Mears Share Discussion Threads

[rivaldo] 11/5/2010 19:15

Yep - given the huge contract win RNS's you'd have thought so.

I suspect Panmure's etc will wait for the next set of results before increasing targets, by which time the share price may well have jumped beyond 330p anyway.

[rcktmn] 11/5/2010 19:09

It's always been 330p+...it should be much more considering the recent good news announcements?

[rivaldo] 11/5/2010 19:05

Terrific finish today on decent volumes.

From Citywire:



"Panmure Gordon has....a buy and 330p target for Mears"

[rivaldo] 11/5/2010 07:35

Terrific IMS just out - how good are these snippets....



"Mears is continuing to deliver strong trading across all divisions.

Since publication of our final results on 9 March 2010 for the year to 31 December 2009, we have announced contract wins of over £500 million in Social Housing and a bid pipeline which still remains in excess of £3 billion. The order book currently stands at £2.5 billion with secured revenues of 91% of consensus forecast for the current year and 77% for 2011."

Domiciliary care is doing very nicely:

"We have been awarded further significant contracts since March 2010, estimated to be worth in the region of £30 million, reflecting ongoing trends in awarding consolidating contracts to providers with an excellent quality reputation and a capability to deliver against the emerging personalisation agenda."

Sounds like more bid action to come:

"Our bid pipeline remains extremely healthy in this sector and we would expect to be able to make further positive announcements in the near future."

And the outlook is very bullish:

"Mears' two growth markets of Social Housing and Domiciliary Care, which account for approximately 90 per cent of Group revenues, are defensive sectors where spend is predominantly non-discretionary and cash generation is robust. Given the Group's public sector client base, Mears is substantially immune to bad debts and our customer work patterns and payment terms have remained on schedule.

Mears is well positioned to benefit from an active contract bidding market and remains confident in the prospects for the future growth of the Group."

[debbiegee] 29/4/2010 13:57

Thanks,will be interesting watching events unfold !

[rivaldo] 29/4/2010 13:52

Hi debbie. Amazing stuff re RAY! As I said in the RAY thread header I sold out years ago, but I still follow it. I'm surprised Garmin didn't come in earlier. Seems like a lottery to me really - certainly not my bag now given that anything can happen. That's about all I can say. Wish I'd bought back in at 2p or whatever though....

[debbiegee] 29/4/2010 12:57

Rivaldo,OT
I see you are familiar with Raymarine RAY.
Do you have an opinion please ?

[debbiegee] 28/4/2010 19:12

Tough day all round but we had years highest close at 315.5 UT !

[essentialinvestor] 27/4/2010 18:11

Although I do think MER have paid generiously for some acquisitions imv,
it's clearly a very solid Business model which provides services needed on a
daily basis.

[essentialinvestor] 27/4/2010 18:08

Posted this on the SHA thread earlier as some had expressed caution on MER.




Short MER at your peril imv.

The Domiliciary(Home Care)care market is booming as LA's look for cost
savings over Residential care.

It also reflects an "enabling"(no laughing)culture in Social Services.
Enabling Survice Users(the Industry term) to maintain independance,
where posiible, by remaining in their own home for longer.

We all know there are cuts on the way, these will be concenstrated on
directly employed staff leading to more outsourcing, not less.

Some services are essential and will continue to be provided.

No Government is going to allow vunerable elderly people requiring care
at home to rot.

Many of these indivudals also make contributions towards this care and
LA funding of this is already strictly means tested.

This is one of Mears's two main divisions.

My view FWIW.

[debbiegee] 27/4/2010 16:36

AT 315 uptrend chart still in tact even with ftse 142 down and dow 149 down !

[rivaldo] 27/4/2010 14:44

Improved results for Connaught today bear out the strength in social housing going forward, but MER is the quality play in the sector, and its rating should continue to improve as this is recognised - along with growing recognition of the huge forward visibility of MER's earnings and cash flows.

[ps13] 27/4/2010 13:13

debbiegee...£3.50 not far away now and will be next test!

