Character Share Discussion Threads

[firtashia] 06/8/2015 07:22

Dogger Bank?

Could be him, but I thought I saw him during my hols on the Dalmatian coastline.

[buffythebuffoon] 06/8/2015 00:09

Very true gb.

In fact I hear he's spending some time on vacation in the North Sea.

Dogger Bank apparently.

Of course, I'm only going by what I was told. I may be barking up the wrong tree.

Buffy

[gargleblaster] 05/8/2015 18:33

buffy - If Fido was a musketeer, presumably he would be Dogtanian!

[firip] 05/8/2015 18:12

Looks like Mr. King sold another 5000000 shares today.

[ianhamo] 05/8/2015 11:35

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/104880

[buffythebuffoon] 05/8/2015 11:32

...and still no Fido.

I miss his dogmatic dogged persistence.

Buffy

[saucepan] 05/8/2015 11:22

On the subject of risk, CCT would not be the first company to have its share price wiped out by a devastating factory fire. These things can happen. The only intention was to provide a bit of perspective. "Don't invest more than you can afford to lose" is a stock market adage that has maintained its durability for good reason.

Having said that, I am enjoying today's extension of the breakout - away from the psychologically important 500p level - as much as anyone :-)

[cfro] 05/8/2015 10:25

Saucepan is right is to point out risks involved in product recalls. What i would now hope though is that Character has a wide enough range of toys that if there was ever to be problem with one it wouldnt be a cause of concern.

What we are seeing now is so many of character's toys doing well, not only in this country but around the world.

Dr Who is popular in the USA for instance, then there is Scooby Doo, the newly launched Clangers,then obviously Teletubbies to look forward too. Not forgetting Peppa Pig and the Minions too.

Character also has a number of other tricks up it's sleeve with the likes of Yummie Nummies and Chillfactor amongst others. So there really is lots to get excited about here.

[hawks11] 05/8/2015 09:32

I placed a limit order and the share price has now soared past my limit, CCT has a very big spread.

[tintin82] 05/8/2015 09:31

Agreed saucepan. One must always appreciate the risks. One warning sign is when a board becomes a one sided lovefest which this can appear to be at times.

[saucepan] 05/8/2015 09:01

Don't get me wrong, Character Group is the largest holding in my portfolio. However, no stock has "only one way to go". There are risks associated with every Company.

The potential of a toy recall because of safety issues, for example, is always a risk for a business like Character no matter how careful it is in testing.

Indeed, Character has had setbacks of this kind in the past, which have affected share price sentiment. For example:





Something like this could always come again from left field. Let's hope unlikely; but not impossible!

It is better that people invest in Character aware of the risks, rather then believing it "has only one way to go".

[mcartdon] 05/8/2015 08:40

If we look at the character business
1 There is a growing family population 1m births a year in pre school up 40%.
2 The families are growing their gdp
3 The young are becoming more employed.
4 Two generations are trying to do the same thing create homes and family life as the recession delayed a whole generation from trying.
5 China is lowering factory gate prices,
6 Oil is lower, and that lowers cost of purchase.
7 The pound is relatively strong and will remain so with rinimbi.
8 Character are expanding globally.
9 They have capital generation for years.
10 An excellent reputation
11 Small number of shares.
12 Loyal shareholders
13 Dividends higher than banks interest on accounts rates at 0.5%.
14 increasing market share.

They have the red bull they have wings for the next two years.
the p/e and share price have only one way to go by Christmas, UP
and their world wide sales are growing with Teletubies and clangers,
40% of sales may jump to 80% in 1 year 150 m t/o is easy goal.
a p/e of 16 in September is aim on their prospects.
6-8 pounds

[interceptor2] 05/8/2015 08:21

30% of sales are international.

I think the release of Teletubbies worldwide has the potential to growing the international percentage in 2016, could generate more sales than Peppa Pig if the launch is successful imo.

[orange1] 05/8/2015 07:59

Global sales? Character's market is the UK, isn't it?

[gargleblaster] 05/8/2015 07:52

buffy - I agree, Fido must stop sitting on the fence and give us a definitive statement about the prospect of global sales.

[buffythebuffoon] 04/8/2015 14:17

I hope nothing bad has happened to Fido.

