Kingfisher Share Discussion Threads

[bookbroker] 15/2/2013 08:59

More than likely right, let's hope the co. hasn't been warned not to lower guidance, Mrs Market will not be pleased, and Cheshires' head might find itself on the block, mind you he's done a good job thus far, despite the French embarking on a buying strike!

[essentialinvestor] 15/2/2013 08:45

Latest consensus estimates suggest a pre tax of £717M for the year just ended
and a 13% fall in EPS to 21.86.


2014 estimates look too high at £792 pre tax currently, just imv.

[essentialinvestor] 14/2/2013 14:43

The leases are held off balance sheet bookbroker, so in effect gearing
is near 50%, from memory.

This is common practice so nothing out of the ordinary, they own
freeholds as well.

[bookbroker] 14/2/2013 14:39

Highly unlikely, but I think anyone in their right mind is aware of that, can't see statement being any different to even lowering guidance from the last one i.e. conditions remain challenging, etc., etc.

[nofool] 14/2/2013 14:36

I am not expecting the statement to be upbeat. But who knows, it might be!

[bookbroker] 14/2/2013 14:34

It's a given, anyone who has not heard takeover rumours over the last few years needs to get their ears cleaned out, the co. has a debt free balance sheet, top positions in two European countries with footholds in others, forget Ireland, that's about 2% of revenue, the cos. a sitting duck if you believe in the home improvement market to any extent, might go down, but so what when mkt cap. is less than one years revenue, it's a cash cow for God's sake!

[essentialinvestor] 14/2/2013 14:22

Depends on the statement surely, unless wider markets sell off.

I think bookbroker will be proved right, this will be taken out at some point.

[nofool] 14/2/2013 14:15

Plenty of time for 260 before then.

..and afterwards? 240 perhaps?

[essentialinvestor] 14/2/2013 13:46

Q4 update a week today.

[nofool] 14/2/2013 13:24

..clutching at straws

[bookbroker] 14/2/2013 12:26

Still goin to get taken over at some point, great opportunity for Home Depot, a mere snip for them!

[nofool] 14/2/2013 12:23

Bad news on the French economy must be hitting this, to say nothing of problems in Ireland..

[nofool] 12/2/2013 13:26

260, or if it's a bad week - 250

[mallorca 9] 12/2/2013 08:20

Looking to be turning south, hoping for support at £2.60

[essentialinvestor] 10/2/2013 13:07

I agree mall, the outside possibility of a bid though.

The ROI is a very small piece of KGF. France is where the bulk of profit
comes from.

[mallorca 9] 10/2/2013 11:19

With France in recession and the Ireland branches in danger of closure , isn't this a good short with a downwards correction likely ?

[ed 123] 06/2/2013 14:49

Agree, mean broker forecast for year ending 31 January 2013, I've read is 22.03p eps. That gives a p/e ratio of about 12.5, for the current share price of 275p.

[essentialinvestor] 06/2/2013 14:28

The forward PER mentioned of 10x is incorrect.

[nofool] 03/2/2013 18:01

Agreed.

Is the share price about to slam dunk to 252p again, gapping down rudely, as in July?

[essentialinvestor] 31/1/2013 15:22

Forget the ROI, It's France to watch IMV.

[libertine] 31/1/2013 15:21

..

Kingfisher Plays Hardball Over B&Q Irish Woes
By Mark Kleinman, City Editor | Sky News – 27 minutes ago.. .

The owner of the B&Q DIY retailer is to place its loss-making Irish business into a form of bankruptcy protection in a last-ditch attempt to force the chain's landlords to the negotiating table.

I can reveal that Kingfisher, one of Britain's biggest retail groups, has filed today in the Irish courts to place its nine stores in the country into examinership, a rough equivalent of the UK's administration procedure.

The news of Kingfisher's decision comes two days after the country's central bank warned that the Irish economy would grow more slowly than previously forecast as it recovers from its worst-ever debt crisis.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accountancy firm, is understood to have been appointed to oversee the examinership process, which provides troubled companies with an opportunity to restructure themselves.

The decision by Kingfisher's management, led by chief executive Ian Cheshire, will be interpreted as an attempt to play hardball with the landlords of B&Q's Irish stores. Sources close to Kingfisher accused landlords of refusing to enter into negotiations over the chain's rent agreements despite a 25% slump in sales since the peak of the Irish economic boom.

The sources said it was likely that four of the nine B&Q stores would close, although the plans would be subject to the scrutiny of the examiner. Nearly 700 people work for the company in Ireland, with about 200 jobs at risk from the four store closures.

Under Irish company law, the examiner has the power to enforce changes to commercial contracts held by businesses, which may entail a bruising showdown between Kingfisher and its Irish landlords.

The Irish chain was profitable between 2007 and 2009 but has racked up millions of pounds in losses since then as the country's economy has struggled. Kingfisher opened the first B&Q in Ireland in 2002.

Insiders said that Kingfisher had no plans to leave Ireland and that the company remained focused on building "a sustainable business". They stressed that executives had attempted to pursue other routes to turning its performance around, including cutting costs and reducing staff hours.

Kingfisher declined to comment on Thursday. Its decision to file for insolvency protection is unlikely to be announced to the London stock exchange because the Irish business represents such a small proportion of the group's overall sales. The turnover of B&Q Ireland is understood to be about £80m, against overall group sales of approximately £11bn.

Ireland is not the only country where Kingfisher's sales have been adversely affected by weak economic conditions. In November, the company reported that the environment in Britain – by far its biggest market – and France had also affected the performance of its DIY shops

[alchemy30] 31/1/2013 14:53

Mark Kleinman ‏@MarkKleinmanSky

Exclusive: DIY retail group Kingfisher calls in PwC to oversee bankruptcy protection process for B&Q Ireland. Full story online shortly.

[missagain] 23/1/2013 15:17

bluebird - Thanks for that link and interesting article. I particuarly noted the bit about :
"The company is looking at sub-dividing leases such as at the Belvedere store in Kent, southeast England, where Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s (WMT) Asda supermarket chain has taken half the store space, thereby reducing Kingfisher's rent and leaving the retailer with the "right-size store."
I have heard that this estate sharing has been trialed and happened in some stores in the south of UK and is also now being initiated with Morrisons sharing a northern store (my local B&Q) in the next few months, with possibly more to follow.
It's an interesting concept and I am looking forward to seeing how it works out.

[essentialinvestor] 22/1/2013 13:35

France is largely the key to 2013 performance imv.

While some areas have been weak over the last couple of years,
France continued to power ahead enjoying strong L4L sales and growing
profitability - this looks to have recently reversed.

The next statement may set the tone for the rest of the year.