Craven House Capital Share Discussion Threads

[moreforus] 08/10/2014 08:57

and blue too....on a market red day

[karina] 08/10/2014 08:54

Nice 1m buy

[karina] 08/10/2014 07:54

Pressfit RNS today, not of huge interest but at least they understand the need for newsflow

[chumpster10126] 08/10/2014 00:06

Thank you Karina, another excellent post by Wealth Manager.

[karina] 07/10/2014 22:45

Today 22:18 Price: 0.54WealthManager 122 postsTullyCrow...TC, as in Ricardo's case, I'll try and provide a balanced response to your question. As you well know, Craven House posted an excellent set of results on the 27th of February 2014: • The Net Asset Value of its holdings surged by 49% (from £3.84m to £5.73m) in the 6-month period and 112% in the 12-month period. • It turned-in its first operating profit of £522,000 for the 6-month period. • And it continued acquiring investments utilising CRV shares as currency and issued at a remarkable 1.25p. Those results were comfortably ahead of the market's expectations. Fast forward to September 2014, and through its spectacularly well-connected leader, Mark Pajak, the company has significantly expanded its balance sheet through its 7 key assets: 1. The EmVest™ investment (49% stake): an impressive collection of quality, cash-generative agricultural assets. 2. The Green Isle Conference and Leisure Hotel™ investment (100% stake): an shrewd conversion of a distressed debt into a £1.2m mortgage and redeemable within 3 years. 3. The Ceniako™ investment (49% stake): a valuable piece of prime, Brazilian real estate. 4. The Finishtec™ investment (50.1% stake): an established, Brazilian manufacturing business boasting blue-chip clients. 5. The Depston™ investment (49% stake): a nationally-renowned (SA) sports retail chain. This asset was acquired after the interims. 6. The LRG (Land Resources Guinea) investment (45% stake): an incredible acreage of prime African farm land. 7. The Pressfit™ investment (22.5% stake): a fast-growing, Chinese manufacturing business. This asset achieved a public listing after the interims. Now, from my viewpoint, and donning my econometric hat on, I believe a comprehensive analysis of a firm's Discounted Cash-Flow (DCF) valuation, Net Asset Valuation, relative valuation versus industry peers, as well as an assessment of future earnings potential is the best way to obtain a fair value of a stock. So, from a conservative point of view, and cutting out the exhaustive waffle (lengthy technical data incorporating the aforementioned measures), the company's NAV appears to be, in my view, within the £9.5m and £13.5m range. Please note, this valuation doesn't take into account the substantial growth potential (through its well-connected investment manager Desmond Holdings) present in the stock or the significant value being built up in the Depston™, EmVest™, and Ceniako™ assets. That said, and if all was considered, I would expect a valuation significantly north of the NAV range provided above. .Answer Strong Buy

[karina] 07/10/2014 16:40

WealthManager 121 postsRichardo...Richardo, the question you ask is substantial so I'll attempt to answer it with the gravitas it deserves. The structure employed by Desmond Holdings (registered in Hong Kong) is fundamentally geared towards wealth management and is manifested through the following benefits: 1. Confidentiality and asset protection: It provides a layer of confidentiality between the client and investments that cannot be achieved by investing in personal names. 2. Preservation of wealth and avoidance of disruption on death. 3. Providing for philanthropic giving, business ownership, and succession planning. 4. Safeguarding value across generations. 5. Minimising income and capital gains taxes resulting from investments, and that affect multi-jurisdictional operations: In Desmond's case, the Hong Kong corporate tax rate is currently at 16.5% whilst the maximum taxable to an individual is 15%. In stark contrast, the UK's corporation tax rate is currently at 24% (down from 40% in 2007) and the maximum taxable to an individual is 45%. So, the benefits are clear to see. In addition to these, there are other tax benefits linked to certain financial instruments. The list is quite elaborate so I will avoid inflicting any more 'pain'. 6. It allows the use of Trusts, Closed-ended Funds, Mutual Funds, Unit Investment Trusts, Investment companies (Desmond Investment Ltd and Craven) to acquire, manage and transfer assets efficiently and confidentially: This, fundamentally, is why Craven is currently a very attractive investment. It stands to be used as an acquisition vehicle for various lucrative assets that stand to generate substantial returns for the stake holders. The scope (size: value) of the assets is not an issue either due its solid financial backing. To this end, it aptly fits the title of 'merchant bank'. Richardo, I hope this helps. .

