Fisher (james) & Sons Share Discussion Threads

[rivaldo] 19/3/2014 09:44

News of a £400k contract for Strainstall:



"Portsmouth invests in new mooring system
14 Mar 2014

Portsmouth International Port is currently upgrading the mooring systems on two of its ferry berths, aimed at making the arrival and departure process faster and safer.

The UK south coast port has recently taken delivery of fourteen automatic quick release mooring hooks to be installed on Berths 3 and 4, mainly used by cross-channel ferries. At a total cost of £400,000 the new mooring system, described as a "major investment in new infrastructure" will greatly reduce the need for port staff to handle heavy mooring ropes. The new system will also result in port staff spending less time on exposed areas of the dock, in turn reducing the risk of back injuries from heavy lifting. Similar technology from Australia was first installed at Portsmouth International Port in 2012.

The quick release hooks are being supplied by Strainstall, part of the James Fisher Plc group. Strainstall is located just a short distance across the Solent at Cowes on the Isle of Wight and provides a wide range of jetty and berth management solutions, including: docking systems, intelligent fenders, mooring load monitoring, loading arm position monitoring and jetty management systems. The company particularly caters for the requirements of mooring systems in hazardous environments. The mooring hooks, due to be operational early this year, are a mixture of single and double hook machines, designed to withstand harsh marine environments. Strainstall hooks are commonly used at oil and gas terminals to provide a quick release system for tankers and gas carriers in the event of a fire. They can be released remotely with no requirement for personnel at the location of the hooks. The system is also useful in a port that has numerous vessels berthing and sailing at peak times...

...Martin Putman, port manager of Portsmouth International Port said: "The Strainstall system will really modernise our operations, an investment that helps to further protect the safety of our workforce. I'm personally delighted the most competitive tender for the best system came from a company on the Isle of Wight. That means money stays in the local economy, helping to protect jobs. It also guarantees us a high level of service, with maintenance and spare parts just a short ferry ride away.""

[apad] 18/3/2014 17:34

+1 riv, Ive been self-flagellating since £10/11.
apad

[bouleversee] 18/3/2014 17:34

Not a premium member either.

Click on the last message on the TMF Fisher board which is from me; click on 'reply'; type your message to me but don't submit yet; cursor down to below the reply box and you will see small boxes where the 'post this reply to board' box is ticked; untick this (in fact I'd do that before typing your message for safety's sake); tick the 'e-mail this reply to the author' box; click on 'submit'.

[sinkersimon] 18/3/2014 17:05

I'm on Motley Fool now but can't see how to send private messages, but if you can get one to me, hopefully I'll be able to see it and reply. Can't send messages on ADVFN without being a premium member.

[bouleversee] 18/3/2014 15:19

One can't be too careful, however! You could go on The Motley Fool board and send me an off board message from there - doesn't cost anything to register. You could reply to my last message on the Fisher board which rec'd no reply IIRC. You just untick the post message to board box and tick the reply to sender offboard box.

[rivaldo] 18/3/2014 15:11

Simon, this is one of the quietest - and most civil - threads on ADVFN. I don't think anyone's watching apart from about 9 or 10 of us at most :o))

Well done on having FSJ as one of your first investments anyway. A very sensible start imho.

[sinkersimon] 18/3/2014 14:23

I'm going to have to keep that one to myself, sorry Bouleversee (I remember you from last year too!) and sorry if that sounds pompous. You and Roddie are two people I'd happily discuss it with, but not on an open board like this - I've got a bad feeling about doing that.

[bouleversee] 18/3/2014 12:43

But how did you get on to them in the first place? They are rarely mentioned in the press or bulletin boards apart from this one.

[sinkersimon] 18/3/2014 11:38

RoddieMac

Year on year turnover, profit, dividend and share price were all up. Graph was a nice upward slope, debt was fine, profit vs market cap made it look cheap / punching above it's weight. Couldn't see any negatives and the board seemed to be very competent, I liked the acquisitions. There were a few other boxes to tick, but that's it in a nutshell. There's not that many companies that can get all the boxes ticked, I should have more faith in the one's that do, but I'm still learning! I'd be happy to share more with you on a private post, unfortunately I'm not a premium member yet so can't send any.

