Connect Share Discussion Threads

[stewart64] 02/6/2017 09:29

Re blue chips getting the benefit of the doubt over steady performers like Connect which has never made a loss recently...Kier (as you mentioned Carillion) is forgiven everything. Operating margin is 2% could be a profit or a loss on those margins and recently we are talking a big loss.

[stewart64] 02/6/2017 09:14

Don't think we will get much movement on domestic stocks until next Friday and only if we get a Tory victory. The international blue chips like Astra Zeneca are on a roll meanwhile.

If we get a Hung parliament domestic stocks are going to get killed or do quite well with the reverse. I'll be in big trouble with my portfolio if Labour do turn things around.

I've recently switched out of Imperial Tobacco and Glaxo for some profitable small caps. Timing might be terrible but really sick of the former making diddly squat and having racey valuations of 50+.

[edmundshaw] 02/6/2017 08:26

Broker price targets are essentially useless in the main, they mostly just follow where the market has been (research showed this up years ago).

RCT you are being a naughty boy. You know well that Carillion is something of an exception, with the c.20% short interest in it from the 'states.

[skinny] 02/6/2017 08:11

Peel Hunt Add 131.25 167.00 135.00 Reiterates

[rcturner2] 02/6/2017 08:07

stewart, you can look at a large cap like Carillion (CLLN) which also has a similar low margin and it is not rated any different for being "blue chip".

[edmundshaw] 02/6/2017 08:04

Didn't even know JL was in this. If he exited at 250p, he has a crystal ball, as that was the absolute top price. Also there was a rights issue subsequently, and the equivalent price now is 217p. I'd be disappointed if we didn't head back towards 180p+ in due course. Meanwhile I have sold some higher up and bought more lower down.

[bscuit] 01/6/2017 23:36

in my view the problem is the main business is in structural decline and Bertrams didn't really perform and Tuffnels has lots of competition. Remember the price was 250 when John Lee exited. Wish I had done too! I'm on 55% profit and its only the income that keeps me here.-

[edmundshaw] 01/6/2017 22:50

I think it's cheap right now. I already have plenty, but would have liked to add around 120p. But I certainly won't be complaining if the price starts to recover sooner and I miss that particular boat...

[stewart64] 01/6/2017 12:49

Took at punt at 124 yesterday. Big question mark for me is operating margin at less than 3%. In spite of that the profits have been incredibly stable.

If it was a blue chip with those figures you'd get away with sticking a nought on the price to earnings. Seems overly punished, but a gamble nevertheless.

[cwa1] 01/6/2017 07:30

Update on the Proposed Disposal of Education & Care division to RM plc



On 7 February 2017, Connect Group PLC announced that it had signed an agreement with RM plc ("RM") to dispose of its Education & Care division (the "Transaction"), conditional on approval from each of RM's shareholders and by the Competition & Markets Authority.



The Company is pleased to note that the Competition & Markets Authority has earlier today announced that it has unconditionally cleared the Transaction, paving the way for the Transaction to proceed to completion.



Accordingly, the Company expects the Transaction to complete on or around 30 June 2017.



A further announcement will be made in due course.

[kazoom] 31/5/2017 19:37

You could well have been lucky enough to get this years options near the low chicken.

Still plenty of time to get your head down and deliver the profits in time for the 2015 maturity! GET ON WITH IT! ;-)

[chickenvindaloo] 31/5/2017 18:58

Today is the date which sets the option price for us (un)lucky people eligible for the sharesave scheme. A nice round quid (give or take) after the twenty percent discount. I'll get them at 128 for both the 2015 and 2016 schemes as the price just happened to be 160 on both years' option dates.
I'd have been content to cash in even at 160 but that seems a long way off now.
Still another 15 months until the 2015 scheme matures so fingers crossed.

[prokartace] 30/5/2017 11:20

Ok, in the market and praying that we rise to 145-150 over the next 9 days!

[prokartace] 05/5/2017 12:30

Well, I am going to buy some more at this level, for the dividend if nothing else. Every other time the share price has risen just before the share goes ex div so its a matter of how long before thew ex date (8th of June) to buy

[robow] 04/5/2017 16:07

from Questor in The Daily Telegraph on 2nd May
Connect

Last week's interims clearly did not enthuse everyone, as Connect's shares slipped, leaving us sitting on a loss on the book and newspaper distribution and parcel freight expert.

Management increased the interim dividend by 3pc. This means the 7.8pc prospective dividend yield should be enough to keep income-seekers happy, even if growth-hunters may prefer to wait for the next step in the company's strategic development.

The sale of the education and care operations is a huge step and the company is investing in new systems to improve efficiencies and capitalise on returns services deals with Amazon and French Connection.

Further signs of an upturn in book sales after years of decline would be an unexpected, if welcome, boost.


Questor says: Hold

Ticker: CNCT

Share price at close: 126p

[speedsgh] 27/4/2017 14:00

Not sure the CEO & his wife's relatively small purchases yesterday will be anywhere near enough to reverse sentiment here. Share price is now making new lows which is not reassuring.

[fenners66] 27/4/2017 13:37

I would take the swap , live healthy to 100+ and still waiting for these to go up!

[dogwalker] 26/4/2017 22:47

I hope we don't die of old age waiting for this company's share price to start heading north .

[edmundshaw] 26/4/2017 22:23

Fenners, just jesting in a Sophoclean kind of way. That was what the :-) was for... but some of those factoids are a bit odd, you must admit!

The actuaries in an article I read said they were not sure exactly what the reasons were for the decrease in life expectancy. As they are very clever and do a lot of work on the subject, I am not going to second guess them...

[cwa1] 26/4/2017 12:34

Connect Group PLC (the "Company") announces that it has been notified of the following transactions in the Company's ordinary 5p shares undertaken by directors / persons discharging managerial responsibility:

1. Purchase by Mark Cashmore (Executive Director, Group Chief Executive Officer) and by a person closely associated to Mr Cashmore, of a total of 25,380 ordinary 5p shares, on 26 April 2017, for a market price of GBP1.30.

[fenners66] 26/4/2017 08:30

Edmund - deliberately misquoted me?
The point was about dementia being now the UK's biggest killer - because of increased longevity - that is we have fixed cancers and hearts etc so now dementia gets ya.

[prokartace] 26/4/2017 08:00

I am amazed that any pension fund could have a surplus in this low rate environment. Do all the employees die young??
It would also seem that the brokers are also far more optimist than investors too.

[edmundshaw] 25/4/2017 18:23

BTW I think that link is a translation of a translation of this:
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/pensioners-uk-life-expectancy-falling-institute-and-faculty-of-actuaries-a7661571.html

[edmundshaw] 25/4/2017 18:16

Is life expectancy falling because of increased longevity? I don't think so! :-)

[fenners66] 25/4/2017 16:49

I think recession should be an overly pessimistic view.
I get the feeling there is a synchronised worldwide growth coming and the UK will catch the wave.

As for life expectancy - yes I saw that it had dipped - didn't know about dementia stats but is that older end of life dementia almost because of the increased longevity?