the sector is probably more on the intriguing situation regarding the Costain bid for Mouchel at the moment, but HYC could still be an attractive target for some of the larger players in the sector.