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| Share Name | Share Symbol | Market | Type | Share ISIN | Share Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gne Grp | LSE:GNE | London | Ordinary Share | GB0031791899 | ORD 25P |
| Price Change | % Change | Share Price | Shares Traded | Last Trade
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00 | 0.00% | 175.00 | 0.00 | 01:00:00 |
| Bid Price | Offer Price | High Price | Low Price | Open Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industry Sector | Turnover | Profit | EPS - Basic | PE Ratio | Market Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - |
| Last Trade Time | Trade Type | Trade Size | Trade Price | Currency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | O | 0 | 175.00 | GBX |
Global Natural Energy (GNE) Share Charts1 Year Global Natural Energy Chart |
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1 Month Global Natural Energy Chart |
Intraday Global Natural Energy Chart |
| Date | Time | Title | Posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19/11/2009 | 18:38 | Global Natural Energy - Now on AIM - Are those who think this a 3 bagger right? | 8,420 |
| 22/1/2006 | 11:57 | GNE - You can buy this stock for 8% of turnover! | 1 |
| 03/11/2005 | 10:24 | Global Natural Energy | 1,103 |
| 12/8/2004 | 17:05 | CONSOLIDATION | 95 |
| 07/4/2003 | 15:25 | Punters have latched on to this asset play | 2 |
| Trade Time | Trade Price | Trade Size | Trade Value | Trade Type |
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| Top Posts |
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Posted at 13/3/2009 12:59 by kooba Summary * Norcliffe announces the terms of a recommended cash offer (the "Offer"), to be made for the entire issued and to be issued share capital of GNE * The Offer Price is 190 pence in cash per GNE share and represents a premium of approximately 22 per cent. to the closing middle market price of 156 pence per GNE Share on 12 March 2009, being the last dealing day prior to the date of the Announcement * The Offer values the issued share capital of GNE at approximately GBP26.4 million * Norcliffe is a newly incorporated company that has been formed on behalf of Martyn Ratcliffe and North Atlantic Smaller Companies Investment Trust Plc ("NASCIT") to make the Offer * Martyn Ratcliffe and NASCIT intend to transfer their existing holdings of 3,719,927 GNE Shares in aggregate, representing approximately 26.8 per cent. of the existing issued share capital of GNE to Norcliffe * Norcliffe has also received irrevocable undertakings to accept the Offer in respect of 3,763,664 GNE Shares which when aggregated with the existing holdings held by Martyn Ratcliffe and NASCIT represents approximately 53.8 per cent. of the existing issued share capital of GNE * The Offer Document and Form of Acceptance will be despatched as soon as possible and by no later than 10 April 2009 * The members of the GNE Independent Board, who have been so advised by Seymour Pierce Limited, recommend GNE Shareholders to accept the Offer. In providing their advice to the GNE Independent Board, Seymour Pierce Limited have taken into account the commercial assessments of the GNE Independent Board. * Accordingly the members of the GNE Independent Board intend to accept the Offer in respect of their own beneficial holdings, representing as at the date of this announcement, in aggregate, approximately 1.1 per cent. of the existing issued share capital of GNE. * The Offer will, when formally made, be conditional only upon the receipt of acceptances in respect of GNE Shares, which, together with the GNE Shares acquired or agreed to be acquired before or during the Offer, will result in Norcliffe holding GNE Shares carrying more than 50 per cent. of the voting rights in GNE. * The GNE Independent Board has agreed to seek the consent of the meeting to adjourn the General Meeting scheduled for 31 March 2009 until such time as the Offer has been declared wholly unconditional or the Offer has lapsed. This summary should be read in conjunction with, and is subject to, the full text of the following announcement. Appendix II contains the sources and bases for certain information set out in this announcement. Appendix III to this announcement contains definitions of certain expressions used in this summary and in this announcement. Enquiries: Martyn Ratcliffe, Director Graham Warner, Director Norcliffe Investments LimitedTel: 020 7747 5625 |
Posted at 03/3/2009 15:28 by kooba Clarification of statements Following queries raised by the Shareholder Action Group the Directors wish to clarify certain statements contained in their letter to shareholders dated 24 February 2009. With regard to the statement 'The GNE share price peaked at GBP1.90 as a result of Mr Ratcliffe's acquisition of his stake', having reviewed trading for the week commencing Monday 8 December 2008, the Directors note that the closing price for ordinary shares was 181 pence on Monday 8 December 2008 increasing to 187.5 pence on Friday 12 December 2008 the day Mr. Ratcliffe acquired his ordinary shares. The closing price for the ordinary shares peaked at 190 pence on Tuesday 9 December 2008. The Directors wish to clarify the statement that "at least 38% of the shares in the Company have changed hands and been acquired by new shareholders since Mr. Ratcliffe became involved" includes the acquisition of 28.7% of the ordinary shares by the concert party. |
