Eurovestech Share Discussion Threads

[buffin] 20/12/2006 10:47

Why not just start a new thread with the standard advfn charts?

[kenmitch] 20/12/2006 10:43

I tried to post the chart but for some reason it didn't work using Tinyurl, and when using the ADVFN link it stretched miles across the page.

Maybe someone else might have more success trying to post it?

Seems you bought Mangal around the time I did. I first discovered EVT following a tip in the Sunday Times - they fell heavily after that tip during the bursting of the Tech bubble. Bought my first lot around 6p and then averaged down. Great share and great company. The best are nearly always the ones that a few discover and not the bulletin board favourites.

[mangal] 20/12/2006 10:00

I bought these some 5 years back & have topped up occasionally.

It's a pity there are no charts in the header as then one could see how well this has performed- almost a six bagger since my first purchase. Lots more to come, I think. It's one of my core long term holdings.

[kenmitch] 20/12/2006 09:29

Doesn't seem to be too much interest here in EVT these days. Maybe other holders have moved on?

Recent results were very good.

1. Trading and performance ahead of expectations.

2. Now profitable at £3.7 million pbt under new accounting - fully explained in the results statement.

3. TOL. Trading strongly. No surprise there! Note this bit "Focussing on developing further initiatives to capitalise on its strong position." With EVT/TOL such statements are not usually empty waffle.

4. Noted again the excellent way of giving to charity AND that they are worthwhile charities too. A shame more companies - even FTSE100 Companies - haven't spotted or considered copying this novel EVT approach. Again Richard Bernstein paid the (£3000) admin costs to facilitate the process.

5. TOL and KSS (and the rest of the portfolio) held up for resale. Obvious really but worth mentioning. I guess EVT would be a willing seller at the right price if anyone got interested in either KSS or TOL.

6. Again EVT are very positive on KSS.

7. Time for Magenta to confirm promise too. Maybe in 2007.

8. This is the bit in the "Outlook/Prospects" comment that caught the eye. "Exciting events in the coming months." No idea what but that comment alone should make investors think twice about selling now imo.

That some have probably sold out is understandable - but only at first glance! i.e there are times when the share price does nothing for a few months and it is easy to get tempted to sell and put the profits into something that is moving.

But have a look at the EVT chart - and the latest uptrend since it started in 2005. Impressive really.

Other points?

Since the market bottomed in 2002/3, for EVT only 2004 proved to be a disappointing year with the share price starting and finishing around 12p - having dropped to 9p for a while.That drop is the only significant one for EVT over the last 3 years and the shares have been in a steady uptrend from 11p or so in 2005.

With hindsight the huge gain from 2p to a 14p peak in 2003 was too fast. Also with hindsight, but for maybe a few of us including one or two very supportive Institutions who have held from the bottom and are still holding, foresight as well, the purchase of KSS was indeed the turning point for the share price. The shares could still be bought for around 2p for some time after that superb purchase.

Every chance surely, based on the latest results and some of the comment with them, that this uptrend will continue in 2007 too. Enough hints that 2007 could be an exciting year for EVT.

[buffin] 23/11/2006 15:08

Yes, doesn't look like a mag tip at all.

[kenmitch] 23/11/2006 15:05

Over 10 million shares traded today with a few very large trades.

Just one Institution selling to another? Or something more interesting?

Share price has ticked up 0.5p.

[kenmitch] 08/11/2006 20:02

Hi Buffin

All but around £20 million of the EVT market cap is accounted for by the now 50% stake in ToLuna. Since a fair chunk of that £20 million is cash, and that KSS and Magenta are in there too, the shares look a bargain.

My first reaction to the share sale was that it was opportunistic and badly timed, coming straight after tips in The Sunday Telegraph, Daily Telegraph and The Independent.

On reflection that is NOT the case. EVT have already sold another £3 million worth of TOL last June around £1.30. That might have looked opportunistic at the time, but clearly wasn't in hindsight. That stake went to an Institution. My guess is that the current stake also went to a supportive Institution. Such opportunities (irony unintended) have to be taken when they are available.

