European W. Share Discussion Threads

[kimboy2] 19/2/2018 17:09

It is difficult to get a handle on exactly what these are worth. Here is something in the same line of business with similar AUM; htTps://www.investegate.co.uk/harwood-wealth-mgmt--hw--/rns/final-results/201801230700025796C/

[kimboy2] 21/12/2017 10:04

htTp://citywire.co.uk/wealth-manager/news/european-wealth-goes-global-why-newbridge-deal-is-just-first-step/a1061117

[johnwall] 11/12/2017 15:56

A bit more liquidity on the offer side - I've bought two lots this afternoon and haven't moved the price!

[kimboy2] 11/12/2017 13:46

Absolutely no liquidity in the market

[fillipe] 21/11/2017 20:09

Just a reminder, from their recent Int's - 18-Sept 2017 (to 30-6-2017). Kenneth ("Buzz") West, Chairman of European Wealth, commented: "The first six months of 2017 were a period for consolidation and stabilisation for the Group, with the Board's attention focussed on the refinancing of the Group which was announced on the 26 June 2017. This resulted in the injection of £9.3m of fresh capital and two new and very supportive shareholders, Kingswood and Astoria, joining the shareholder register at a time when corporate activity in the sector is rapidly accelerating. With a much stronger balance sheet and new supportive shareholders, the Group will be in a position to continue to expand, with a particular focus initially on the institutional capability within the investment management business, European Investment Management (EIM), where we have already built a formidable reputation over the last four years. It is the Board's intention to expand its offering through the introduction of an equity service to the institutional marketplace together with exploring the possibility of launching additional institutional style funds using our UCITs structure in Dublin. We have completed the first step of this approach with the relaunch of the existing equity fund as a Global Managed Strategy Fund. In recent months we have continued to develop the business by focusing more on organic growth than acquired growth. We have also recruited revenue generating staff which is a trend we would expect to continue during the second half of 2017."

[fillipe] 21/11/2017 16:07

Thanks, jw and for the reminder. Incidentally, they were also at 1.1p, 1-8-2013, prior to their 60:1 consolidation, but that's also history now. Atm,I see the highest ask on show has been lifted, on only small, to 50p with the lowest ask at 45p. A good day for all, I trust. Even showing up on the leaderboard, which gives a nice warm glow. gla, f

[johnwall] 21/11/2017 11:39

fillipe - I agree that it's all looking good here - I'm actually in profit having hugely averaged down in the Open Offer (I originally bought in a placing at 60p, or was it 90p? several years ago!). With regards to the share price of three years ago, don't forget that there's now approximately 4 times as many shares in issue so getting back to 100p would mean a market cap 4 times what it was then. OTOH, the business does look much stronger (and larger) than it was then - so hopefully we may get there anyway!

[fillipe] 21/11/2017 09:10

Mid-price up almost 10% as I type with the lowest ask showing on L2 now at 40p. Still a plenty to go for here when you look at the progress made to date and the 100p share price for EWG of over 3yrs ago. f

[kimboy2] 16/11/2017 11:14

There does seem to be a bit more liquidity in the market because someone appears to be buying a few. It would be nice to actually get a heads up on the deal but information seems to be fairly scant. The RNS says; The Earn-out is capped at US$25.0 million over the five year period and is calculated as a percentage of the EBITDA achieved by Newbridge (in each of the five years to 31 December 2022) over a threshold EBITDA figure per year of US$3.62 million (the "EBITDA Threshold Figure"). If the EBITDA Threshold Figure is not reached in any given year, no earn-out payment will be due in respect of that year. That would suggest a base profitability from the deal of £2.8m and more if there is actually to be an earnout. Does anyone have a broker note on the deal?

[fillipe] 03/11/2017 12:22

Hi timbo...that's very much exactly the same as I could write, except that I also took some 2014's @ 111p (how sad is that!). But like you I maxed out on the recent 12.8p and have now just about got back to break-even. Moving nicely on small, I feel. Gl with this one, f

[timbo003] 02/11/2017 11:31

I think I am at last just about breaking even on these (based on the mid price) I bought my initial stake in the placing for 80p back in 2015 Maxed out on the open offer shares at 12.8p/share this summer (thereby increasing stake to 4.5X my original stake). The fact that the open offer was a fully underwritten (by Astoria and Kingswood) did rather suggest that at 12.8p/share it was probably very under priced.

[kimboy2] 11/10/2017 07:49

htTps://www.glassdoor.co.uk/Reviews/Newbridge-Securities-Reviews-E409182.htm?countryRedirect=true

[kimboy2] 03/8/2017 16:34

I would expect that it is going to get taken over at some stage. In that respect the main asset, which is the £1.75bn AUM,is worth 2 or 3 times the present market value.