[roddiemac2] 18/3/2014 10:13

SinkerSimon

Stick with it ; there are no negatives here. Always remember that if the story is good enough , the price will eventually catch up.

Not many people choose so well with their early investments . What influenced your choice ?

[sinkersimon] 18/3/2014 08:45

RoddieMac,

A year ago I had just bought FSJ as one of my very first investments. Soon after buying, it started to go down and I nearly sold up and lost money. Your reassuring comments and reminders about the long-term picture kept me in. I'm now nearly 50% up. Thank-you. I wish I could buy you a pint!

[rivaldo] 18/3/2014 07:38

Another acquisition today - for cash - will no doubt increase profitability and EPS again, though no financial details are given. Good to see some of the consideration is dependent on performance:



"ACQUISITION OF DEFENCE CONSULTING EUROPE AB

James Fisher & Sons Plc (FSJ.L) ('James Fisher'), the leading Marine Services business, today announces the acquisition of the entire share capital of Defence Consulting Europe AB ("DCE") for an initial consideration of £3.7m in cash. Further consideration of up to £1.9m is payable contingent on certain turnover and profit targets for the period until June 2016.

DCE provides a range of specialist swimmer delivery vehicles which are complementary to those developed by James Fisher Defence. DCE was established by Fredrik Hillelsson in 1997 and is based in Sweden.

Nick Henry, Chief Executive Officer of James Fisher, said:

"James Fisher Defence has been working in partnership with DCE in recent years to develop the market for swimmer delivery vehicles around the world. There is a close fit between the two companies and the acquisition broadens our product and service offering.""

[rivaldo] 17/3/2014 08:47

New highs now, with buying at 1518p.

[battlebus2] 14/3/2014 16:48

Yes it's a welcome relief indeed.

[scottishfield] 14/3/2014 16:40

solid as a rock here in a v rough week.

[rivaldo] 12/3/2014 08:29

Another "significant" and long-term contract win for Fendercare:



"Fendercare Marine to Supply Yokohama Fenders to MoD (UK)
Posted on Mar 11th, 2014

Norfolk based Fendercare Marine, a suppliers of marine products and services, has won a significant contract to supply Yokohama fenders to the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The three year contract is for the supply of 3.3m x 6.5m Yokohama original pneumatic fenders. Fendercare Marine has supplied 18 of the fenders to date, with potentially more to follow. Fendercare Marine has been working closely with the MOD to design a protective tyre net which would not only be non-marking to the ship's hull but would provide minimal fender maintenance issues.

Fendercare Marine has been a supplier of fenders and marine hardware to the MoD since 1999 and also supports navies throughout the world, winning a $29 million contract with the US Navy in 2012. From a base in the Devonport Royal Dockyard in Plymouth, their Naval Solutions division also provides fabrication, welding and coating services for the MoD, having worked on nuclear submarines, warships and naval support vessels.

Sonia Crane, Fendercare Marine Sales Manager commented "We are delighted to have secured this contract with the Ministry of Defence.""

[roddiemac2] 11/3/2014 09:35

bouleversee-

To my mind, there is a greater degree of certainty about FSJ`s future ( and has been for a number of years ) than is commonly found in quoted companies. It is a well run company operating in exciting ,diverse, and growing markets.

Barriers to entry are high, in part due to the specialist nature of much of what they do, and in part because most of the various parts of the business are complementary to each other: not something that could be easily replicated by another company; it would take time and a lot of capital. When FSJ first started to move into marine services , it hit the ground running at the right time in history. They will be hard to catch.

Fendercare is a great example of how FSJ take the companies they buy to the next level. Only founded in 1988, operating from a " small rural location in East Anglia " ; bought by FSJ in 1995, and now operating around the world.

There is every reason to believe that management can continue to grow the business.

[bouleversee] 10/3/2014 18:36

Roddiemac -

PS to previous:

With such a massive holding, I can quite understand your taking a bit of profit. However, my holding (though large for me) is nothing like that so I think I'll stick with it. Unfortunately, most of mine are not in my ISA.

[illiswilgig] 10/3/2014 13:48

Good afternoon everyone. Reading the thread and having the right spreadsheet in front of me I notice that I first bought 1500 FSJ shares at 73p on 1st August 2000.