Also Institutional support for EVT has been long lasting and impressive - in that the quality of those Institutions is top notch. e.g they don't come much better quality than top Fund Manager Neil Woodford. If a TOL stake is going to be sold then it has got to be at a price that gives the buyer upside too. i.e no doubt one reason for the support from the likes of Invesco/Perpetual for years is not only because they saw long before many others the excellent prospects for EVT and more recently TOL, but also because EVT dealings with them have been impeccable too.

I was initially disappointed at the sale of 300,000 shares by F C Petit, CE of TOL. But he still has a huge holding. And he has twice now seen parent company take a large profit top slicing their holding. Fair enough that he should take a tiny proportion of his holding out too. And as above, whoever bought the stake needs to get some upside too.

Another sensible factor in the EVT sale/top slicing was probably partly because the proportion they had in TOL was getting a bit too high. No difference there than in our own investing.

And, of course, as you say, it provides cash for other opportunities. Tech shares -according to Techinvest are at bargain levels not seen for years. EVT have already spotted one - Pixology - where they bought a stake when the shares were trading at about the level of the cash with a business that had just won a big contract with Tesco near enough in for free.

We know from the brilliant KSS deal that EVT are wizard at spotting such bargains. They now have more funds available.

I'm surprised that EVT shares have not gone higher, considering the strong rise in ToLuna over the last year or so from 70p to over £2 today.

So opportunistic?? Yes in the sense that such deals have to be done when it is the right time to do them.
Building a war chest? Definitely. For what? No idea - but if past experience is anything to go by whatever they do there is a fair chance it will prove very interesting and will boost the share price.

I admit to bias - having held the shares since the dark days when they fell to under 2p.

Others might see things differently and will no doubt post if they do.

[buffin] 07/11/2006 17:04

So more Toluna shares sold. How does EVT's market cap look now against assets? Are EVT being opportunistic or building a warchest?

[integer] 05/11/2006 21:03

TOL tipped in Telegraph today...

[kenmitch] 26/10/2006 17:49

Unless they can pull off a deal like they did with KSS.

Can't see it.... and although PIX look cheap, not as cheap as KSS were.

Guessing - but more likely that EVT will pass on their stake at a profit to a potential bidder?

If so, excellent timing again, as with their purchase of the stake in Arc International. They have a good record of spotting bargains!

With their record I can't see EVT doing anything unwise or anything to upset their strongly supportive Institutional investors.

Anyone else any views on this?

[kenmitch] 25/10/2006 21:42

Good point. Surely not?

[integer] 25/10/2006 18:37

as long as its not EVT doing the offering!

[kenmitch] 25/10/2006 15:40

Interesting news from Pixology.



The recent purchase of a 7% stake by EVT is already looking a shrewd move.

[kenmitch] 20/10/2006 15:47

T&G would not be happy if they thought I was sending copies of their note to bb posters. Sorry.

I wrote about the T and G note on the Mike Walters bulletin board and have copied and pasted the key points from that post here. I hope the odd reader/EVT shareholder here might find it useful. Apologies if you don't.

...............................................................................

"I've seen the latest Teather and Greenwood EVT buy note containing too many positives to ignore.

e.g re EVT NAV. Up 185% from £13.3 million to £37.9 million in the year to March 2006, showing Managements ability not only to identify under valued investments, but also to unlock that value.

Re. ToLuna they point out:-

That there is a lot of value uplift still to be delivered.e.g revenues continue to grow at a triple digit rate - half year to June 2006 seeing revenues grow from £1.2 million to £3.6 million.

They also mention that TOL has a clear competitive edge over YouGov and Research Now as a result of its proprietary Panel Portal and Automate Survey technology. (btw - this is not in their note - only recently did I learn that YouGov is a customer of ToLuna, particularly for the TOL European offering. My guess is that one reason why YOU shares have performed better than TOL is because YOU is a British Company and so better known than Paris based TOL).

T and G interestingly also mention something I would never have thought of, that TOL has a community element to its business model and that element has many powerful attractions as a means of harnessing value from on-line users - as the market values attached to the likes of Google and YouTube clearly reflect.

(A bid for TOL one day - if not quite on the scale of the Google one for YouTube! - is quite likely.No more than a tasty morcel for the big guns. Another reason for not selling TOL through impatience now. And the share is up around 90% on my buying price).

In their buy note T & G value TOL at the current share price. i.e they seem to allow nothing for further rises in the share price and so in the value of the 57% EVT stake.