Posted at 02/3/2009 09:51 by kooba there you go!City: Aim Market: Shareholders revolt over planned changes at GNE By Peter Taylor 832 words 2 March 2009 The Daily Telegraph (c) 2009 Telegraph Group Limited, London IT ISN'T difficult to appreciate why there's consternation in the shareholder ranks at GNE Group. Rarely does a listed company morph so dramatically in the space of just a few months. If the new guard among GNE's major investors has its way, the Aim-listed business will change not only its name but its strategy, its sector, its executive line-up and even its investment status after a general meeting in London this Wednesday. The company that for all intents and purposes was a pure-play petrol retailer six months ago would, with the backing of the existing management, become an activist investment trust devoted to buying into and shaking up underperforming technology firms. Gone would be the ambition for GNE, which sold most assets for a handsome profit in September, to repeat its success of the last three years, gradually building a stable of premium petrol stations with the objective of later cashing in on their growing scarcity value. And the 150p-a-share special dividend promised to investors in October, only to be pulled two months later, would be off the agenda once and for all. It is this development in particular that has given rise to a shareholder revolt of unusually heated extremes for a company on the junior market. In an economic climate where cash is again king and speculation has lost much of its mid-noughties lustre, the rebellion probably shouldn't have come as a surprise to GNE management. In hindsight, it is surely regretting the offer of a tantalising cash handback. Led by executive chairman David Port, the group once known as Global Natural Energy was sitting on pounds 36m in cash after selling its main subsidiary - a chain of about 60 BP, Texaco and Esso-branded petrol stations - in September. It had proposed to return the lion's share, about pounds 21m, to shareholders through the 150p special dividend: an unquestionably impressive distribution for a group whose shares were trading below 100p six months earlier. The plan was shelved in December after a leading Russian shareholder and some fellow investors sold holdings in GNE totalling more than 20pc. A new group of investors led by British technology veteran Martyn Ratcliffe, chairman of Microgen, and former chief of Dell Europe, then swooped, snapping up 28.7pc of the company and winning management backing for its bold plan. Mr Ratcliffe was immediately appointed to the board. His adversary is Keith Moss, a private investor leading the action group fighting GNE's seismic strategic shift by writing to some 6,000 private shareholders ahead of Wednesday's meeting. The action group accuses the new shareholders of hijacking the company and derailing the special dividend payment. "It was totally out of the blue,'' Mr Moss says. "I and other shareholders were absolutely furious and aghast. The early proposal had been passed by shareholders by a big majority.'' "People in these times want cash. If people want to invest in a technology company, give them the cash and they can choose to do that.'' Mr Port, who will become a non-executive director under the new plan and vacate the executive chairman position for Mr Ratcliffe, argues that macro economic conditions changed dramatically between September and December, undermining GNE's original plan. He says there were "three prongs'' to the decision to abandon it. Declining interest rates and credit availability meant the company would burn cash while struggling to acquire debt to buy petrol station sites, the shareholder base had changed substantially, and Mr Ratcliffe's strategy was compelling, particularly in the context of the cheap share prices of some promising technology firms. "We decided it would be only fair to offer it [the Ratcliffe proposal] to shareholders to vote on,'' Mr Port says. "I think the smaller shareholders probably felt comfortable investing in an energy play and now find themselves looking down the barrel of an investment trust, which is not something they are used to. So I'm expecting some resistance but we'll just have to wait to see how big it turns out to be.'' John Cowie, head of Aim at accountancy and financial advisory firm Smith & Williamson, says that such dramatic strategic changes are rare among listed companies, "yet there have been a number of businesses over the years that have sold out all of their operating activities and ended up as cash shells, then had other businesses which are totally unlike them reversing into them''. He adds that boards are legally obliged to thoroughly assess genuine approaches and, where they see merit, give investors the final say. "You will always end up with some people for whom a new policy is not appropriate and the way that matters manifest themselves is the way the vote goes. If a majority of people don't believe it's worthwhile, then the majority of people will vote against it.'' |
