Kingfisher Share Discussion Threads

[bookbroker] 20/10/2015 07:54

Rock and Roll baby!

[bookbroker] 20/10/2015 07:49

I like's this share, i like's it a lot, cash rich, well-operated, the best play in European home improvement DIY, and a potential takeover target, the writing is clear, GET ON! And this is not a ramp, how many cos. can generate cash like this one, and keep on buying back stock, as for general retailers - none except Next, but this is far more focused than general retailing!

[rathlindri] 01/10/2015 08:01

News UK News B&Q PLC
Job fears as B&Q to close nine stores across Wales and five in Northern Ireland
0 COMMENTS 04:00, 1 OCT 2015 UPDATED 07:40, 1 OCT 2015
BY ROBIN TURNER
The DIY company announced it will close the stores over the next 15 months as part of an initiative to “transform its offer” to customers


B&Q has named nine stores it is closing in Wales as part of its plan to shut 60 stores across the UK over the next two years.

The DIY company earlier this week confirmed the closure of five stores in Northern Ireland with the loss of about 300 jobs.

[rathlindri] 30/9/2015 16:48

B&Q store closures, good or bad?

[thorpematt] 16/9/2015 16:59

Getting a delayed reaction to TS by the look of it!

Today's price rise has been backed by large volume with KGF one of the top traded today.

GS have re-terated thier buy advice today also.

I would say that this is one of those stocks where the analyst have to think about the story and the constraints of being an II can hinder the process. Certainty is the preffered playing field of the big playes in the market and this one sits in that trnsition phase where the market has to decide if the story is one of decline or one of potential improvement related to market an operational change.

I think it's the latter but an share price re-rating will only follow if the IIs concur. I'll wait here 'till they catch up....

------------------------------------

CR,
I like your stalker BTW.

[cockneyrebel] 15/9/2015 16:58

Investec and Cantor both raised their targets today.

CR

[essentialinvestor] 15/9/2015 14:15

Astute comment Matt.


AM, you may be waiting a long time for that.

[thorpematt] 15/9/2015 13:21

Brokers views thus far today are positive.

My view (FWIW) is that the foreign currency shift (which in this period has been fairly considerable), should be taken in context.

If I look for outlook conjecture and future returns I always consider constant currency as the best yardstick. (Unless of course our crystal ball indicates a long –term continued shift in the same direction). In this case we have a 4% rise in sales and 7% rise in profit. I'd say that’s more than reasonably promising given that modifications to the business model which are in process (often in such cases we'd see negative returns).

From the perspective of profitability it's important to note that France giving 38% of sales yet 48% of profit is more key as a marketplace than anywhere else in the world.

I have this valued at 375p personally but If a continuation of 7% rise in profits and positive changes to the business so ensue that could re-rate. A dip in price due to any headline figures being interpreted as negative might give an opportunity for more significant upside…

[anony mous] 15/9/2015 12:53

Broker updates to SELL will bring the down to yr lows of 2.83.Not looking good.

[cockneyrebel] 15/9/2015 10:33

You can worry forever and a day about what happens years away and not expand essentialinvestor, imo. Screwfix is a great business and as construction picks up they are in the best place of the lot imo.

CR

[philanderer] 15/9/2015 09:34

LOL Ayl, I remember that too :-D

You`re right though times change and shouldn`t get too nostalgic. Off tomorrow for four weeks on Naxos ... and that wouldn`t have happened twenty five years ago ;-)


And good luck to all holders here. Fine company.

[ayl30] 15/9/2015 09:18

Phil, yes times change. Toys like meccano encouraged you to learn things and how to use your hands to build things, like lego did when it came after. By my early teens I was building radios etc first with valves and then with transistors - very whizzy in those days. My son, now 35, cannot even wire a plug and had to be shown how to use an electric drill when he moved house a few months ago.
No point being grumpy old man about it though, things change with generations, I always remenber my dad watching snooker on a B&W TV - could you imagine doing that now!(Cue famous commentator (Ted Low) saying on a B&W transmission 'the pink is next to the blue')

[philanderer] 15/9/2015 08:45

Morning EI :-)

Trouble is the next generation just doesn`t seem interested in doing anything manual. During the recent school summer holidays I hardly saw any children out and about playing football, riding bikes , they just seem to be stuck indoors fiddling about with their iphones / ipads living their lives through social media and computer games.

Scary stuff.

[essentialinvestor] 15/9/2015 08:33

Fair comment phil, not holding here atm.

Under 3.20 was my buy price, no guarantee that will be available though.

I can't even wire a plug, neither would I trust myself to do it, practically inept unfortunately.

[philanderer] 15/9/2015 08:28

"...consumers continue to move away from DIY"

...and from doing gardening, maintaining their own vehicles and exercsing.. Growth industry is eating fast food and drinking coffee out of huge mugs ;-)

[essentialinvestor] 15/9/2015 07:48

Results look solid to me, not sure what the market was expecting to be
any different.

My only concern would be the rapid expansion of Screwfix.

When the next UK downturn hits will this part of the business be hit hard?.

The rest of the business looks fine to me longer term.

[ed 123] 15/9/2015 07:47

As I said,

It's what's happening at B&Q that I'll watch for.

Uk and Ireland B and Q lfl +0.7%. By comparison, Homebase lfl +5.6%.

France, Screwfix and International were to expectations.

It is the B and Q performance that knocked the shares at opening, imo.

Of course, the Group retains its strong cash flow and shareholders are being rewarded while they wait for B and Q and France to pick up.

Edit: Thanks, Aly30. Fwiw, I don't think the FT writer quite 'gets it'.

[ayl30] 15/9/2015 07:41

Fin Times comment
Kingfisher may be in the mood for expansion but its shareholders are retrenching slightly on Tuesday morning after the London-listed DIY retailer, which owns B&Q in Britain and Castorama in France, reported a 1.8 per cent drop in first half profit.

Kingfisher was the biggest faller on the FTSE 100 at publication time, down 2 per cent to 353p, despite its new chief executive, Véronique Laury, striking an upbeat tone over Kingfisher's future as it seeks to tap into the "do it for me" trend, as homeowners turn to tradesmen to carry out jobs for them rather than doing it themselves. Kingfisher earlier announced it was looking at opening another 200 stores under its Screwfix brand that supplies materials to tradesmen.

Statutory pre-tax profit at the retailer, which Ms Laury is in the process of trying to overhaul, fell 1.8 per cent to £386m in the half year to August 1. On the company's preferred adjusted measure, profit fell 2.3 per cent to £384m.

Cantor Fitzegerald analyst, Freddie George, said the make-up of Kingfisher's results was a "surprise", with the UK business outperforming expectations (like for like sales at the unit rose 3.3 per cent in the half year while retail profit jumped 16.8 per cent to £194m) but France disappointed. In France, like for like sales edged down 0.3 per cent while retail profit dropped 5.7 per cent to £167m.

[cockneyrebel] 15/9/2015 06:46

UK + Ireland profit rise of 16%. The Euro issue won't last forever and when it turns KGF become much more profitable imo.

A lot of good changes kick in from 2016 too imo.

All imo

CR

[alphahunter] 15/9/2015 06:39

Part 1, quite a punchy statement.

[ed 123] 11/9/2015 09:57

Yes, Homebase result was encouraging.

Screwfix should be moving ahead nicely and France static. It's what's happening at B&Q that I'll watch for.