And remember that is despite the fact that they consider there is a high chance of further earnings upgrades for TOL.

And EVT are running their 57% stake for free. A multi multi bagger already with more to come.

.............................................................

Re KSS.

T & G comment that the last year did not go entirely to plan with delays in some contracts leaving revenues below managem ent expectations. But these contracts have now been closed and indications are that the pipeline should convert into strong sales figures over the next six months and beyond.

(Indeed EVT have spent significant sums over the last year streamlining the KSS business offering to maximise its potential for further growth. There has been an increase in R and D and the numbers employed in that, and that should bear fruit from now on. The hard part apparently is not in keeping customers - KSS has not lost a single customer, and that includes big outfits like BP, US Safeway etc - it is in getting the new contracts signed where difficulties can occur. i.e as many small companies know, and as we mention so often on this bb, just getting the final signatures when all else has been agreed can take a surprisingly long time).

That said KSS has an impressive list of clients,and T & G are forecasting a pre tax profit of £2.5 million in 2007 on £9 million revenue. Not bad for a company they bought for £1 million just three years ago. Applying a conservative multiple of 12x to the above figures derives an enterprise and equity value of £21 million, says T & G. That's against a carrying value of £2.4 million. The average multiple for the sector btw is 18.

..............................................................

re. Magenta.

I have never understood their technology. It is apparently brilliant, and the key thing that stuck in my mind when attending a Magenta presentation a couple of years ago was that it could be as big as the internet! If so it is taking time - but recently there have been real signs of progress including this announcement yesterday.



As with TDM where they too seem to have a ground breaking offering, it could be that getting anyone to realise that is the hardest part. Unlike TDM, Magenta have at last reached the stage where anyone impressed by their technology but when asking the obvious question before signing on the dotted line "but who uses it?" can now refer to specific examples, and that could begin to see the contracts flow and real progress at last.

btw the Magenta offering is intelligent software agent technology and associated application development services.

T&G certainly think the business has potential. They describe the offering as exciting and expect more deals like the one above, and for the commercial value of the business to rise substantially. T&G have valued EVT's 43% Magenta stake at £16.7 million, against a carrying value of just £2.4 million.

Just looking at what EVT paid for their stakes in these three very promising companies that in two cases are already performing very strongly convinces me to hold on to the shares.

The share prices might continue to do nothing much for a while longer, and neither EVT nor TOL are the sort of get rich quick companies that are more popular here. otoh as a solid, sensible long term investment they are still well worth a look imo and also worth continuing to hold for those already in.

If only opting for one, then EVT is the obvious choice as any further gains in TOL should feed through to the EVT share price.

[integer] 18/10/2006 19:43

Ken - could you kindly email me a copy of the T&G note please?

[kenmitch] 18/10/2006 19:36

Pleased to see you're still here.

Agreed it's good news and means more recognition for Magenta. Maybe will make it easier to close out future contracts now that they can name a Company happily using their technology.

Have seen the latest T and G EVT buy note. Will post more when I get time, unless someone else does so first.

[rambutan2] 18/10/2006 08:28

good news...

LONDON, October 18 /PRNewswire/ --

- Addison Lee Selects Magenta Technology to Rebuild its Core Operations
System in Order to Provide a Scalable High Performance Solution to Enable
Their Plans For Rapid Growth and Even Better Customer Service


Magenta Technology, a world class vendor of enterprise software
solutions and leading developer of multi-agent and semantic network
technologies, announced today that Addison Lee, London's major private car
hire and taxi specialist, has selected Magenta's experience and skills in
delivering Java based enterprise ready solutions to support its operations.


Magenta's solution, the first release of which goes live in January 2007,
followed by two more in summer and autumn 2007, is an enterprise ready
operations platform which leverages enterprise architecture and robust data
management to cover all areas of Addison Lee's operations - from call centre
activities and driver management, to accounting and pricing. The new platform
will considerably increase automation of Addison Lee's business processes,
improving usability and speed of data entry. It will provide much greater
visibility and time for planning car movements under adverse conditions such
as traffic congestion, major public events (think London 2012) or road
closures. Finally it has the built in flexibility to add new features for
Addison Lee's fast growing business.


Addison Lee in London and Magenta's experienced, highly skilled and
creative software development team based in Russia, are working as a team to
deliver a reliable and flexible product seamlessly integrated with Addison
Lee's existing software infrastructure, and enabling the upgrade without
interruption to any services.