If he's around, perhaps he could tell us whether the future global sales might have much of an impact on profits. I don't think he's ever said.

Buffy

[h1a3] 04/8/2015 11:23

I was also wondering why we had not heard recently from Fido and concluded that he is probably on holiday.
Positive article from ST at IC and looking for a good update in early September.

[cfro] 04/8/2015 10:24

Thanks for the article Gargleblaster.

Yes it is clear that brokers are, imo, considerably behind the curve. Lookout for an update around 8th Sep according to ST.

PS, anyone seen fido? Missing his regular news updates.

[interceptor2] 04/8/2015 10:19

Happy that analysts/brokers are behind the curve here, after the last interim results it was clear that estimates needed to be revised up by a large percentage imo. Fortunately this didn't happen which allowed me and other private investors to increase our holdings.

[bamboo2] 04/8/2015 09:16

Chart shows an Ascending Triangle with a near term target at approx 527. Further ahead there is an unconfirmed Rising Wedge T=587.

[gargleblaster] 04/8/2015 09:11

Earnings upgrades badly overdue imv. Analysts should get their fingers out - are they visiting companies these days, or just sitting in their ivory towers?

[mcartdon] 04/8/2015 08:59

! would hope dividend would be grown to 12p-15p, as how do you buyback with so thin a market and this year is the last year where dividend is not taxed 7.5%higher. How else do you return value from profits.
11m profit 20 m shares, 50p share but only 9p divi why not 33% 15p small shareholders now get tax free divi allowance .

[thorpematt] 04/8/2015 08:30

Can't understand why the targets are as low as they are. Mine is nearer £8 based on sensible forward earnings but making calculations based on EV rather than MC.

[gargleblaster] 03/8/2015 22:22

And here it is!!

Running profits on a playful investment

Shares in the fourth largest distributor of toys in the UK, Character Group (CCT: 500p), have risen by about 20 per cent in the two months since I initiated coverage ('Playtime', 1 June 2015), and are now approaching my 525p target price.

The price move is fully justified, too, as I strongly feel that the company will at the very least increase full-year pre-tax profits by more than half to £11m, based on a 15 per cent rise in sales of £113m in the 12 months to end-August 2015, as forecast by analysts Peter Smedley at Charles Stanley Stockbrokers, and Myles McNulty at Allenby Capital. On this basis, expect adjusted EPS to rise from 25.2p to 41.9p in the 12-month trading period and underpin a 35 per cent rise in the divided to just shy of 9p a share.

So with the shares priced on a bid-offer spread of 485p-500p, the prospective PE ratio is 12 and the forward yield is 1.8 per cent. That's hardly punchy for a company that has developed a portfolio of long-lasting iconic toy brands, both organically and by acquisition, targeting the niche pre-school market. Character may even surpass those estimates when it releases a pre-close trading update around Tuesday, 8 September. I am not the only one thinking this way as at the time of the half-year results Mr Smedley at Charles Stanley noted that "we have a high and increasing level of confidence that our 2015, 2016 and 2017 estimates can be upgraded over the next three to 12 months, giving further scope for continued substantial share price outperformance".

The launch of a range of toys to coincide with the return of cult children's classic The Clangers to the BBC on CBeebies after 43 years, is just one product that could lead to an earnings beat. Character's product range for Yummy Nummies, an innovative new children's 'food play' collection, whereby ingredients are used to make mini versions of everyday food, such as pizza and cookies, is another. And it will be interesting to find out how sales of Character's range of Teletubbies toys have fared since launch in June. CBeebies has been airing repeats, but a new series of 61 episodes has been commissioned by the Teletubbies brand's owner, DHX Media, and Character has been appointed 'Global toy partner'.

So ahead of the pre-close trading update, I would continue to run your bumper profits. Charles Stanley has a target price of 540p and Allenby Capital has a target of 575p, but I can see scope for both to be raised if Character beats its aforementioned profit estimates. Run profits.

[shauney2] 03/8/2015 20:40

Cheers for the ST information.Even a sale of 25k didn't make it flinch.

If they were 10% ahead or more is it a requirment these days to inform the market?
Wishful thinking on my part.