Posted at 25/2/2009 11:11 by model635 Looked at the GNE website and Port's letter is there but guess what the advertised link to the shareholders letter isn't!! The letter from the Shareholder Group is set out in full below. 20 February 2009 Dear Fellow Shareholders We are writing to urge you to vote against the resolutions set out in the Circular to members of GNE Group Plc ("GNE") dated 14th February 2009 (the "Circular"), and in particular Resolution 1 in the notice of general meeting contained in the Circular. As you know, shareholders voted overwhelmingly last October in support of the Investing Strategy and the payment of £21 million by way of a special dividend, due by the end of January 2009. 62% of the shareholders voted in favour of the Investing Strategy adopted at that time, with only a minute percentage voting against. On 29th October 2008, David Port, our executive chairman said: 'We are pleased that the disposal is now complete, and we are now able to realise the value for shareholders which we have built since 2006. The disposal demonstrates the successful business that the Board has built up and we look forward to repeating our achievements.' Why then, in the apparent space of just one weekend last December, did the board reverse a decision that they had reached after many months of deliberation? The explanation appears to be "the changes to the Company's shareholders register" - meaning the acquisition by Mr Ratcliffe and others acting in concert with him of 28.7% of the shares. The Board appears to have accepted that Mr Ratcliffe had effective control and that the Board would accordingly be obliged to carry out his wishes. Following this announcement, the share price fell 20% to 150p per share and has only modestly recovered. The failure of the share price to recover to the price prevailing before the announcement is indicative that the new proposals are considered unattractive. Setting aside the abrupt manner in which the board apparently reversed its decision, why should they recommend handing over GNE to Mr Ratcliffe? Whilst Mr Ratcliffe's background is in the technology sector, what evidence was given to the board to demonstrate his success in investing in 'small and medium size technology companies...' where the 'operating performance of the Investee Companies could be improved both in terms of profitability and cash-flow, thereby enhancing the value of the ITC's interest in those companies?' The Circular gives no information about Mr Ratcliffe's experience in this regard. What is public knowledge is that Mr Ratcliffe became executive chairman of Microgen plc ("Microgen") on 31st July 1998. At that time, its share price was 120p and its basic diluted earnings per share for the year to 31st December 1999, the first full year of trading after Mr Ratcliffe's appointment, were 5.7p. After nearly ten years of Ratcliffe's stewardship, the current share price is 40p and the earnings per share for the year to 31 December 2007, are 2.5p. During the nine years to 31 December 2007, Mr Ratcliffe has enjoyed remuneration and benefits of over £3 million. Shareholders will have noted Mr Ratcliffe's remuneration and other proposed arrangements with GNE, which will provide him with a minimum of £250,000 per annum, irrespective of the success or failure of GNE under his proposed chairmanship. Also the proposed payments to the non-executive directors total £115,000 per annum. Should you not vote against Resolution 1, then your company is likely to become a self-managed, investment trust company ('ITC') listed on the Official List of the UK Listing Authority at a cost of £1,757,000. What can we expect from such an ITC? We have referred above to the performance of Microgen, which certainly does not give us any great comfort. ITCs generally stand at a discount to their underlying net asset value which can be over 40 per cent. Applying a 24 per cent. discount rate to GNE's estimated net assets, after deducting the conversion cost, potential tax liability and insurance premium referred to in the Circular referred to above, produces a notional share price of 178p. Applying a 40 per cent. discount rate produces a notional share price of 141p. Over 6,000 shareholders, many of them with small holdings, relied on the announcement of the special dividend of 150p per share due to be paid in January, in planning their financial affairs, particularly the payment of tax. If the Board, excluding Mr Ratcliffe, no longer consider that they are capable of successfully implementing the Investing Strategy (i.e. using part of the cash resources of GNE to build-up a group of petrol retailers), we, together with other shareholders, strongly believe that GNE should be liquidated. This should return at least 240p to the shareholders. Thereafter, any shareholder wishing to do so, can choose to invest in one of the many listed ITCs, and one with a proven track record! In summary, we consider that the abrupt change in strategy and the suspension of the special dividend serve the interests of Mr Ratcliffe rather than those of the majority of shareholders. We would urge you to vote against all the resolutions, particularly Resolution 1. We have received support from shareholders representing a substantial proportion of the votes. We can defeat the board, but to do so requires every vote to be cast against the resolutions. Please cast your vote against now. If you wish to communicate with Mr Keith Moss who is representing shareholders that are supporting this initiative, please contact Mr Keith Moss on telephone no. +44 (0) 20 7435 7792 or by e-mail to mail@keithmoss.com. |
