Chesnara Share Discussion Threads

[washbrook] 31/3/2009 12:09

RESULTS OUT TODAY.
-------------------------
A final dividend of 10.05p per share in respect of the year ended 31 December
2008 payable on 20 May 2009 to equity shareholders of the Parent Company
registered at the close of business on 14 April 2008, the dividend record date,
was approved by the Directors after the balance sheet date. The resulting total
final dividend of GBP10.2m has not been provided for in these financial
statements and there are no income tax consequences.

The following summarises dividends per share in respect of the year ended 31
December 2007 and 31 December 2008:

2008 2007

p p

Interim - approved and paid 5.50 5.25

Final - proposed 10.05 9.85

--------- ---------

Total 15.55 15.10

[kirbydon] 23/3/2009 15:59

results on Mon, any comm,s on the Divi

[pneman] 07/2/2009 05:10

Top of the rectangle looks to be around the 140p mark. Anyone think this will go higher than that in the short term?

[pip_uk] 03/2/2009 15:10

Looking very positive today.
Had sold at a small profit, but the dividend just looks too good to miss so I`m back in.

[ianbrewster] 02/2/2009 15:09

On CityWire today

Threadneedle Investments' Jonathan Barber, who is A-rated by Citywire for his management of his UK Monthly Income fund, has named life assurance company Chesnara, which is on a yield of 13.1%, as one that can deliver.

Barber says while Chesnara's book value is shrinking, capital is likely to continue being returned to shareholders and he is '99% confident' the company will maintain its dividend. He also points out the company is invested in a relatively conservative mix of assets. With no dedicated sales force and much of its back-office operations outsourced, it has the capacity to keep costs low and weather the impact of economic downturn.

[a0469514] 31/1/2009 19:41

Well you don't amuch better signal than the Finance Director buying.

Xylos

[edmundshaw] 31/1/2009 18:38

Ken Romney (Finance Director) seems quite keen at these prices. I suppose the yield beats bank interest at the moment...

[humbugg] 31/1/2009 09:02

A0469514,
I think i'd fall in between the two of you. we may well get a few "bear rallies" but medium term im in the down camp. i think you underestimate the scale of the problems in our economy, we will suffer more than most, of that i am sure. scooby doo will make sure of that.
washbrook,
good luck.

[a0469514] 28/1/2009 20:48

It looks like you are a lost cause Mr Washbrook. I'm off elsewhere and we can agree to differ. I wonder though whether you hope that I am right or whether you actually hope that you are right. Think about it. Or perhaps you are another crazed shorter.
Actually I noticed that even Simon Cawkwell, one of the biggest pessimists in our game is calling a 1000 point rise on the FTSE in quick time.

Xylos

[washbrook] 28/1/2009 18:06

KIND REGARDS
-----------------------------------

DEPRESSION?

It shouldn't come as any big surprise that with such a provocative title, we would be saddled with questions as to how an economic depression is even defined. Of course, most portfolio managers still don't know that a recession is not defined as back-to-back quarters of negative real GDP prints (which we had neither in 2002 nor 2008) but instead the timing of the peaks in real sales activity, employment, industrial production and organic personal income growth.

As for depressions, there is no official definition, except to say that they have existed in the past. There were no fewer than four in the nineteenth century, one in the twentieth century, and we are very likely enduring another one today. Though this current one is muted by the fact that most countries have an elaborate social safety net (deposit insurance, unemployment benefits, welfare, and socialized health care).

Depressions are basically long recessions - they can last anywhere from three to seven years, while historically cyclical recessions last 18 months - and tend to follow years of leveraged prosperity of Gatsby-like proportions. Considering that in this most recent leveraged cycle from 2002-07, we reached a point where a record 40% of corporate profits were derived from financial activities, where household debt relative to income and assets surged to unprecedented levels and the personal savings rate briefly went negative at the height of the housing bubble, it is safe to say the down-cycle we are currently experiencing did indeed follow a classic elongated period of leveraged prosperity. It is now reverting to the mean.
* $6 trillion - The amount of private sector debt that needs to be eliminated (Based on ML data that total private sector credit market debt relative to national income is still near a record-high of 140 per cent vs a long-run norm of 80 per cent).

* $1 trillion - The amount of excess capacity in the US economy.

* $13 trillion - the cumulative loss of household net worth at the end of 2008.

* 70% - The US's share of global consumer spending/GDP, which Rosenberg predicts will now revert to its long-run average of 64 per cent.

