Marshalls Share Discussion Threads

[lauders] 15/12/2018 11:17

A few awards and nominations for MSLH staff recently:



The video in this one is a bit alarming re: global warming:

There is also this presentation re: the new acquisition (Edenhall):

In the presentation it is stated:

Acquisition of Edenhall
Market background

• New Build residential is our biggest segment for
Commercial Sales

• We have strong frameworks with the New Build
Housing Sector, and this would fit in with our existing
customer frameworks and agreements

• Edenhall has a footprint in the South West that could
take our Cromwell walling offer further

• The combination of our offer and Edenhall will build
our specification ability for both brands

• We can leverage our existing business in Mortars and
Screeds as they sell directly into this sector also

As I have done for several years I will leave it to the BOD to grow the business and run it as they known best. They haven't done too badly so far and they know the market better than I do.

[yopf] 13/12/2018 10:25

Looking at Marshalls' current trading channel I see price at 400-410 before any reversal testing the upper resistance of the channel by March.

Marshalls exposed the China has business in Belgium so exposed to tarifs and Brexit.

[yopf] 13/12/2018 10:22

I think this news isn't likely to lift share price. Housing about to hit a downturn and bricks will become hard to sell. Marshalls has bought this company at its height (good for Edenhall shareholders) so I see profits in Edenhall lower in the new year.

[lauders] 12/12/2018 11:05

Thank you waldron! Never too early ;-) Appreciate the wishes and with today's news and the reaction so far the season has got of to a good start. Wish you all the best too and seasons greetings back.

[waldron] 12/12/2018 08:14

GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR INVESTMENT

LAUDERS IT MAY BE TOO EARLY TO YOU BUT SEASONS GREETINGS

CHEERS

[waldron] 12/12/2018 08:12

Marshalls to buy rival concrete brick maker
Aaron Morby 3 mins ago
Share

Marshalls is to buy rival concrete brick producer Edenhall for up to £17.2m.

The acquisition deal will see Marshalls pay £11.8m up front for Newport-based Edenhall with up to £5.4m deferred over three years depending on performance.

Edenhall, which operates from 10 sites across the UK, employs around 250 staff and achieved £33m sales last year generating a profit of £2.8m

Martyn Coffey, chief executive of Marshalls, said: “Edenhall is a profitable business with a strong track record of quality, reliability and service, primarily targeting builders’ merchants and regional and national house builders.

“The acquisition is in line with our stated strategy of expanding into adjacent building products related to new build housing.”

£430m revenue Marshalls manufactures concrete and natural stone paving, minerals including aggregates, ready-mix mortar and street furniture and last year made a profit of £52m.

It employs 2,300 staff at manufacturing sites in both the in the UK and Belgium, with overseas offices in the US, Dubai and China.

[lauders] 12/12/2018 07:50

Today's news will hopefully get us back to at least the 450p level!

Exceed full year expectations:

Acquisition:

[lauders] 13/11/2018 12:47

Nice to see some new additions on the MSLH news page on their website. The latest looks good:

The opening of the Icon outlet at the O2

Marshalls products used in the installation of the build

[lauders] 13/10/2018 08:05

Nice to know that MSLH were involved in the Bloomberg HQ building materials supply:



Marshalls are proud to have been part of making this building so special by supplying our great British stone products to the project.

[lauders] 05/10/2018 05:21

Good to see that MSLH have started the news flow on their website again:

Marshalls takes a multi-layered, holistic approach to protecting people – Deter, Deflect, Defend. The first of these is achieved through limiting the speed approaching traffic can build up through changes to the layout of the road network, adding traffic calming features such as chicanes and speed bumps and creating pedestrianised areas and buffer zones which demarcate traffic. Then, specialist kerbing systems can be specified to deflect oncoming vehicles back onto the road and away from the public. Finally, architects should consider reinforced landscape furniture such as planters, seating, litter bins, cycle stands and bollards fortified with PAS 68/IWA 14.1 cores.

[lauders] 29/9/2018 15:49

At last! It has only taken 6 months but MSLH have updated their website news page with five new stories:

The last one was March 12th (superbrands piece) but until yesterday none of the additional five news items were showing, despite their dates. Hopefully they will update the page on a more regular basis now!