Posted at 17/2/2009 10:30 by model635 kooba - Another recent unexplained action was that of the "buyback".As soon as it was announced somebody managed to deal in the complete allocation of 450k.I raised this with the Nomad but as usual was fudged.They released an RNS the following day saying that they had only dealt in 189,000 shares then waited a while before releasing another without numbers saying the buyback was complete.I couldn't find any trades over the following days that would have made up the difference.The board obviously let somebody offload their holding.If you want further background on this or other actions call me.This isn't just a matter of money it is also about what is right and fair and the "small" shareholder is in GNE's case being completly shafted, and in broad daylight. 15 January 2009 Press Release 15 January 2009 GNE Group plc ("GNE" or "the Group") Further update Prior to the Circular being distributed, the Company is intending to purchase up to 450,000 ordinary shares in the market under its current buyback authorisation up to a maximum price of 105 per cent. of the average of the middle market closing prices for an ordinary share RNS Number : 7895L GNE Group PLC 16 January 2009 GNE Group plc ("GNE" or "the Group") Transaction in Own Shares Further to the announcement of 15 January 2009, GNE announces that on 15 January 2009 it purchased 189,000 ordinary shares for cancellation. The shares were purchased at 170p each. As a result of the above purchase, the total number of ordinary shares in issue is 13,905,266. Share Buyback (GNE) RNS Number : 1674M GNE Group PLC 23 January 2009 GNE Group plc ("GNE" or "the Group") Update on share buyback Further to the announcement made on 15 January 2009 the Company has now bought back shares equal to its distributable reserves in its last audited accounts filed at Companies House. The Company will consider any further buyback of its shares following the general meeting which will consider the circular referred to in the RNS announcement dated 15 January 2009. |
Posted at 16/2/2009 19:08 by steve36 It is extremely dubious to ignore the discounted share price and pay out the existing directors' options based on nav and then propose a new incentive scheme based on the discounted share price rather than the nav! If there was a suggestion that the old directors were greedy then Martyn Ratcliffe is showing them up as complete novices. Lets see, a £250k salary plus 0.75% of increase in funds, up to £50k salary + 50% interest in a jv with GNE charging fees to investee companies, 10% of gains from investments (shared with other hard working execs), and over time, effectively 1.25m share options at £1.90. Its not clear if he intends this to be a full time role - he currently earns c£250k at Microgen. Regarding the voting, 75% is required to pass the special resolutions but the first two are Ordinary Resolutions only. It will not be possible for GNE to become an Investment Trust without 75% of the votes but interestingly, the directors' arrangements seem to be contingent only on Resolution 1 passing rather than on all resolutions being passed. I can think of no legitimate reason why these should not be contingent on all resolutions being passed. |
Posted at 07/2/2009 17:24 by jay083 go on then....i'll save you a few pennys (...how much do typist gets paid :) )in a feature about baragin shares, by Simon Thompson....enjoy! 'Bargain Shares 2009 GNE Group (GNE) Share price 150p, market capitalisation £20.9m Investment Company Imagine being able to buy £1 of assets for just 57p. Better yet, imagine that £1 was all cash to start with. It may seem incredible but this is exactly what is on offer at GNE, a group that sold off its main petrol stations operations in a £51.6m cash transaction. That allowed GNE to pay down all its borrowings. Apart from some remaining commercial property assets and a very small fuel cards business - the combined value of both have a book value of around £3.1m - by my calculations the group is sitting on £36.6m of net cash, worth 263p a share, and has a net asset value of £39.7m, or 282p a share. Yet, despite this chunky cash pile, shares in GNE are trading at 150p, valuing the group at just £20.9m. In other words, at this price we are getting 113p-a-share of cash for free as well as other assets worth 19p a share. It is worth pointing out that the group had intended to return 150p-a-share cash back to shareholders through a special dividend last month. However, these plans changed when a concert party, controling 28.7 per cent of the share capital, approached theboard with a proposal to turn GNE into an investment trust targeted at the technology sector. The party is lead by Martyn Ratcliffe, chairman of small-cap software company Microgen. True, it is possible that, should the sharehoolders approve the change in strategic direcetion, the new management team could destroy value by making some poor investments. However, it is worth noting that Mr Ratcliffe has brought a chunky 15 per cent stake in GNE and has been appointed to the board - so he has a clear vested interest in enhancing shareholder returns. He aslo has the backing of North Atlantic Smaller Companies Trust which has an 11.6 per cent stake in GNE. And lets not forget that we can take a chance on GNE because we are buying into that 263p-a-share cash pile at just 150p a share. On a baragin ratin of 1.75, GNE get my vote.' |
