Qinetiq Share Discussion Threads

[hvs] 09/8/2010 12:43

Its going to sub a £.

IDIOTS in charge.

[zeppo] 09/8/2010 12:03

pseudoshere

When will there be any optimism going forward?

In spite of downsizing etc the share price is very poor.

z

[pseudosphere] 04/8/2010 15:07

An additional 325 redundancies have been announced. Managed Services at Boscombe Down will bear the brunt of these cuts. This downsizing has become a regular event, taking place more than once a year, when will it all end?

[mw] 17/7/2010 10:16

Looks like Zephyr is well on it's way to laying claim to be the worlds first eternal plane, according to the FT article.



Of course this will have little or no bearing on the share price, but hey , every little helps.

[pseudosphere] 07/7/2010 09:58

Additional UK redundancies have now been announced by QinetiQ. A consultation exercise is now taking place regarding 391 posts, with more to follow over the next 3 months. Redundancies are now significantly cheaper to implement, following the ballot outcome on changes to staff terms and conditions.

Whether this can be regarded as good for the long-term future of QinetiQ (but not for the staff directly affected) is up for debate. Nobody appears to have any idea of how much further QinetiQ needs to shrink, in order to balance staff and facility resources against predicted future orders. A tipping-point could arise where capabilities are permanently lost to competitors, as staff and their whole departments are axed for short-term gain.

[zeppo] 28/5/2010 10:13

I believe that it will be pulled round or taken over/split.

Hopefully the downside is limited from here.

z

[pseudosphere] 27/5/2010 15:09

The ongoing restructuring costs are one reason why the dividend is being cut. The Mighty Quinn wishes to cut as many UK posts as are affordable, certainly more than 1000 this financial year.

[wad collector] 27/5/2010 10:09

Well , at least the market likes it-up 10% atm.


The Board is confident that the programme announced today will restore the Group
to strength over the next 24 months, including the rapid pay down to a target
gearing ratio of below 2x+. For this reason, the Board is recommending that no
payment be made either of a final dividend for the year just ended or of an
interim dividend for the current year. It is the Board's expectation that the
Group will pay a final dividend with respect to the financial year ending 31
March 2011.



So what they are saying is that , if they stop paying dividends , the balance sheet will look better.Hmm..

[zeppo] 27/5/2010 08:56

Sick at no divi for twelve months+ but price is currently up.

I know they are trying to reduce debt what else is there to learn?

z

[pseudosphere] 19/5/2010 16:49

Are we approaching a new all-time low or is this the start of a head-and-shoulders chart formation, indicating a return to 140p? Only time will tell.

[wad collector] 10/5/2010 10:52

Hmm.Not sure it's going there.

[pseudosphere] 07/5/2010 12:28

Why not wait until it drops below £1?

[themba] 06/5/2010 11:23

Seems like it could be a good time to invest a little, prior to Leo Quin's upcoming public statement on the company future direction.

[wad collector] 06/5/2010 08:33

Moved down to all time low.

[mw] 29/4/2010 16:16

I reckon, following the election, that quite a few public sector jobs will be for the chop. Similarly, the Government may be unwilling to afford overly generous redundancy payments. In which case Union pressure might be due for a reality check.

[wad collector] 29/4/2010 13:01

IC reiterated a Sell recommendation last week , citing union and pension troubles.Priced in I reckon.

[mw] 26/4/2010 16:43

What restructure - has it happened?

[nemesis toad] 26/4/2010 13:46

Restructure leaves some weak management issues left untackled.

All should have happened ages ago.

Plughole approaches!

[value viper] 21/4/2010 16:10

interesting thought that Ruane Cunniff doubled their stake at beginning of March to become the largest shareholder with 10.09 %. Not saying it is necessarily cheap and debts are relatively high but I sense potential turn around here IF strategic review proves effective. BWTFDIK.

[wad collector] 17/4/2010 16:33

I'll settle for a slow 10% then.

[wad collector] 26/3/2010 13:13

I just added,UBS don't seem to basing this on new info ; I suspect a quick 10% rise is a likely prospect.

[eh m es mx] 26/3/2010 12:54

UBS downgrade:

Given the difficult trading environment that QinetiQ faces, we believe the company has a number of tough choices to make. However, those choices are seen as positive if it means increasing longer-term profitability, cash generation and creating more value. QinetiQ is in the position and end-markets that it is in, and investors should welcome any management action that effectively deals with the tough trading environment.

Restructuring could be very expensive and could lead to a cash outflow.
However, as we have noted in the past, restructuring at QinetiQ can be very expensive. The historic cost-to-saving ratio has been 3-to-1. We believe that new CEO Leo Quinn will act to appropriately size QinetiQ for the level of trading in its end-markets. To that end management have a number of options at their disposal. However, we believe the risk is high that a restructuring of QinetiQ could be very expensive in cash terms – raising the prospect of a cash outflow. This could have material negative implications.

Moving to Sell rating – Cutting March-2011E EPS by 20%, 2012e by 10%

Given a trading environment that we believe is not improving, we cut our 2011E EPS by 20% & 2012E EPS by 10%.

In Mar-11 we believe we are c5% below recently revised consensus expectations. We believe market expectations are too high on (a) earnings (b) dividends & (c) the prospect of a strategic plan announcement. We also believe the market is under appreciative of the likelihood of an equity raising, which is a possibility. On balance, given the above, we believe a Sell rating is now appropriate.

Valuation: Cutting price target to 130p (from 150p)

We are cutting our price target to 130p from 150p reflecting a 20% cut to our March-2011 EPS forecast and a 10% cut to our March-2012 EPS forecast. PT based on a 2011E EV/EBITA of 10x – the mid point of the historic sector range.

[gunter guil] 26/3/2010 12:36

downgraded to a sell by UBS.

[wad collector] 26/3/2010 11:27

What now? (down 5% no rns)

[zeppo] 07/3/2010 18:11

Thank you MTNEss for bringing this article to my attention through your NEWS
(Newspaper Tips) thread.

Today's Sunday Times article refers to radical cuts and the possibility that if efficiency etc is not improved enough, QQ.may have to be broken up.

Whatever happens let's hope we get some value back as private shareholders.

z