Unfortunately I didn't buy as many more as I wish I had - I now hold 3657. But as the esteemed contributer said so well above - I am grateful that I bought the ones I have.

I have much to learn from this. Mainly about paying good prices for superb companies rather than low prices for mediocre companies. But when paying a high price for a share not all deliver as FSJ have done - and still does!

I just need to find the next FSJ now!

cheers

[battlebus2] 07/3/2014 18:16

Edison note makes good reading
Consensus estimates
Year Revenue PBT EPS DPS P/E Yield end (£m) (£m) (p) (p) (x) (%)
Support services
06 March 2014
1,485p £745m
FSJ
LSE 50.2m
Price Market cap
Share price graph
Share details
Code Listing Shares in issue
Business description
12/12 363
12/13 414
12/14e 444
12/15e 461
Source: Bloomberg
35.0 55.1 17.7
41.4 65.6 20.0
45.8 71.5 22.0
48.8 76.1 24.2
27.0 1.2
22.6 1.3
20.8 1.5
19.5 1.6

[bouleversee] 06/3/2014 21:48

roddiemac -

It does indeed ring some bells. My husband's pension was all in an Equitable drawdown before the debacle and was then converted to a fixed rate annuity, at a reasonably good rate in view of his cancer but that's a long time ago now so although we can still live on it, it gets worth less every year.

I, too, don't want to spend so much time on shares (all the horrendous computations for HMRC included) and I would have been content to leave a lot on deposit but for the current rates. It would be nice to have the time and physical ability to spend some of it pleasurably. I suppose my successes will largely benefit HMRC so from that point of view I might just as well have it under the bed.

[roddiemac2] 06/3/2014 18:39

Sorry if I am not making myself absolutely clear , bouleversee. No, I am not aiming to buy again in a general fall , but you can never rule a general fall out, which is one reason for taking some profit when you are doing well. Another reason is that I can`t take it with me ; at some stage I want to spend it . As the total value of my holdings have risen , then so has the work load. Whilst I find investing fascinating , I don`t want it to dominate my life ( yet another reason to reduce my holdings ). No , I did not buy any stock when the market fell recently ; I don`t trade .

My aim twenty odd years ago was to attempt to finance my old age.I have made no pension provision, convinced that if I applied myself I could do a much better job than the professionals. I have succeeded.I worked in industry for six years before becoming self employed. My pension contributions during that period went to Equitable Life: ring any bells-? Their failure had some bearing on my determination to provide for myself. I currently hold 34,000 shares in FSJ.

[bouleversee] 06/3/2014 16:32

Yes, I realise that savers are piling into equities and BTL which makes me somewhat nervous about buying more shares myself. I use Selftrade and they certainly are not quick as far as cash transfers are concerned; don't do faster payments. Must have a look at Kenz; I bought some for husband's ISA a little while ago. Did you sell both of those today because you thought they were likely to drop in a general fall and with a view to picking up more at that point or do you think they will have a rest period after coming so far recently? I wonder if you were doing any buying when we had the big drop the other day. I am afraid I just don't have time to trade, just buy and forget, though I shall be selling enough (not necessarily FSJ) to use my cgt allowance and possibly some c/f losses. I am not as sanguine as you, however, as regards having dosh sitting doing nothing.

[roddiemac2] 06/3/2014 15:42

bouleversee

As I am sure you know, the pitiful return on deposits is one of the reasons shares are doing so well . However I am gradually increasing my cash , most of which I leave with my broker . This earns no interest, but the broker is much quicker than my bank to move money elsewhere on a simple telephoned request.He does not waste my time running me through endless security checks. I leave the rest of my cash in a current account , again because banks are far too inefficient at moving money between savings accounts and current accounts. I aim to make more than enough from my investments to compensate for earning no interest on cash deposits .

I do think it is important to take some profit while you can , especially as you get older. On that basis , I sold some KENZ and FSJ in my ISA this afternoon. I retain large holdings in both. I am trying to be right for all eventualities.

[bouleversee] 06/3/2014 12:39

Will have a look at those, Rivaldo. The interest on my deposit has dropped to 1% and I can't see anywhere much better to put it on deposit so considering more shares though afraid to lose it and too old to make it back. Will also need cash for carers in near future. Desperately short of time to do research so any tips appreciated, thanks.