Peter Ingram, IT Director for Addison Lee, said, "We are growing Addison
Lee very fast. This growth is in many respects built on using the most
advanced technologies to enable great customer service. That means continuous
investment and we are delighted to have formed a partnership with Magenta.
They have a similar mindset to us on delivering quality systems and we see
ourselves as one team charged with delivering the next generation private
vehicle hire management system".


Mark Hinton, CTO of Magenta Technology, commented: "This project hits all
the sweet spots of enterprise information systems. It is high volume,
multi-user, high availability, with tens of interfaces to other systems. It is
using all our experience in business analysis, design, project management,
multi tier application development and, crucially, in transport logistics.
This is a very exciting project for Magenta, since it fits exactly with our
mission of enabling our customers to use technology to transform the
effectiveness of their business."

[integer] 03/10/2006 23:37

2 news items from KSS:-

[kenmitch] 02/10/2006 17:36

Seem to be posting to myself.

Even so some might be interested in this very positive article in The Independent today.



Mentions the stunningly successful TOL invesment of just £2 million - now worth £36 million. An eighteen bagger - except that they have sold that stake so better than that.

TOL shares - like EVT - unchanged for a few weeks. EVT remains a good way in if TOL shares do rise further and EVT stay put.

EDIT. Posted wrong link. Correct one above now.

[integer] 25/7/2006 20:08

KSS news



new partnership, possible additional 22,500 sites if they all convert!!!

[kenmitch] 14/7/2006 19:58

More good news today. A major contract win for Magenta. And EVT have recently upped their Magenta stake. Good timing - hopeful that this is a sign that the considerable potential for Magenta is beginning to be fulfilled, as suggested in the post above.

[kenmitch] 05/7/2006 16:46

Very positive portfolio update yesterday. Even KSS where delays in signing contracts have probably impacted profits short term, the confirmation of big contracts recently, including US major Safeway, as well as one delayed contract signed immediately after the year end means that any worries about KSS now seem misplaced.

Other than that it is all plusses. e.g EVT when selling over 2 million of their shares in TOL to satisfy Institutional demand, realising £2.9 million pre costs means that their profit on that small stake alone more than covers their original £2 million investment. The remaining 57% stake worth more than £30 million today is in for free! Cofirmation too that TOL continues to perform ahead of their (already ambitious) expectations. TOL shares up 7p yesterday - presumbably on the news posted by rambutan2 - and up another 10p today on a down day for the market, to a new all time high.

Also delighted to learn of the increase in the EVT stake in Magenta and real signs now that Magenta will prove to be the third jewel in the EVT portfolio before much longer. That could well give the EVT share price an overdue lift - as indeed should a rising TOL share price. The longer the EVT share price sticks while TOL shares rise, and we could soon be getting KSS and Magenta in the EVT share price for next to nothing.

Finally very interesting to see all the trades in EVT today. Seems like 4 million shares sold. Will be very interested to learn who is going to/has bought them. Another Institution taking a stake, or an existing one upping their stake? Either way it suggests continuing confidence among astute Institutional investors in EVT and TOL. TOL of course is in a little followed very very fast growing sector and (ditto RNOW and YOU) Companies in the sector are already profitable and seeing profits grow at an explosive rate. Few seem to be noticing beyond a few private investors and a few canny Institutional ones.

What a wonderful investment EVT has proved to be for those of us who have held the shares since the awful days when they tumbled to less than 2p. Newsflow was positive even then - e.g the purchase of KSS for around £1 million and for that they got the business and the KSS £6 million cash pile. Now look at KSS today. i.e the share price falls were not because of anything wrong with EVT. The same applies now imo. The share price has risen very little over the last couple of years, but in that time newsflow has been very positive, including the floating of TOL at 70p - now 160p - and huge progress at KSS. Newsflow from Magenta has been slower than I had hoped - but that too could well be about to change.

i.e imo it is NOT too late to buy EVT shares, and the price after too long just ticking along could soon rise. This is not a ramp - I've been posting on EVT somewhere - e.g iii and Mike Walters for years - and anyone with nothing better to do can check out the posts. EVT never over promise, but nearly always deliver. i.e EVT has excellent Management. What more can we ask for?