Airsprung Share Discussion Threads

[greek islander] 13/12/2010 15:14

Collins and Hayes are a big company locally with what was a superb reputation and were until a short time ago trading very successfully and profitably until they appear to have overtraded and went I think into administration and were then bought by new owners.
Obviously they have now sold the business on whilst continuing to manage under the new Airsprung ownership.
This was a highly profitable expanding concern and should be a very good buy and add all sorts of synergies to the existing trading base.
Glad to see Airsprung not sitting on their laurels but looking to actively move forward. A very encouraging sign. Could now see APG with a share price more commensurate with the financials. Interesting day for long term APG holders like me.
EDIT CR good to see you hanging in here. Been a disappointing ride for a while now. I bought these and WGB at roughly the same time and for very much the same reasons. Asset value was very good and the share price hardly reflected the financials and some good non-cash assets for both and while WGB has surged forward (about 135% increase in the last 12 months or so) APG has generall gone backwards in terms of share price Some you win, some you lose, now maybe it may yet change round at APG and we might see some buying pressure.

[callumross] 13/12/2010 13:01

Just found the following broker's buy recommendation following release of today's interims:

"Interims for the 6 months ended 30 September 2010 are in line with full year expectations. Adjusted PBT remained broadly flat at £0.48m (H109: £0.47m), despite the challenging retail environment especially for UK household products, which had an adverse impact on revenues. Sales fell by 13% to £20.1m (H109: £23.1m). A 13% reduction in operating costs, lower interest and tax charges has driven adjusted EPS growth of 8% to 1.4p (H109: 1.2p). The Board anticipate operating profits to remain at the current level. The outlook remains uncertain given the challenging UK environment – weaker consumer confidence, increase in VAT and potentially lower disposable incomes. We do not expect a massive ramp up in sales ahead of the VAT increase. The acquisition of Collins and Hayes Furniture, an upmarket manufacturer of upholstered furniture with distribution through many of the UK's premium department stores, announced today, is acquired for a total consideration of £2.3m. The acquisition is financed by an initial £2.1m in cash and a final payment of up to £0.25m, which is currently held in a retention account and will be released when certain conditions are met. The consideration will be funded by a four-year revolving credit facility of GBP2.5 million provided by Svenska Handelsbanken AB at 2.5% over LIBOR. For the year ended 30 April 2010, Collins and Hayes reported sales of £9.8m, EBITDA of £0.57m, PBT of £0.39m and net assets of 0.4m. On the basis of the reported figures, Airsprung is paying a reasonable 5.8x on historic pre-tax earnings. The addition of Collins and Hayes complements the Cavendish Upholstery division. The transaction will be beneficial operationally. The addition of the brand and the products will strengthen the group's position in the upholstery furniture market. The impact of the acquisition will be modest in the current financial year, but is expected to be earnings accretive in FY2012. The group is trading in line with 2011 PBT of £0.8m, EPS of 2.3p and DPS of 0.6p. With the benefits of the acquisition, the market has upgraded 2012 EPS from 3.6p to 4.3p. We believe the group is undervalued, trading on a 2012 prospective PER of 4.3x, a discount to the household goods sector, and with tangible net assets of £20.7m, exceeding the current market capitalisation. We reiterate our BUY recommendation."

[cockneyrebel] 13/12/2010 11:23

Been ill over the weekend or I'd have posted earlier.

Results pretty decent I thought. The acquisition looks good too.

A PE of 5, hardly demanding, probably lower going fwd.

I suppose that's not exciting enough for many - a nice steady eddy going fwd tho imo.

CR

[dnfa1975] 13/12/2010 08:19

new low - operating profits down by a quarter

[callumross] 13/12/2010 08:01

Added 10k at 17.75p

[callumross] 13/12/2010 07:59

Well, results in slightly ahead of what I was expecting and an interesting looking acquisition. Can't understand the markdown. Time to top up methinks!

[dnfa1975] 13/12/2010 07:37

Flat headline profits and blurred outlook

While operating profit before financing fell by GBP110,000 to GBP421,000, the
Group recorded GBP74,000 of favourable interest adjustments on the pension
scheme deficit, and finance costs were down due to tight cash control and low
interest rates.

The outlook for the Group's existing businesses for the remainder of the year
will depend on the retail environment over Christmas and the New Year and the
impact of a higher rate of VAT.

[arthur_lame_stocks] 13/12/2010 07:26

Decent enough results though. eps 1.4p. I wonder how the price will respond to today's news.

[arthur_lame_stocks] 13/12/2010 07:11

I thought they went bust!

[newbe] 13/12/2010 07:10

I know Collins and Hayes they make very nice furniture,should be good news for APG

[cockneyrebel] 11/12/2010 15:26

Results Monday, 7.00 am.

CR

[newbe] 10/12/2010 12:14

what time is the statement due?

[callumross] 09/12/2010 10:11

I would imagine tomorrows statement will be downbeat and refer to the fall off in sales due to the freezing weather (see HMV's statement today). If we get a sharp markdown in the morning on the basis of this, I for one will take the chance to top up.

[philjeans] 06/12/2010 11:44

Currently valued at less than 10% of T/O; if they can get the GPM up a few points, the increase in NP will be transformational.

[cockneyrebel] 06/12/2010 10:00

Results on Friday.

One of those stocks that's probably not going to set the world alight but still very cheap on earnings and assets and been around so long it's got cred imo.

CR

[liarspoker] 06/12/2010 09:56

I'm happy to keep holding too. Nice divi backed by substantial undervalued-on-book property assets.

Edit: I don't hold many so am willing to add on any good downside price weakness.

[callumross] 06/12/2010 09:53

Think the update is this week, Phil. I continue to hold but won't buy any more until I see the update. Their most recent update was a little bit "we might still meet expectations for the year" rather than any great confidence, I recall.

[philjeans] 06/12/2010 09:23

APG included in IC's Top Piotroski picks this week; genuine value shares.

A nice lock-away and could be worth buying prior to an update this month.

[cockneyrebel] 02/12/2010 21:29

yep, the assets valued at zilch here imo.

They also have planning on 7 acres for abusiness park.

CR

[arthur_lame_stocks] 02/12/2010 09:52

20 odd acres in Wiltshire has to be worth something doesn't it. And there's cash on the balance sheet and other assets and it's profitable. There's definitely value in APG imo.

[ydderf] 25/11/2010 14:50

crookers, i thought i would look in, as i try to every few months - having got locked into these - was it three years ago now?

Happy Anniversary my stoical friend!!

[dnfa1975] 23/11/2010 19:07

bout time they said furniture sales stalling

[cockneyrebel] 21/11/2010 16:10

I've made many a matress groan in action Liz.

Everything about APG is as good or better than the last trading statement suggested I'm sure - I'm quite happy to let these take their course - as they will I'm sure :-)

CR