[johnwall] 01/8/2017 15:07

Hi Kimboy2 - i've got an interest! As you say, I'm hoping that with the financing sorted out the worst of the pain is now over and the share price can start to reflect the progress made in the business. It's certainly very illiquid, even for an AIM share. That was demonstrated today when a single £25k buy causes the indicated price to rise by 13.5%!

[kimboy2] 26/7/2017 18:42

Is there anybody out there with an interest? At 18p this looks very cheap to me. With 100m shares it is worth £18m. It has £1.75bn AUM atm and could hit £2bn by the end of the year. BRK has £9bn AUM and is valued at £340m. BRK does have the advantage in that it actually produces a profit. Hopefully sorting out the balance sheet will put this anomaly right. The only real problem at this level is the lack of liquidity in the market for the shres. Perhaps it will change as the mkt cap increases, but a lot seems tied up.

[kimboy2] 28/3/2017 10:26

From Proactive; To slightly misquote the Beach Boys, it’s was all about “FUM, FUM, FUM” for wealth management firm European Wealth Group Ltd (LON:EWG) in 2016. FUM is the asset management industry’s short-hand for funds under management, and it is safe to say that “more” is regarded as “better” in this line of work, so it is just as well European Wealth Group’s (EWG) FUM is/are heading north. EWG saw funds under management (FUM) rise to £1.5bn by the end of 2016; that’s 22% higher than the £1.2bn it had at the end of 2015. Over the same period, the FTSE All Share could only muster growth of a little over 12%. Furthermore, the end-2016 number does not include the £110mln of funds coming into the group from its purchase of the Towry book of business last October. As a result of the strong organic growth coupled with the addition of CIMCO, which it bought in September 2016, EWG expects revenues for the year to be “significantly higher” than 2015 at somewhere north of £9.3mln, which would represent an increase of at least 24% on 2015’s £7.6mln. The Brexit vote, expected to put a spanner in the works if it went the way of the Brexiters – which it did – proved to be a boon rather than a curse. The second half of 2016 saw EWG maintain the momentum built up in the first half, with a strong performance from the investment management and dealing business in the aftermath of the Brexit vote. Buy and build EWG’s stated aim is to grow through targeted acquisitions and to consolidate in the investment industry in the wake of regulatory changes that changed the landscape, particularly for independent financial advisers, or 'IFAs' as they are known in the trade, who were rocked by the Retail Distribution Review (RDR). The RDR introduced new rules aiming to improve standards of financial advice and consumers' understanding of the costs involved. John Morton, EWG's chairman, said EWG, which listed on AIM in 2014 after a reverse takeover, had been established with the "post RDR world in mind". City firm Panmure Gordon is a fan of the company, saying EWG has built a "scalable platform", has good organic growth prospect and scope for further acquisitions in the UK and overseas wealth management market, which is "ripe for consolidation" following the RDR reforms. Most of the rule changes have been in the financial planning side, where the payment structure has shifted from commission to a more professional on-going fee charging model. This has meant a number of smaller IFAs and sole practitioners have been driven out of business, unable to sustain margins and that's where EWG stepped in. "Clearly there is becoming a need for there to be size (scale) to be able to make a good return on the investment of being in the industry," said Morton. "That gives us an opportunity to look at a number of acquisitions." In its February trading update, Morton said: "European Wealth continues to make selective acquisitions whilst continuing to invest in resources into the organic development of the business." Regulation, regulation, regulation If EWG has benefited from changes such as the RDR, it recently acknowledged that MiFiD II – a tighter set of industry regulations that will come into force at the start of 2018 – will create a “challenging environment” over the coming year, but it is confident that it is still well-placed for future growth. “Continuing changes within the industry, particularly those covered by MiFID II, are likely to throw up an increased number of acquisition opportunities, all of which will be carefully analysed by the board; however, the noticeable increase in the valuation of investment management and financial planning businesses has resulted in the board's focus shifting towards accelerating organic growth in the shorter term,” the group said. In an otherwise upbeat update, a slight note of caution was raised with EWG saying an increased need for working capital meant it was keeping a close eye on its cash position ahead of its loan note obligations that are due in June this year. At the end of March, EWG appeared to lay these concerns to rest by entering into a £720,000 12-month loan facility. The facility carries an interest rate of 10% over the term of the loan. The loan will be used to provide adequate working capital for the company in the near term and will ensure that the company can meet its obligations as they fall due.

