Eco City Share Discussion Threads

[cockneyrebel] 02/1/2013 14:41

Yep, stuck them in my 2013 stockchallenge :-)

Testing the one year high today - chart's rather nice when that goes ;-)

CR

[opaldouglas] 02/1/2013 14:39

Molby,

Thanks for the link, I'll have a read through this evening. How did you come across little old ECV?

Would seem to be a number of people who agree with you, Shauney & CR.

OD

[strollingmolby] 02/1/2013 14:27

Just as long as the price doesn't get away - I haven't yet bought-in!

I mentioned them over here

and CR listed ECV as one of his five for 2013 on his thread.

[opaldouglas] 02/1/2013 14:15

Big jump in volume today...

Shauney – is this your doing?!? ;)

[opaldouglas] 01/1/2013 19:26

Interesting piece in the guardian today.

[opaldouglas] 31/12/2012 18:17

Shauney, feel free to opt for ECV. It's a never ending struggle to choose my favourite share in my portfolio let alone nominate one!

I really believe 2013 will be a good year for ECV and the trading update (due end of Jan) will be key... if numbers are anywhere near what I expect ECV will certainly be close to the top of the leader board come end of Jan.

Getting cut up by Vitos? Perhaps we can raise this issue with the board at the next agm ;)

Happy new year

OD

[shauney2] 31/12/2012 17:21

Douglas,
I was going to put ECV in the stocks to double thread



but i reckon after all your hard work on this thread you deserve first go at that.They have got to have a good chance of doubling.
I use to get cut up by the old black cabs on my way to Heathrow now its the Mercedes Vito's that do the job lol
Happy new year.

[opaldouglas] 20/12/2012 07:39

Didn't expect that! £2M cash for non core asset which greatly reduces debt, of course ECV will have to partially foot the bill for future rents (one80) but it looks like a shrewd move and provides extra working capital. Things just keep getting better and better.

Now ECV just need £2.8M VAT refund from the HMRC to trickle through ;)

20 December 2012

Eco City Vehicles PLC

("ECV" or "the Company")

Property Disposal

Eco City Vehicles PLC, the developer and supplier the London licensed Mercedes Vito taxi, is pleased to announce that it has completed the disposal of a non-core asset, its freehold Coventry property to Penso Consulting Limited for approximately £2 million in cash.

The 42,000 square feet property is an industrial building leased to the Company's subsidiary One80 Limited and to a third party which converts the Mercedes Vito taxis.

ECV will receive total cash consideration of £2 million which will be used to repay the Company's mortgage and interest swap, a total of £1.8 million as at 31 November 2012. The balance of the proceeds will be applied as working capital.

The Coventry property is a non-strategic asset which generates annual rent of £220,000, £110,000 of which is from One80 Limited, ECV's technology subsidiary and owner of the intellectual property rights to the rear wheel steer technology used on the Mercedes Vito taxi, which will continue to occupy the property following disposal. The disposal is not expected to have any operational impact. The net book value of the property is £2 million.

Following the disposal of the property ECV long term debt will consist solely of £1.25 million long term loan from the KPM-UK Taxis Discretionary Pension Scheme in line with the terms announced on 7 September 2012.

John Swingewood, chairman of ECV, said: "The Coventry disposal further strengthens the Company's balance sheet following the completion of the share placing in September, leaving us focussed on our core operational business, with no long-term bank debt."

[cockneyrebel] 19/12/2012 17:31

Interesting, cheers.

CR

[opaldouglas] 19/12/2012 15:21

Worth a read.

[opaldouglas] 17/12/2012 22:30

CR - whilst ECV plough on with no competition its a no brainer. I expect trading statement end of Jan to really set us on our way.

[cockneyrebel] 17/12/2012 21:26

I've been buying these over the past month - looks like a compelling story even if the chart doesn't show it yet ;-)

CR

[opaldouglas] 17/12/2012 21:01

big volume day again, 2 x 1m trades looks like a rollover and 782,615 certainly a buy.

[opaldouglas] 12/12/2012 19:45

52.8%!

"Vito Taxi registrations up 52.8 per cent for the month-to-date"

[opaldouglas] 03/12/2012 22:28

Thanks for the link protean. I never realised ECV's share of London Cabs was so small @ 7%... based on figures within article of 23,000s cab ECV have circa 1,610 cabs in London. Plenty of upside potential in the coming years.