[debbiegee] 27/4/2010 09:01

Starting to look at the 5yr chart now ;-))))))))))

[debbiegee] 27/4/2010 08:48

Thanx !
Nice volume again today I notice a couple of chunky trades too !

[rivaldo] 27/4/2010 08:30

GCI say Keep Buying - and that was before yesterday's mega contract:



"Mears Group
STRONG BUY 23/04/2010 James Crux

Social housing specialist Mears Group has clinched a chunky seven-year contract with the London Borough of Lambeth.

The deal is fully listed Mears' first with the South London borough and covers repairs, refurbishment, estate management and maintenance. The 'partnership contract' can be extended for a further three years, subject to performance, in which case the company would receive £170m revenues over 10 years.

Chairman Bob Holt says the Lambeth award, following a recent £200m deal with Brighton, is another example of the larger contracts Mears is now winning. He argues increasingly cash-conscious local authorities and other clients are 'looking for value for money, not necessarily the cheapest quote'.

'They want long-term relationships', maintains Holt, adding 'we see ourselves winning more deals like this'. That would augur well for the company, which increased pre-tax profits by 19% last year to £18.4m, on turnover up 12.3% to £470m, and is also a leading player in the domiciliary care market.

Bulls see Mears increasing pre-tax profits 60% to £29.5m this year, for earnings of 24.5p a share, with the board likely to increase the dividend from 5.7p to 6.5p a share. By 2011, profits might approach £34m, on £629m turnover.

At current levels then, the shares, consistent dividend payers and strongly backed by Growth Company Investor at 274.75p, are trading on a prospective multiple of 12.2, an undemanding rating given Mears' track record and high levels of revenue visibility, stemming from an order book of £2bn. Keep buying."

[rivaldo] 26/4/2010 19:03

Great finish again....

[debbiegee] 26/4/2010 15:38

Could we be in for an exciting last hour again ?
It seems to be the way with this stock ?

[rivaldo] 26/4/2010 09:48

Yep, Friday's close was impressive!

Breaking out to new recent highs now - might get some broker upgrades if all goes well.

[debbiegee] 26/4/2010 07:45

It gets better and better !
Thought on Friday news was coming !

[rivaldo] 26/4/2010 07:09

Fantastic - another RNS means £470m of contracts won in the last 5 days alone!

And there's still a £3 billion pipeline...



"£300million Partnership Contract
with Family Mosaic Housing Association ("Family Mosaic")

Mears is pleased to announce that it has been notified today by Family Mosaic that they have agreed, subject to the completion of the standstill period, to appoint Mears as preferred bidder. The value of the award is £300 million for a ten year period. The contract relates to more than 20,000 homes in London and the Home Counties and is expected to commence in October 2010.

Mears, as the principle partner will provide a single 24 hour call centre service for all tenants of Family Mosaic and be responsible for responsive, void, gas maintenance, property surveying and estates management services.

Family Mosaic is a current client of Mears and is one of the largest Registered Social Landlords in the UK, providing homes and housing services to around 45,000 people in over 20,000 homes across London and the Home Counties. Family Mosaic offers a diverse range of housing and support related services including; general needs housing, sheltered housing, housing with extra support, a temporary housing department, leasehold management and a tenant support service.

Commenting, Bob Holt, Chairman of Mears said:

"The provision of value for money services to the public sector is vital both for the UK economy and the future of Mears. We have long held the view that in terms of quality of service Mears are second to none. This award further demonstrates the positioning of Mears as a first class public sector partner.

We have been working on behalf of Family Mosaic since 2004. This award represents the biggest contract award in Mears' history. We look forward to continuing to serve the tenants of Family Mosaic for many years to come.

Mears social housing bid pipeline for contract tenders remains in excess of £3 billion and we continue to target customers who share our view of long term partnering arrangements. This together with our recently announced London Borough of Lambeth contract, takes our contract wins this month to £500 million.""

[debbiegee] 23/4/2010 16:36

WOW UT 305 !
All the best for the weekend folks !