[luckymouse] 10/2/2017 15:46

Daily chart looks interesting but the hugely onerous MIFID 2 (jan2018) and loan note will prob stifle (monthly below) - when those hurdles passed could be a bargain at the buyzone free stock charts from uk.advfn.com

[kimboy2] 06/7/2015 20:34

From proactive; European Wealth's (LON:EWG) plan to grow through targeted acquisitions and to consolidate in the investment industry in the wake of regulatory changes is rolling on apace as underlined by its purchase of ISM, completed last week. ISM is a City based independent financial adviser, or 'IFA' as they are known in the trade, and had sales last year of £1.1mln and will further strengthen European's financial planning business (the other arm of the group is investment management). City broker Panmure, which rates European's shares a 'buy', expects the purchase to add £1.2mln to the group's future revenues on an annualised basis and would be "materially accretive" to earnings per share (EPS), which it expects will grow to 0.8p in 2015 full year results. The broker applauds EWG, which it says, has built a "scalable platform", has good organic growth and scope for further acquisitions in the UK and overseas wealth management market, which is "ripe for consolidation" following the RDR reforms. By 'RDR', Panmure is referring to the retail distribution review three years ago, which introduced new rules aiming to improve standards of financial advice and consumers' understanding of the costs involved. John Morton, EWG's chairman, explained how this had created acquisition opportunities for the newly incarnated EWG, which listed on AIM in 2014 after a reverse takeover, as it had been established with the "post RDR world in mind". Most of the rule changes have been in the financial planning side, he said, where the payment structure has shifted from commission to a more professional on-going fee charging model, he said. This has meant a number of smaller IFAs and sole practitioners have been driven out of business, unable to sustain margins and that's where EWG stepped in. "Clearly there is becoming a need for there to be size (scale) to be able to make a good return on the investment of being in the industry," said Morton. "That gives us an opportunity to look at a number of acquisitions." A notable acquisition by the group, said Morton, was Worcester-based financial planning outfit Bradley Stewart in 2012. It meant EWG instantly took on a number of pension management schemes, complementing its financial planning side but also offered customers’ another service. A lot of Bradley's clients were also retained as they were moved from the commission world to fee-paying, said Morton. "It really gave us the backbone to then be able to acquire a company called Compass, which had the effect of really bulking up the volume going through the business and therefore giving us the sort of economies of scale we were looking for." Surrey-based Compass, which was bought last summer, had £31 million in funds under influence and in 2013 posted turnover of £434,230, of which around 76% was recurring income. It recorded a pre-tax profit in the year of £154,250. Meanwhile, in its maiden set of full-year numbers in May, European Wealth clearly showed just how such acquisitions were paying off. Funds under management (FUM) stood at £1.03bn at the end of 2014 - an impressive 59% higher than at the end of 2013. Revenues increased 16% to £6.7mln from £5.8mln in 2013, while the earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation narrowed to £203,000 from £368,000 the year before. Panmure sees revenues rising to £8.2mln in 2015 and £10.2mln in 2016, when adjusted EPS is expected to have reached 6.8p a share. Last year the firm said it was aiming to get to around £3bn in funds under management in the next three years - an aim which is "on track", said Morton, but added that the group didn't intend to make acquisitions just to attain that number. "I think it's more important to build a high quality, sustainable business," he said. The stepping stones to achieving that certainly appear to be in place, not least due to the current government changes in pensions rules and the way people can manage their own investment affairs in a much more hands-on way. "A good flow" of people are knocking on EWG's door currently, if only out of confusion, said Morton, in the wake of big pension changes - the most notable being the new ease of access and ability to take lump sums. "The whole pension world is getting turned on its head," said Morton and he reckons it will take at least six months before the "noise dies down". "It's almost creating a new way of saving and having as much effect as the introduction of ISAs and PEPs did donkey's years ago. One can't underestimate the impact," he said. All of this augurs well for a business that is unencumbered by any legacy issues and has management experienced in integrating new businesses. Lets leave Panmure the last word: "EWG has de-risked the business through its centralised investment process incorporating risk based modules that has driven consistent investment outperformance. EWG has been designed to be client centric and compliant." Panmure has a price target of 140p on the shares - pretty handsome upside considering they are now at 88.5p. It will be very interesting to see just how much the group grows – investors will hope in the same way its customers' portfolios also attract growth.

[timbo003] 27/5/2015 16:48

The placing announced this afternoon is EIS qualifying, so the effective price is 56p/share for UK tax payers. I've had a nibble in the placing, so it's a three year hold for me.

[kimboy2] 14/11/2014 17:52

The price was about 2% of AUM which about market price. The level of fees derived from the AUM is about half of the usual so plenty of scope for uplift probably.

[stevie blunder] 14/11/2014 17:47

Quiet board here. Looks like a decent acquisition, though not exactly cheap for a loss making operation. I guess one has to trust the management that they have done a good deal. I expect another interview on Brrmedia with some more colour will be forthcoming.

[sammy_smith] 07/7/2014 11:44

Listen: European Wealth (EWG) - Trading update Click the link below to listen http://www.brrmedia.co.uk/event/124511/

[johnwall] 04/7/2014 12:41

Positive trading update today. FUM now £0.82b - up 24% in last six months. And - The Group is also expected to show a positive EBITDA for the first half, excluding the one-off costs of the admission http://uk.advfn.com/news/UKREG/2014/article/62802482