Coincidently today on my walk home from work I counted 7 Vito's on the roads in Manchester city centre (very rock and roll I know!) they are certainly becoming more common around these parts.

Also interesting to see Nissan's NV200 get a mention which is still penned in for Q3/4 next year leaving ECV free to capitalise on market share further.

[protean] 03/12/2012 15:22

"After assembly in Vitoria, Spain, the Vito is shipped to Coventry where a company called Eco City Vehicles Plc (ECV) makes changes to meet London's requirements. While only about 7 percent of London taxis are Vitos, the car's share of new registrations is higher.

The Vito captured 23 percent of sales last year, or 355 versus 1,074 for the TX4. In the first half of 2012, the Vito's share jumped to 38 percent of the market, or 324 taxis. That boosted Evo's revenue to 16.4 million pounds for the period."

[opaldouglas] 02/12/2012 10:16

Have updated the header a touch to include few extra details including ECV's current monopoly on licensed cabs. Also 2.8M VAT refund from HMRC.

Looking at revenues this year, based on average figure before Manganese went belly up for the first 7 months of the year 354 new Vitos were sold (51 per month on average). Based on an average figure of 51 x 12 months (612 Vitos), full year revs from new Vito Sales will stand at £21,420,000 (based on £35,000 avg Vito price)

Full year revenue breakdown forecast

New Vitos sales: £21,420,000 (612 Vitos @ £35,000)
Used Vitos sales: £5,400,000 (H1 2012 = £2.7M x 2 - this figure should continue to rise with more Vitos on the road)
After sales division: £4,000,000 (H1 2012 = £2M x 2)
One80: £1,000,000

Total Revs: £31,820,000

The big unknown is what effect has Manganese steering faults/administration had on sales of the Vito? Greater London Authority state 1200 black cabs will hit their 15 year limit in 2012 (See link below).



As Manganese have been unable to sell the black cab since October, cabbies only have one option but to turn to a Vito. Based on the disgraceful way in which Manganese have operated I'd expect cabbies would be inclined to opt for the Vito in any case. If we assume that 50% of Vitos sold this year were replacement cabs due to legislation (this is roughly the increase in sales since new legislation came into effect) then 306 no. of ECV's Vitos (my forecasts!) sales this year come out of the 1200 15 year old black cab due for retirement this year. This leaves circa 900 vehicles to be upgraded this year.

Manganese stated in their 2012 interims that H1 2012 they sold 577 vehicles. As the black cab sales are spread nationwide we could assume that 25% of sales are derived from London, circa 150 black cabs. For arguments sake lets say all these sales were due to new 15 year legislation and factor in July to Sep sales prior to suspension would give a figure of 225 black cabs sold in London this year.

So, we can now assume that 531 black cabs in London which have hit their 15 year limit have been replaced to date. This leaves a predicted 669 black cabs to be replaced before year end.

Even if you factor out 25% of cabs to be replaced due to retirements etc that still leaves 500 cabs and ECV has a monopoly on this market until the new year at least!

500 new Vitos @ £33,500 would provide an additional £16,750,000 of revs, taking new Vito revs to circa £39M and full year revs would look something like:

New Vitos sales: £39,000,000 (1112 Vitos @ £35,000)
Used Vitos sales: £5,400,000 (H1 2012 = £2.7M x 2 - this figure should continue to rise with more Vitos on the road)
After sales division: £4,000,000 (H1 2012 = £2M x 2)
One80: £1,000,000

Total Revs: £49,400,000

This is more than double full year 2011 revs of £22M! Now I'm the first to admit that theirs a lot of assumptions in calcs above, but it certainly provides food for thought. boonkoh - feel free to pull apart figures as it would be good to hear someone else's thoughts.

OD

[boonkoh] 30/11/2012 23:17

Indeed - also the timing of the TX4s coming back to the market are crucial, as cabbies might be forced to go Mercedes Vito if they have an old cab that needs to be retired due to Boris' old cab rule.

Interesting to see what happens.

[opaldouglas] 28/11/2012 17:30

Worth a read. Looks like MNGS wont be selling cabs until new year at the v latest which means ECV have had a monopoly on the market for around 3/4 months. I'm very much looking forward to a trading update as revenues will no doubt have increased further.

[opaldouglas] 28/11/2012 15:21

Two buys just gone through for nearly 1.5m shares (about 30 grands worth). It would seem someone is accumulating following some small sales over the past few weeks.