And the scariest bit of all:
As Morgan Freeman (Red) put it so eloquently in The Shawshank Redemption, "that's all it takes, really, pressure, and time." Time is certainly going to be a big part of the solution, and history tells us that deleveraging cycles last years. While the pendulum is obviously on the downswing, the forecasting community is obsessed with locating the bottom. In our view the appropriate focus is to assess just how far the pendulum will swing in the opposite direction, because a mean-reversion process actually breaks through the mean.

[a0469514] 28/1/2009 17:57

washbrook,

Well if you are contented that's fine. Each to his own way of investing I guess. However I am much more optimistic than you. In fact I reckon that now could be the opportunity of a decade. The time to buy is when most people are gloomy and that sounds like you I am afraid. Not that I am knocking you. I blame the press and television who are only interested in gloomy news. When the banks were dropping it was headline news. Has it been the lead item anywhere that Barclays went up 100% in 2 days? Maybe it has but I doubt it. I don't watch the BBC news anymore.

Xylos

[washbrook] 28/1/2009 12:02

A0469514.
You do not know my problems I put them down then erased them .
I am a very contented man have had a wonderful life and I am not going to change my way of investing.
I only have Investment Trusts I have held Chesnera several times.
If I was younger I would be investing in good solid small companies and there at lot around if you do your own research but not yet.
Alas my view is the equity markets have a lot further to fall.
You may laugh my view the FTSE 100 will see 2000 before the year is out.
The FTSE 100 topped out on 6930.2 on 31.12.1999 that is 10 years ago I expect a 70% fall from that figure.
I remember 1973 the FTSE 30 index dropped by 85% and I feel that it is worse this time.
On a lighter note
The Uk all share index becoming the FTSE all share index .In 1825 the high was 77.26 it fell on several occasions by 75% or more.
Next time 77.26 was reached was in 1959 104 years later.
Stock markets do not always go up or they may take time to recover.
Look at the Nikkei 225 in 1990 it was 38000 now 19 years later at 8061 that is a 78.79% drop.

[a0469514] 28/1/2009 11:28

Why be careful when you are 72? Take a few risks and put some excitement in the last few years. Chesnara have one of the safest yields around with the historic yield of almost 12%. Rather better than the building society or gilts for that matter. I do not see Sterling falling much further but even if it does, so what? I think the Bank of England and the government are quite happy to see it fall. It makes it easier for our exporters, deters imports, encourages tourism to here, and discourages us from spending our money abroad. All good for the economy. We could just be at the start of the next bull market. Don't miss the chance to grab the bargains.

Xylos

[washbrook] 27/1/2009 05:06

My reasons for sterling falling is that the markets view that the the UK will have the worst downturn.
Also the UK banks have problems.
Last night I looked at a few currencies-$, yen, Phillipine currency, Australian $, Canadian $ and the euro.
Sterling has had a bad time since my calculations since June 2008 with the exception of the Australion $.
There are19 gilts at last nights close that have fallen by over 10% the top losers are in the -18% fall.
What is also worrying that the 2 top losers last night are index linked although they are at the long end of maturity.
Investing is always about worry but in these markets you have to be very careful.
I have been through a few recessions whilst being an investor 1974, 1991 and now this recession?For an investor 1991 was easy to find bargains and you could see light ahead interest rates were hiked by the tory goverment and inflation was put to bed.
At present I only have Investment Trusts in my portfolio but I have been watching a few stocks that look good value and I know them in my research.
I am 72 so I have to be very careful.

[fardistanthills] 20/1/2009 11:26

washbrook, would appreciate your expanding on that. I too am thinking of buying into this, so would appreciate any thoughts you have on the impact on CSN of falling sterling, and also weaker gilt prices?

[washbrook] 19/1/2009 10:38

The question is with this stock which is at the best end of value in financials is whether Sterling is down the rocky path.If Sterling was safe I would buy this.

[aukley] 16/1/2009 13:52

Anyone awake? What is happening? Is there news today not on ADVFN?

[luderitz] 30/12/2008 17:58

Retired then, was that expected or not?

[markie7] 30/12/2008 14:24

retires, not resigns. nothing to see here, move on

[luderitz] 30/12/2008 12:26

Chairman resigns, was that expected or not please?

[topvest] 17/12/2008 21:36

Looking good.

[markie7] 16/12/2008 15:56

having a good run here. nice to see.

[bonzophil] 16/12/2008 15:52

I would hope that the current market might throw up a few opportunities for the likes of Chesnara. There must be a few finanacial services companies out there that need to raise some cash, and not many with the cash to spend. I wouldnt be surprised if there is a deal done in the next 6 months or so.