Horizon Discovery Share Discussion Threads

[mamcw] 20/4/2018 13:53

Looks like another shareholder exiting. Stuck in no-mans land, with news flow drying up.

[pjj71] 12/4/2018 14:54

about time this saw a reversal... must be ripe for a bid at these levels..

[mayflyniall] 12/4/2018 09:52

J Milner bought another 370 K shares - 06.04.2018, also the interim CEO R Vellacott bought ~ 38 K worth. So either a canny move by people know what the future holds or a risky purchase to give the market a shove ?

[beanol] 26/3/2018 17:38

Think decline down to DD's leaving and it's uncertain manner. His character and drive and the way he set up the company helped drive the share price so sort of natural it would falter if left suddenly with no succession plan - more uncertainty. Agree long term future of company should be good but this sort of company doesn't drive itself - good leadership and stewardship key, to state the obvious.

[kestelmill] 26/3/2018 17:21

Half a million to Milner is chicken feed. Same as me throwing in a tenner. Good symbolic gesture from him though - suggests he is ok with Disley leaving.

[bouleversee] 26/3/2018 16:40

Crazy, isn't it? Is it being heavily shorted?

There doesn't seem to have been any tie-in as regards HZD's departing CEO.

[mamcw] 26/3/2018 11:59

Another bold purchase by a director - this time by the NED.

Clearly a disconnect between what the directors believe to be HZD's prospects and those of the rest of the stock market.

[mamcw] 26/3/2018 10:10

Another seller cleared out at 161.5p. HZD is a sound company, with cash, but currently lacks the "X factor" to deliver the type of incremental growth that is needed to re-ignite interest as a listed company. I can see this going into the hands of PE again for a few years, before being flipped into a trade buyer

[mayflyniall] 23/3/2018 21:30

There appears to be a steady decline going on here which could go all the way down to the same level as the last major drop ie £ 1.17 in early Dec 2016. Ok , DD has gone- and with it a great CEO and champion - fundamentally the company is sound -BUT over a 3 year period the capitalisation has gone nowhere. A new CEO needs bringing in soon , but these people are not easy to find and due to tie-ins etc. take ages to actually get in harness.
If the IIs lose patience and a serious self off starts then things could go right down to where Abzena ended up, £ 0.24- again a decent company but no place to earn your pension.
Scenario 2 - a buyer emerges?

[bouleversee] 04/3/2018 12:02

I see the revised date for capital markets day is tomorrow. I also see that amongst very small trades there was a purchase of 70,000 shares late on Friday. Wonder who that was.

[bouleversee] 04/3/2018 11:35

Oliver Shah in Sun. Times today says he tried on Friday to talk to Disley who said he couldn't talk because he was about to go into a hair salon and then catch a flight to Mexico. I wonder why Mexico.

The article also mentioned that Eliot Forster had recently abruptly left Immunocore, the cancer treatment business. Any possible connection?

There is clearly something we are not being told and it does seem a bit fishy. The share price is all over the place. What is the revised Capital Markets Day? It does seem extraordinary that that had to be postponed on the day. Not very good PR all round.

[gnnmartin] 22/2/2018 15:43

Since Tuesday this has been weak in the morning and recovered in the afternoon, so perhaps the USA is buying from the UK.

[kestelmill] 22/2/2018 15:26

Clearly DD has left abruptly and he would only do that if he or the company was very unhappy about something. If everyone was happy he wouldn't leave abruptly there would be a smooth succession. We know he or the company are unhappy so what could be some likely reasons?
-Difference in opinion on strategic direction with Board/Chairman
-Board have decided they want to get a new Leader in who can consolidate and cut costs. DD got wind of it and decided to get out
-Gross misconduct on the part of DD, but he was given the opportunity to walk rather than be pushed.
etc.
It won't be personal reasons like illness or a personal relationship break-down as that would have been at least implied in the RNS. It is business reasons or DD has done something naughty.

What does it mean for the company though? We know DD is great at Business Development, acquisitions, being energetic, raising cash, spending cash. But perhaps the company has got to the stage where it needs to take stock, cut out more of the fat and failing elements and concentrate on the profitable pieces, and actually make some profit. My personal view is that I would have liked him to stay for another 3 years but despite being a sh I don't have a great feel for what would be the best kind of leadership for HZD right now.

[pjj71] 22/2/2018 14:53

someone hoovering some shares... imo suggests a possible t/o.. strike while they can i guess

[mamcw] 21/2/2018 17:44

You only have to announce a bid approach if you receive a firm intention offer or there is a leak. So if there is a bust-up over whether to enter into discussions concerning a preliminary approach, this doesn't trigger an obligation to announce. But I'm struggling to join the dots as to what has really happened.

[gnnmartin] 21/2/2018 17:16

I don't think it can be a potential bidder, because the directors bought heavily on 6 & 8 February, so presumably they had not had an approach then. If it came in over the weekend and caused an disagreement between the directors on Monday, surely they would have said they had received an expression of interest in the Tuesday RNS?

[mamcw] 21/2/2018 16:15

On further enquiries, it does seem that this was a boardroom bust-up.

What's intriguing is that normally when you lose a CEO of 11 years' standing who is the driving force behind the company, the share price tanks. Instead, it has rallied today.

Makes you wonder what is really going on - a potential bidder? Numis apparently being very economical with any information.

DYOR

[beanol] 21/2/2018 11:38

Yes sold half too. Very abrupt departure given all DD has contributed. Must be a serious disagreement in the Board between the CEO and others. In for a spot of turbulence I imagine. Sure will be ok when new CEO comes in and settles things down.

[gnnmartin] 21/2/2018 11:20

My nerve failed today, & I sold half. Pity, because I really had great expectations for this company: I still do, but now have less confidence. It's not just the departure at no notice of the CEO, worrying enough, but its announcement on the morning of a planned capital markets day which is consequently postponed. I briefly thought that mamcw (post 920) might have guessed right in thinking that illness triggered the departure, but they would surely have mentioned that in the RNS, and anyhow you don't suddenly learn about most illness so the the timing suggests otherwise. All the loving statements in the RNS are quite possibly designed to keep the disagreement in the board room private.

[phowdo] 20/2/2018 09:40

Imo, the language suggests a boardroom bustup.

(bustup could have been about a bid...)

[mamcw] 20/2/2018 09:14

Makes no sense. He buys shares 10 days ago and then steps down suddenly on the day of a capital markets presentation, with no successor in place.

Sadly, looks like ill-health to me.

Makes the company v vulnerable to opportunistic bid.

[pjj71] 20/2/2018 07:50

maybe an eagle will sweep in for the prey ?!?

[mayflyniall] 20/2/2018 07:31

Darrin Disley has announced he is stepping down today as CEO- so how significant is this ? Will it prompt sell off- or business as usual . Interesting times ahead for sure.

[phowdo] 09/2/2018 12:04

FWIW, they did the same in Dec 2016, just before a great runup in the share price

[mamcw] 09/2/2018 11:58

NEDs and management all buying into weakness. Usually a good sign