[opaldouglas] 21/11/2012 00:25

The Mercedes-Benz Vito Taxi is on course for a record year as it aims to build on its 40 per cent share of the Metropolitan Taxi sector in the UK.

Variants of the Vito Taxi have been sold in the UK since June 2008, establishing themselves as a dependable and popular choice for the taxi market.

Capable of seating up to six passengers, the Vito Taxi 113CDI, is now available to purchase from £135 per week. Fitted with the sophisticated Low Speed Manoeuvrability system (LSM) enabling rear wheel steering, the Vito Taxi has a kerb-to-kerb turning circle of just 7.62-metres (25ft).

Standard equipment includes independent air conditioning for the driver and passengers, Parktronic sensors, flush-fitting electric steps and electrically opening and closing doors.

The passenger and driver space is kept clear of luggage thanks to a large boot and a further, large, versatile space next to the driver, freeing up a substantial one-metre area for stowage. The luggage sits in the rear crumple zone, leaving the passenger safety cell clear for maximum comfort.

Powering the Vito Taxi is a 116 hp, 2,148cc four-cylinder diesel engine. Equipped with a five-speed automatic gearbox, it delivers combined fuel consumption of 8.1 (L/100km) or 34.9 mpg and CO2 emissions of 213 g/km.
Steve Bridge, Van Sales and Marketing Director at Mercedes-Benz, said: "When you buy a taxi, you're buying a business partner. Feedba
ck from customers suggest that the Vito Taxi sets the benchmark in terms of reliability, fuel consumption and driver and passenger comfort."

Mercedes-Benz has a long association with public transport dating as far back as 1898 when it launched the world's first bus and now with a comprehensive range of Coaches, Buses and Minibuses the Vito Taxi continues this theme.

Sold and supported by long term taxi experts KPM-UK, based in E1 London, the Euro 5 Vito Taxi has a three year/150,000 mile warranty and up to 24,000 mile service intervals to help reduce whole life costs. In addition, each vehicle comes with Service24h included as standard, which entitles drivers to free roadside assistance for three years.

[opaldouglas] 16/11/2012 20:42

It is somewhat farcical that ECV is the only supplier to the London Market. I expect sales will be looking rather tasty ;) I do however expect a buyer to be found for Manganese Bronze which will restore the our competition at some stage, this whole episode however will seriously undermine confidence further and i expect the Vito will be the new norm in the London market.

On a serious note i'm somewhat disappointed at the lack of share price action given ECV's dominance although it does appear this share is slowly registering on investors radars.

I'd expect TFL will be v reluctant to approve any vehicle which doesn't fully meet the strict criteria set, including the turning circle requirements. If they overlook the Peugeot they would no doubt have a raft of other suppliers hassling them.

[strollingmolby] 16/11/2012 13:42

Mr Nelson believes Allied could take one-quarter of the London taxi market, or some 500 vehicles a year. It currently sells 4500 vehicles annually. This could add another 100 workers to its current 370-strong payroll.

A Transport for London spokesman said: "Allied Vehicles have formally applied to licence one of its vehicles from elsewhere in the UK as a London taxi.

"We are progressing this application, which will include a rigorous inspection to ensure the vehicle meets all the licensing requirements of a London taxi.

[strollingmolby] 16/11/2012 13:41

Allied eyes up London market

Mr Nelson wants to be allowed to supply Allied's Peugeot E7 taxi – which was revamped earlier this year – to the London licensed trade.

However, the wheelchair-friendly vehicle falls foul of the stipulation that only a taxi that can turn within 25 feet is eligible to be licensed as a black cab.

This matches the space available for cabs to turn outside the Savoy hotel on The Strand. Transport for London has hitherto resisted changing the rules.

Mr Nelson said: "It is not a safety issue, it is a nicety.

"We are a British company. But we cannot sell into our own capital city."

The London taxi market was solely supplied by Manganese Bronze until 2008 but now Mercedes Benz has 40% of sales. Mercedes could be left as the sole supplier if administrators at PricewaterhouseCoopers fail to find a buyer for Manganese Bronze.

Licensed Taxi Drivers' Association general secretary Steve McNamara said: "We are concerned there is only one vehicle supplier at the moment and we do not think a monopoly supplier is good for the taxi trade, taxi drivers or for the public."