Pittards Share Discussion Threads

[meijiman] 23/12/2015 10:04

got to agree with most of that posting.

[baner] 23/12/2015 09:39

it seems Pittards approach the cliff again - but this time i doubt the swedish investor gillenhammer will be back to save them - the chairman is the same mr Boyd, and the CEO is still not removed. the CFO is completely incompetent - so who is going to back this team when the bank is knocking on their door again early 2016? some drastic action is clearly required when it comes to throwing the team out. but they will not find good replacement unless the financials are sorted out in a credible way - the enormous stock no doubt being the main hurdle. maybe this will be the first administration in a public company 2016?

[meijiman] 23/12/2015 09:21

As the ceo stuffs his face over Christmas he can reflect on yet another year of great achievement. How this management survives is beyond me. There must be bodies buried somewhere......
The FD's claim to fame is to build stock levels to unbelievable levels-ties up working capital and indeed cash.

[clocktower] 23/12/2015 07:58

As expected but I guess this will mean even higher levels of stock, and when the accounts are done and dusted, will it not be time to put a red line through these huge stock levels? So I expect more bad news before we see any real figures.

[spob] 23/12/2015 07:37

prof warning

[meijiman] 02/10/2015 14:21

Hadn't thought of that one -its the perfect poison pill in a way. You can take us over at a big premium but we stay in charge ....'er thanks but no thanks.
I'm sure the ceo knows alot about leather but I think this company needs to be run by someone who knows nothing about leather. Note for eg today a perfect example. Elementis a mixed bag chemicals company has just appointed a new ceo -someone who is ex BP Lubricants and before that managed in consumer goods.

[my retirement fund] 02/10/2015 13:51

I doubt they would cooperate if a predator came along. They would all be out of jobs. I suspect the explanation of why its being operated so ineptly is so management can ensure their actions would deter any sensible approach.

[meijiman] 02/10/2015 13:32

Thanks. Yes the stock position is crazy and would probably need to be written down
if the company was to be valued by a predator.I thought Godfrey could help drive a move up the value chain but it seems the torpor of this company has affected him as well.

[baner] 02/10/2015 13:18

the board/management is absolutely not protected by the shareholder structure - however the Company is now in such bad shape that any predator will require a substantial discount to market value, with ref to the enormous inventories of doubtful value and uncertainties related to the ethiopian business. mr boyd is the man to really blame in this as he has protected a less than competent management team - in particular the CFO. boyd seems to believe he can walk on water - however he is rather wet by now and in urgent need of some scuba diving equipment!

[meijiman] 02/10/2015 10:35

Some interesting views. Is there any alignment of interests between this board of directors and its shareholders. Difficult to tell whether this lot are bothered whether the share price is 90p or 20p as they probably feel they are bid proof.
I recall reading the esteemed PP is his regular column being scathing about this company and the management -difficult to disagree.

[baner] 02/10/2015 10:15

you are spot on meijiman!

[baner] 24/9/2015 17:52

reg is an honorable and hard working man but not strong enough when "backed" by mr boyd as chairman and an absolutely incompetent woman as CFO - her name has escaped me, for which i am most grateful. this latest fund raising was most certainly their last "go" - we will now face some substantial stock provisions and reduced production volumes and "off we go"........50p next. mr boyd is of course the person to ultimately blame - intelligent as he is, but totally arrogant and full of himself.

[clocktower] 24/9/2015 17:38

I cannot see Reg Hankeys buy that looks like an weak attempt to slow or halt the slide will have much effect in current markets - maybe if he had bought 50k it may have.

[clocktower] 23/9/2015 16:59

MRF - "Pittards remains a global brand dedicated to the manufacture of innovative, high performance leather and more recently the design and production of leather goods"
They are now designers and producers of leather goods, not just producers/finishers of leather, and that could be the attraction as it could extend the areas that MUL have a skilled workforce to produce, bearing in mind the sale of handbags has suffered as have their figures.