Posted at 30/1/2009 08:34 by model635 Reading this makes me long for the old board to stay - sounds like they did a wonderful deal and are all set to go again.The only way to deal with bullies is to stand up to them - perhaps Ratcliffe will find out that all puff and bluster has no backing!!GNE intent on petrol station comeback By John Harrington Date: Monday 06 Oct 2008 Petrol stations and convenience stores may not seem an obvious route to riches in the current environment. Having sold its Petrol Express portfolio of petrol stations last month for a cracking-looking price, however, GNE's chief executive Dennis Woods is keen for a repeat performance. Though effectively starting again from scratch, GNE still sees plenty of scope for re-establishing a petrol station presence in the UK. "There are 9,500 filling stations in the UK, of which 6,000 are independently owned," he says. "We'll be out there immediately looking for suitable places to buy, but we don't want to overpay." GNE is in this happy position after catching the market on the hop with the price it achieved for the Petrol Express chain. The shares were trading at 123.5p before GNE announced the £51.56m deal. The move will enable the company to pay a 150p special dividend, pay off its debts, buy out its joint-venture partner and still have £15m in cash to invest. There are no acquisitions in the immediate pipeline, however. The plan this year was to boost the retail presence at its petrol stations, but this was put on hold when the possibility of the disposal came about. He expects prices for petrol stations to fall back in the medium term as they have become "very toppy." Nevertheless, the company stands ready to buy out independent operators looking to exit the business in the current difficult trading environment, and is prepared to fund acquisitions through shares as well as cash. "We hope our paper will appeal, as it is backed by cash," Woods said. Either way, there could be a share issue in the offing, according to Woods: "We, perhaps, need to talk to institutions to see whether they are interested in taking on board more shares. Liquidity has been an issue." The company has already approached the institutions once, when seeking financial backing for an acquisition late last year, and was "very well received." Whether that is still the case given that the financial background is vastly different from a year ago remains to be seen, but the cash return should be a big help as should management's experience in running a similar business. Petrol Express had some success in luring pedestrians to its forecourt convenience stores, with the inclusion of Subway sandwich shops proving especially popular. "I got the idea (of teaming with Subway) from my son, who is at university," Woods confessed. "He says the chain is very popular with students." GNE still has its fuel card business, which it retained after the petrol stations sale, and that should keep it ticking over until it finds some new sites that appeal. If current tough conditions continue he may find himself very popular with station owners looking to sell, a point he acknowledges. "We have plenty to keep ourselves busy," he says. |
Posted at 27/1/2009 11:27 by bazw1 Question re share buyback...If Ratcliffe gets his way, and assuming that the share price continues its downward trend, where would the 15% of shares come from. Can't be enough free shares available, so surely someone would have to agree to sell, but even if the share price stays where it is, why would a major holder let them go so cheap. So would not the share price have to rise if the vote goes his way, to attract enough shares. |
Posted at 16/1/2009 10:49 by richgit Model,I truly understand some of the angst,on the basis we were looking forward to the divi of £1.50 and the assumption that GNE2 (Petrol stations again or similar)would have eventually(hopefully There was of course the inevitability that some would have imediately become bored with GNE2 and the ludicrous yet possible scenario that some would have dumped their stock leaving the £1 cash per share being valued at 40per share in the shorter term. Thus many smaller & impatient PI`s would have "possibly" considered a total of £1.90 as the scenario for clearing off,and I daresay that is still the scenario for some. On the basis that the now new GNE3 will have cash assets of minimum circa £2.80 per share and then the possible buy-back that may let some PI`s get their £1.90 - for those taking the shorter term option) I dont see a lot of difference other than some of us would have happily taken £1.50 and let the rest ride,though I have no doubts some would have started dumping once they got the divi. Why does nobody believe that GNE3 wont in fact turn circa £2.80 of cash assets (at this point)into possibly more than GNE2 would have done- I dont see why not. Mr Cronk bought some more at £1.95 when it was seemingly apparent that the divi plan was dumped,so maybe he believes GNE3 will be truly exciting,yet on cash its a no brainer for now. In conclusion_I always saw (before the bid)the chance of getting outof GNE1 at £3.50 -so if my divi was £1.50 I would have held the rest until they were worth £2.00 Now I have to hold until GNE3 turn (currently) cash of £2.80 into £3.50 and of course for the Market to value at £3.50 That doesnt look too difficult,and in fact who knows that the so called Market wont take a liking to what GNE3 will eventually be offering when all is sorted out.Maybe £3.50 will be peanuts) Would I buy into an investment strategy that was based on £2.80 cash per share? Why not, if I liked the story-and even moreso if the so called Market valued that cash asset of £2.80 at less !!!!!!!! If the buy back takes place and several accept circa £1.90 then the company is buying £2.80 for £1.90 and as a shareholder that seems fantastic.Those that sell wont think so,but if they want to sell £2.80 for £1.90 thats their decision. The rest of us will then have a stake in a co with very few shares around that will be worth even more pro-rata to any stock bought at the discount to cash. All assuming there are no crooks. |
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