Crosby Asset. Share Discussion Threads

[2magpies] 23/5/2011 18:08

GS

That's my take too.

Anyhow, a pull-back in the commodities uptrend plays right into the hands of the CSB's stellar cast. They buy cheaper.

[t 34] 23/5/2011 17:13

500k in £ or shares pieces?

[theshareguru] 23/5/2011 16:54

500k buy @ 10.16am

[jojo_jo] 23/5/2011 10:48

Yes this is tightly held, with quite a tiny % free float (which will probably become tinier). I don't see many PIs ever selling out below 5p (personal circumstances excluded), and are more likely to jump back for more. At these prices you can own 1% of the free float for under £60k. Pretty amazing. I keep topping up at anything under 5.5p, and have enough for now.
I suspect there will be a concerted move into the stock on the run-in to the AGM, and as there is so little available stock or willingness to sell it, we could see a few reasonable rises. May even get back over 8p before June 21.
Much better upside potential than Parkmead, which has a lot to do to justify its price (a dilemma for TB and his shareholders). This is much more modestly valued and has better, multi - resource prospects than Parkmead's one. Ten times safer than Parkmead, although I'd be happy to see us jump to £100m on thin air like they have!
Usual imho/dyor caveats.

[tasciovanus] 23/5/2011 10:31

On a bad day for the FTSE; at +15% CSB is currently top of the risers.

[pezza4] 23/5/2011 10:29

tomboyb that means a tick up imminent?

[tomboyb] 23/5/2011 10:25

L2 is 5 v 1 by the way. gl.

[tasciovanus] 23/5/2011 10:24

The four major shareholders (including Ambramovich,McKeon and Khan) hold almost 75% of the 375 million shares; leaving just 102 million (25%) for other investors. Interestingly by comparison Parkmead Group has 609 million shares of which 58% are held by the major shareholders, with 260 million (42%) available for other investors. Watchers will have seen PMG rise and fall, but still maintain a healthy share price on speculation rather than substantial news. At 17.75 they have a market capitalisation of £108 million. CSB is now rising at 5.75 it has a market capitalisation of nearly £19 million. With positive news shortly the pointers are that this could rise rapidly.

[tomboyb] 23/5/2011 10:23

On the way back up. Morning chaps.

[pezza4] 23/5/2011 10:15

maybe with the football season over Roman is stepping in to help out!

[bernieboy] 23/5/2011 10:07

Yes - some good buying today - well over the ask first thing! I got back in at 5.25 last week. Todays rise looks nice.

[napoleon111] 23/5/2011 09:55

up up softly softly

[resource invest] 22/5/2011 13:42

Ok patboy. Explain us dummies the relevance of this article to CSB

[patboy] 22/5/2011 13:22

Wasnt posting about voc arewel old sayings thick as two short planks

[resource invest] 22/5/2011 12:32

My input is to post about VOC on VOC BB

Otherwise keep you perspicacity to yourself thank you very much Patboy

[jojo_jo] 22/5/2011 11:51

Was that just a ramp for VOC? China isn't on CSB's radar.

[patboy] 22/5/2011 11:48

what it has to do with csb?
perspicacity, think outside the box, input, have you got eny.

[t 34] 22/5/2011 10:37

what it has to do with csb?

[patboy] 21/5/2011 18:50

China's stocks present a great wall that has to be overcome

By David Stevenson

Published: May 20 2011 18:09 | Last updated: May 20 2011 18:09

China is a tough market to invest in. Behind all the hype about a land of opportunity sits an awkward reality: nasty surprises tend to happen too often! So, while I hope Anthony Bolton's China fund will prove a great success, I can't help but feel the omens aren't good.

My pessimistic assessment is inspired in part by developments at the London-listed Chinese small-cap fund, Vision Opportunity China (VOC).
EDITOR'S CHOICE
Adventurous Investor: More columns from David Stevenson - Oct-28

Over the years, I've frequently written about the danger of investing directly in Chinese stocks. I may be adventurous but, to me, the best option is to use funds focused on the only genuinely capitalist part of the economy: private enterprises run by mainland entrepreneurs.