[h d shoring] 07/10/2014 13:26

red ticked on 1 word post must object to the4 dots ?

[monkey puzzle] 07/10/2014 12:14

shhhh...he must be sleeping....zzzzzz

[h d shoring] 07/10/2014 12:10

Wot no red tick???

[monkey puzzle] 07/10/2014 11:56

always....-;

[karina] 07/10/2014 11:53

It was a buy MP. Trust me!

[monkey puzzle] 07/10/2014 11:51

I just got quoted 0.52 to sell and 0.54 to buy.....not sure where that leaves the 1m trade at 0.53 though fwiw

[karina] 07/10/2014 11:35

Nice 1m buy, shows as a sell of course....!

[karina] 07/10/2014 11:27

Morning Parsons

To be honest with you, the vast majority of my portfolio is CRV. I was pointed this way by a good friend some time ago and really feel I/we have found a share that has so far been overlooked by the clever money. That's currently changing but there's so much mileage here, I can see this being a life changing event for those happy to ride it out.

Fully expect news soon as well Parsons, perhaps another holdings RNS and then a block buster of some sort......

It is the same David. Having met him, I am very, very pleased to see him invested here. I think we should focus on his achievements at Next and his obvious business prowess and ignore the unproven allegations.

[parsons] 07/10/2014 11:01

There must be some news coming. I am told that David Jones is the same person involved with JJB some years back.

[parsons] 07/10/2014 11:01

Karina what other shares are you invested in ? You certainly do your homework !

[monkey puzzle] 07/10/2014 09:25

Picking up (again).....

[spazzz] 07/10/2014 08:43

Karina. I don't post on the competitor site but I do read the discussions.

Could you pass on my thanks to Wealth Manager for sharing their research and thoughts ... and in such eloquent fashion.

Wealth Manager has to be one of THE best contributors around.

[moreforus] 07/10/2014 08:18

going up on sells....CRV always defies convention!

[karina] 07/10/2014 07:56

Another Wealth Manager nugget

Ever heard of a ‘Hail Mary’ pass? It’s a desperation heave made by a quarterback in American football. It’s made at the end of a game – when defeat stares you in the face – and there’s virtually no chance of victory.

Well, that’s what it felt like when I decided to make a last-ditch attempt to determine the identities and money (scale) behind Desmond Holdings; a critical factor when considering the investment case in Craven House Capital. My findings, each referenced with a link, are documented below in chronological order:

1. On the 6th of November 2012, Desmond Investments Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Desmond Holdings, acquired 4 million units (51%) of Ripper Oil and Gas Ltd (RYP) from the company’s largest shareholder, Emprise Capital, at 10 cents a unit. Here’s the link:



2. On the 18th of February 2013, Ripper Oil and Gas Ltd entered into a Letter of Intent (LOI) to acquire all of the issued and outstanding share capital of Havana Resorts Limited. Havana is a widely-held private limited company incorporated in Guernsey. Havana was incorporated over six years ago with the prime objective of developing tourism projects in Cuba. Since that time, Havana has been actively promoting its plans to develop a resort property in Cuba in partnership with the Cuban government. Note the repeated employment of complex financial instruments to complete transactions. Here’s the link:



3. On the 4th of April 2014, Desmond Investments Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Desmond Holdings, acquired EmVest Nuts Pty through Pro Alia Investment 1 Ltd which is indirectly owned by a closed-end fund registered in Mauritius and run by Susan Payne, a former Goldman Sachs banker with a master's degree in law from Oxford University. She is also the chief executive officer of EmVest Asset Management, a large landowner and agriculture company in Africa, and also the parent company of EmVest Nuts. Note the fascinating Oxford link and the repeated employment of complex financial instruments and investment funds to complete transactions. Here’s the link:



4. On the 3rd of September 2014, Desmond Investments Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Desmond Holdings, entered into a Letter of Intent to acquire AP Vos & Seuns (Pty.) Ltd and its related companies for $65million. The property consists of approximately 1,300 hectares located close to Desmond's existing macadamia nut processing factory in the province of Mpumalanga, South Africa. Vos currently supplies wet and dry raw nuts internationally. Here’s the link:



Now, a couple of points to consider before I present the next piece: Based on the above research, we know that Mark Pajak is Desmond Holdings’ front man. We also know that Desmond Holdings’ investment arm is Desmond Investments Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary listed on the Toronto Venture Exchange (OTC platform) and that characteristically operates like an investment bank, preferring to employ complex financial instruments to enter into transactions. So, with that in mind, brace yourselves for point 5:

5. On the 6th of January 2014, one of the world’s largest hedge fund operators, MAN GROUP PLC (LON:EMG) was sued for £20million over claims that their advice went bad in a ‘complex’ over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives trade. MAN GROUP’s subsidiary GLG Partners advised Richard Desmond, founder of Northern & Shell Plc media group, on a £50million investment in a product called a Constant Proposition Portfolio Insurance, a type of SWAP investment, according to a GLG claim. When Desmond requested that the investment be unwound during the market crash of 2008, he claims in a lawsuit to have lost nearly £20million and was not informed of all the risk in the investment.

In court documents, Desmond’s lawyers claim the derivative contract was “incomprehensible except to an expert.” Desmond had hired GLG Partners as a consultant into SWAP transactions and later engaged in such a transaction with Credit Suisse. In their defence, GLG said they were not a party to the specific transaction between Desmond Investments Ltd (CVE:DLC.P) and Credit Suisse Group and that Desmond independently decided to invest. Here’s the link:



Now, the key line in the above piece is: ‘GLG said they were not a party to the specific transaction between Desmond Investments Ltd (CVE:DLC.P) and Credit Suisse Group and that Desmond independently decided to invest.’

Reading the above, I had to pinch myself twice to believe what I was reading: Could it be true? Richard Desmond, the British billionaire (No. 25 on the UK Rich list and worth £1.4billion) is directly linked to Desmond Investments Ltd? And subsequently to the elusive, off-shore investment group Desmond Holdings?

Before bursting with excitement, I decided to cross-reference the epic code provided in the article (CVE:DLC.P) to ensure that it was the same Desmond Investments Ltd linked to Mark Pajak and not another one. The evidence is in the link below:



Yes, you guessed it: I burst out with excitement. It was there – in black and white – and spotting the identical epic code as depicted in the article. And at the bottom of the screen, under the heading ‘Officers and Directors’, was the name I was hoping to see – Mark Joseph Pajak; President, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Secretary, and Director.

Well, there you have it. Craven House Capital is being managed by Desmond Holdings, an investment company linked to (and aptly named after) British billionaire Richard Desmond. And the entry of Sir David Jones CBE into the picture (4% stake) adds to an already compelling story. Hold on to your shares.

[karina] 06/10/2014 18:20

Today 18:15 Price: 0.50TullyCrow 371 postsRE: holding rnsThat's one holdings RNS out the way. Sir Dave added 10m recently, there were a lot more bought in sizeable chunks. Good to see someone of the business background as him adding, note: that's adding, he already had quite a lot..Off Topic Strong Buy

[moreforus] 06/10/2014 17:18

He's not the same guy from JJB...

[karina] 06/10/2014 17:13

Great news isn't MP. Nice to see an investor of that calibre and contacts invested heavily here.

That's 75.5% of the shares accounted for on the tear sheet and I know where another 4% or so are held. When this goes it will be rapid. IMHO etc etc

[monkey puzzle] 06/10/2014 16:45

Karina

Well that is good news then and you were 100% correct about our stake builder
......a 50% increase works for me!!!