MUL market cap over £500 million - PTD Market Cap around £14 million

[meijiman] 23/9/2015 16:31

Yes this stock position has been running for years. How can the same utter incompetents keep going year after year. The Mulberry man seems unable to add much to this story.

[my retirement fund] 23/9/2015 16:27

Mulberry. ...what they may do is take a tranche of stock below cost from Pittards but as to wanting to bolt on a leather processor thats a bit like saying General Morors may want to purchase FXPO because the use a lot of metal.

[my retirement fund] 23/9/2015 16:23

Looks like IC are to embarrassed to admit they ballsed up big time.No mentio of future writedown but as has been pointed out that is exactly what they are going to have to do as its now well beyond being buried in a fabrication of margin reduction forecasts which a lot of incompetent managers choose to do.

[clocktower] 23/9/2015 16:03

You could yet see the likes of Mullberry bid for the company, as it would slot into and underpin it supply chain in it`s business.

[baner] 23/9/2015 15:54

Watch out for the inventory build up - stock now well in excess of 50% of turnover is a very stark warning signal, in particular when general market is softening. there is a clear risk we will see significant provision requirement in this inventory, while production will have to be reduced in order to adapt to lower sales volumes. it has been said Before and needs to be said again; this Company seems to have one of the most incompetent CFO´s there is to be found in the market today and it is irresponsible of the chairman to allow this to continue. if not a surprise......

[meijiman] 23/9/2015 09:59

Just read Paul Scott on the usual site he opines from. This is a basket case. New management needed which has been evident for years -but nothing ever happens. That's his view anyway.

[philw2009] 22/9/2015 13:44

Pittards share price leathered

Shares in Aim-traded leather goods manufacturer Pittards (PTD: 106p), a constituent of my 2015 Bargain share portfolio, have been marked down 17 per cent this morning after the company issued a profit warning alongside its half year results.

The company did deliver the profit uplift I was looking for in the first half of the year: operating profits rose by half to £752,000, albeit revenues were down 10 per cent to £15.6m. The fall in turnover was as a result of a reduction in demand for military orders, the timing of the cold winter period in the US affecting dress glove leathers, events in Russia and lower demand in the golf category. However, favourable currency movements, price increases and lower hide prices (reflecting the fall in global demand) meant that gross margins jumped by three percentage points and gave a boost to profits which more than compensated for the revenue shortfall.

The problem being that the economic chill from Asia, and the economic slowdown and turmoil in China, in particular, have reduced demand for leathers in July and August, a trend that was confirmed at international trade fairs attended by the company recently. As a result analyst John Cummins at house broker W.H. Ireland has pulled back his full-year revenue estimate from £37.5m to £31.5m and downgraded pre-tax profit estimates by a fifth to £1.6m, implying a flat profit performance on 2014 rather than the recovery I was anticipating. On this basis, expect EPS of 11p.

Mr Cummins has also taken a cautious view to prospects for next year too, reining back revenue estimates by 14 per cent to £34.1m and pre-tax profit forecasts from £2.2m to £2m. The profit downgrade is far less severe than the revenue decline due to the improvement in gross margins (forecast to be 23 per cent for both 2015 and 2016).

Still, this is a marked turnaround from the trading outlook earlier this year when there appeared potential for volume increases to boost Pittards’ earnings. The positive being that the company should be able to deliver on the revised analyst forecasts as I foresee the three factors underpinning the improvement in gross margins continuing for some time yet to support profits and compensate for some of the revenue headwind the leather industry is facing right now. Moreover, the bad news looks priced in for a company forecast to turn in a flat profit performance this year. That’s because with Pittards’ offer price falling this morning to 106p, down from my recommended buy-in price of 129p, the forward PE ratio is very modest at 9.5 and the shares are trading on a chunky 38 per cent discount to net asset value of 171p. Hold.

[meijiman] 22/9/2015 12:12

IC constantly sucks in mugs. Yes no doubt it will be a buy at a £1 -arf arf.

[renew] 22/9/2015 11:43

Most likely IC will review their tip and reprice their recommendation at £1 like they did after they tipped it at £1.90!!!!!