VOC seemed to fit this bill. It runs a thorough due diligence process – even using private detectives to talk to the customers of Chinese companies that it is thinking of backing. It focuses on a handful of fast-growing companies with corporate governance close to western standards.

This diligence and focus was rewarded with a share price that briefly cruised past $2.50, and investors including Mr Bolton and Baillie Gifford.

More important, VOC avoided the worst of the "reverse merger" scandal in the US. This involved mainland Chinese companies reversing into "shell" companies listed in New York, rather than going through the regulatory process of obtaining a new listing. Bloomberg Businessweek magazine has recounted many of the resulting debacles – most of which saw the companies' shares collapse and the US Securities and Exchange Commission suspend their trading.

VOC's major holdings have avoided this scandal... until now.

One of its investments, a regional diesel and biofuels company called CBH, is facing some tough questions. Are its biodiesel factories genuinely operating at stated capacity? Why did its western auditors suddenly resign? What happened to the chief financial officer? As a result, CBH has had its shares suspended from trading on Nasdaq.

VOC sold most of its holding in CBH but the impact on its net asset value has been substantial – in the region of 40c per share. Its share price has fallen further: it crashed back to a trading range of between 75c and 80c.

What went wrong? VOC's due diligence process seemed robust, and the growth story seemed compelling.

However, no amount of due diligence and forensic analysis of accounts can save you from an apparent high-growth stock that crashes back to earth. Stock markets have been full of apparent growth stocks since the dawn of time – many of which draw investors into the so-called "growth-stock trap". What happens is that company managers try desperately hard to live up to the growth expectations, and the biggest temptation is to start exaggerating the numbers.

By contrast, value-orientated investors such as Warren Buffett look for "moats of competitive advantage". However, these are very hard to find.

So VOC is now in something of a quandary. Its core portfolio of remaining stocks seems to be thriving – but there's no knowing which Chinese stock will be the next target for short selling.

Funds that have a lot of cash might be able to wait and pick up some bargains among the reverse-merger Chinese companies. But this is now a sector where only the very brave would dare to tread.

More to the point, the integrity of much of the listed Chinese small-cap sector has been called into question. If relatively transparent US-listed companies are having problems, goodness knows what challenges face Chinese-listed companies, subject to laxer regulation.

VOC could decide to soldier on, stick to its core portfolio of companies and wait for sentiment to turn.

But even that poses a problem. Focused portfolios of fast-growing companies in emerging markets can deliver strong returns to adventurous investors – for example, Aurora Russia is making slow but steady progress with a small clutch of businesses. However, Aurora's approach is based on private-equity investing in unlisted companies under its direct control. VOC still has to work with local managers running their own companies but with foreign and other shareholders.

Maybe the best way to invest in emerging market small caps is to go down the private-equity route. Or maybe the best approach is the one recommended to me by a Beijing fund manager: "Never trust the local managers. Always keep a signed copy of the CEO and CFO's resignation letter in your drawer... just don't date it. You never know when it'll come in handy". Good luck Mr Bolton.

[jojo_jo] 20/5/2011 17:09

Yes, agree. One to sit on long-term, although there'll be some big jumps along the way.
Where we are now, approx. 1.5p above the last retracement bottom, is much less than the Abramovich involvement is worth imho. The involvement of that name is comfortably worth 3p as far as I'm concerned, so I regard 5p as cheap, and expect to be proven right very soon.
All imho of course, so dyor.
Have a good weekend,
Jo.

[patboy] 20/5/2011 14:03

rns 19may2011 The Board has proposed a name change to Zoltav Resources Inc. more appropriately to reflect the new direction of the Company. The necessary resolutions to implement this name change will be proposed for shareholder approval at the upcoming general meeting of the Company to be held on 21 June 2011 at Le Meridien Beach Plaza am i right thinking some thing could happen before the above meeting reverse takeover ect ?