Hargreaves Lansdown Share Discussion Threads

[growthpotential] 18/6/2024 16:23

Don't think this deal will go through, but if it did, can I still hold the unlisted shares in my ISA or would I have the option to hold on my trading account(?)

[lomax99] 18/6/2024 16:02

So are the board actually recommending this? Or are they saying they feel obliged to put the offer forward for shareholders to vote on. Pretty weak offer to be recommending.

[robinnicolson] 18/6/2024 16:00

Peter Hargreaves, speaking to the FT:

"It's a disgrace that it's come to this. It was classified as one of the best-run companies in the UK ten years ago." He wanted to make sure HL's chair, "thinks it is the right price".

[ochs] 18/6/2024 15:49

@AdamB1978 I think the unlisted investment wouldn't be able to stay in an ISA, but SIPP rules are less strict - so it would likely be ok in a SIPP (for example some SIPPs already allow unlisted investments and/or commercial property which are both pretty illiquid).

I guess the advantage of taking the equity stake is that you would benefit from any future sale by the Consortium - Private Equity typically only invests for 3 to 5 years and then try to sell on for a profit. If you think they're getting HL on the cheap then chances are that would be the plan in a few years time. It might even be floated again in the future. Be interesting to know if they'd plan to pay dividends in the meantime?

[giltedge1] 18/6/2024 15:35

Looks like a cave in, can,t imagine founders accepting I won't be.

[lomax99] 18/6/2024 14:59

Somewhat underwhelmed by the revised bid.Letting this be taken private, using a rollover for key investors, has a distinctly grubby feel to it, and would not be a good look - casting private investors aside like the proverbial oily rag.Also doesn't really fit with the recent FT article quoting SL.

[growthpotential] 18/6/2024 14:50

Interactive Investor probably a good option + IG Group, possibly CMC Markets with CMC Invest

[growthpotential] 18/6/2024 14:25

I need 1468p + 5 years of market returns to breakeven please

[dickbush] 18/6/2024 14:14

The fat lady hasn't sung yet. There's still a chance that this bid will bring out a competitor. Only needs to be 10% higher which still, IMO, is on the cheap side for this company.

[growthpotential] 18/6/2024 14:01

I hold in an ISA, no way to move to a trading account?

[jason29] 18/6/2024 14:00

Sold the lot. Quite surprised no other Bidder been flushed out, and as Adam mentioned doubt any funky Equity will be able to be held in a SIPP. Now need to decide if I want to keep my Investments with HL quite honestly......

[adamb1978] 18/6/2024 13:57

The argument for accepting the 1140p is that if you are able to own the unlisted equity in wherever you hold the shares, that portion of your consideration could be substantially higher in future.

Obviously there will be zero liquidity with it so you're tied in however private equity get few meaningful losses on this size investment so I think there's a good chance that bit could increase in value materially

[mozy123] 18/6/2024 13:55

Peter, Stephen and Nick Train really going to accept 1140p if that offer is made?

[growthpotential] 18/6/2024 13:46

I hope this is not the end of the road, would be locking in a substantial loss on this undervalued dogg at such a low price

[adamb1978] 18/6/2024 13:16

THe equity roll-over is interesting...though questioning whether that it's possible to hold unlisted equity in an ISA or SIPP. I doubt it is. That would rule out a lot of retail investors taking up the roll-over

[oggyrocks] 18/6/2024 13:09

Who's selling today at 1130. Is it worth holding out for 1140 ? Am I missing something ? Should we sell today or hold out for an extra 10p ?

[ochs] 18/6/2024 12:45

So the bid would effectively be 1,010p with a 40p dividend coming early - hardly any better than the rejected 985p bid!

[ochs] 18/6/2024 12:34

Bit of shocker - if £9-85 was considered to "substantially undervalue" the company I'm not sure why they'd even want to consider £10-50? Luckily the board themselves hold hardly any shares...

Yes it's a lot more than £7 a share, but £10-50 would still be very disappointing for long term holders.

[robinnicolson] 18/6/2024 12:33

Even if it was a final dividend of four quid a share, as opposed to forty pence a share, the bid offer would still be too low.

[con90210] 18/6/2024 12:14

£10.50 wtf! That's a terrible deal!!!

[robinnicolson] 18/6/2024 12:06

HL reportedly seeking a bid extension:

[hunter154] 18/6/2024 06:43

I think there are so many cheap asset managers out there, I would be happy with£12.50 and then redeploy the funds to another company that is also undervalued.

[stoopid] 18/6/2024 05:02

So, deadline day draws close, up 2% yesterday prob on speculation that a further offer will come. Lansdown obviously thinks there will be a further bid but it would need to be significantly higher than the 950 per share already offered to interest major holders.

[ochs] 16/6/2024 17:38

Interesting comments from 6% shareholder Stephen Lansdown in the FT - it would appear the Consortium haven't been consulting major shareholders and explaining their plans - so he is just as much in the dark as we are!

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One of Hargreaves Lansdown’s co-founders and top shareholders has warned that “price is not the main consideration” if private equity firms make a firm takeover offer for the investment platform this week.

Stephen Lansdown, who co-founded the UK’s largest retail investment service with Peter Hargreaves more than four decades ago, told the Financial Times that he would want to know what private equity firms would do with the business if they bought it. He owns a stake of nearly 6 per cent.

A group of private equity firms, led by CVC Capital Partners, made a £4.67bn offer for Hargreaves Lansdown in April, which the board rejected in the view that it “substantially undervalued” the business. Shares rose more than 15 per cent after the approach emerged.

The private equity firms, which include Nordic Capital and Platinum Ivy, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, are now considering whether to make a firm offer by the deadline on Wednesday — or to walk away.

“The conglomerate — and we’re waiting to see if they come back — has given no indication of what they want to do with the business and how they see the business developing,” Lansdown said. “I would want to know what their plan is for looking after clients and staff in particular. Price is not the main consideration if it’s not taking on the business in the right way.

“I’d be very surprised if they didn’t come back with a further bid; it’s then up to the board of HL whether they bring it to the shareholders or reject.”

He added that the approach had relieved “pressure̶1; on Hargreaves Lansdown’s share price, which had fallen from £24 in 2019 to as low as £7 this year. He said that the company had also become one of the most shorted stocks on the London market.

One top 20 shareholder said that “hedge funds [shorting the stock] have completely missed the wood for the trees, ignoring the growth in customer numbers and assets that HL is consistently achieving”.

He added that other companies, such as banks, could make an approach, given Hargreaves Lansdown’s dominance of the retail investment market. “It would be impossible to build HL’s market share from scratch, so I would expect any US or European bank to be looking closely at HL if they have any ambition to build a position in one of the world’s largest pools of household wealth.”

Hargreaves Lansdown oversees £150bn in customer assets for some 1.8mn customers.

Nick Train, another top shareholder with a holding of nearly 13 per cent according to Refinitiv, said that the private equity approach was unsurprising because the stock was undervalued.

“Its prior stock market valuation had seemed exceptionally low,” Train said. “But many UK-listed asset and private wealth management franchises seem exceptionally lowly valued, too.”

Hargreaves Lansdown and the private equity consortium declined to comment.

[lomax99] 16/6/2024 16:23

Hope the bid fails if it's less than £15.66, chancers.