[florenceorbis] 02/9/2018 13:08

Josh White
WebFG News
02 Sep, 2018 11:58
Sunday share tips: Marshalls, Midas 'Dogs of the Footsie'
marshalls rhinoguard eos bench
FTSE 100
7,432.42
16:35:30 31/08/18
-1.11%
-83.61
Marshalls
451.20
16:35:06 31/08/18
-1.70%
-7.80
FTSE 250
20,689.00
16:19 31/08/18
-0.01%
-2.75
FTSE 350
4,157.45
16:19 31/08/18
-0.93%
-38.97
FTSE All-Share
4,106.14
16:20 31/08/18
-0.91%
-37.51

In the ‘Inside the City’ column for the Sunday Times, Sabah Meddings was looking at Marshalls, saying the paving slab maker has done good business in that field for 130 years now, with its shares reaching a record high last month after reporting a 12% increase in sales and underlying earnings.

That sales growth was reportedly driven by homeowners cashing in pensions and putting that towards home improvements, as well as a recent surge in demand for road barriers to protect pedestrians from the threat of vehicle-based terrorism.

But it’s not all suburban driveways and council roadworks - Marshalls also has a hand in massive infrastructure projects such as Crossrail in London, and the HS2 high-speed railway.

That diversity has helped the firm shine among its listed peers - Travis Perkins, for comparison, has slumped more than 28% since January.

Its recent stellar performance - £244.3m turnover in the first half - did not mean Marshalls was immune to bumps along the way, with the ‘Beast from the East’ winter storms keeping home improvers inside and their wallets in their pockets.

A 21% rise in sales through June and July, however, showed that it was more than capable of bouncing back.

According to chief executive Martin Coffey, the firm was outperforming the Construction Products Association;s own growth figures at the halfway point of the year.

The firm also boasted little debt, with borrowing expected to be 0.2x underlying earnings by the end of the year, so long as it does not make any further acquisitions.

And there was one more reason for CEO Coffey to smile, according to Meddings, with the company announcing on Thursday that he had made a £345,419 share sale to help a family member buy a property.

That followed a £394,097 sale in March, when finance director Jack Clarke sold £226,606, Meddings wrote.

Marshalls was currently sitting at a solid price-to-forward earnings ratio of 21.33x, with the shares closing at 451.2p on Friday.

That was down 5.1% from its record high of 483.4p on 16 August, when the board declared an 18% increase in the interim dividend.

Its competitor Forterra, which Meddings said did not have the same domestic exposure, was trading at a price-to-forward earnings ratio of 11.45x.

“While Marshalls says its main customers are the wealthy over-55s, it is not unknown for them to hold on to cash when caution strikes,” Meddings said.

“Marshalls appears fully valued compared with its peers, so it would take a brave investor to buy at this price - especially when directors are taking their profits.”

Over in the Mail on Sunday, Joanne Hart was back looking at her ‘Dogs of the Footsie’ portfolio for the ‘Midas’ column, noting that while savings rates languished around the 1% mark, the Dogs were boasting average annual income of more than 8%.

The ‘Dogs’ is a portfolio of the 10 highest-yielding stocks on the FTSE 100, created for the Midas column.

Hart said such high yields usually meant one of three things - the stocks were undervalued in the market, the shares were heading for a fall, or brokers believed there would be a cut to future dividends.

The answer as to why these 10 stocks were in such circumstances now depended entirely on who you asked, Hart said.

Midas based the Dogs portfolio on a strategy developed by US market watcher Michael O’Higgins, who suggested that investors would see great benefit from buying the highest-yielding shares on the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Hart wrote that for many years, that strategy worked well for Midas, with the value of the portfolio doubling between 2012 and 2017, and shareholders enjoying above-average dividends too.

The picture was much more complicated this year, however, with dividends soaring but share prices remaining stubbornly stable.

[lauders] 18/8/2018 04:01

Just had the opportunity to watch/listen to the Half Year Investor and Analyst presentation and liked what I saw/heard. Encouraging that things seem to be going well & all bases are covered. It would seem that they are flagging another acquisition to take their range to more of a turn-key solution. They admit there are gaps in their service now and would like to be able to provide a complete solution one of these days. Interesting that class II truck drivers are not easy to find and those that look for a job like MSLH as they have new vehicles and can go home at night unlike some other companies who need drivers where night shifts are needed. Overall happy to keep holding.

The recording is worth listening/watching:

PS - Also found this link which has a few customer opinions at the bottom. Overall they are positive. The company can't get everything right or make everyone happy but they are apparently doing pretty well:

[the grumpy old men] 16/8/2018 19:08

HOME > Financial News > Marshalls shares surge on strong first half results
Marshalls shares surge on strong first half results
By Master Investor 16 August 2018
0 mins. to read
Marshalls shares surge on strong first half results
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Shares in landscaping products specialist Marshalls (LON:MSLH) shot up by 13.54% to 479.60p (as of 14:15 BST) after the company’s pre-tax profits for the first half of the year grew by 12% to £32.5 million. Management said that revenues had also improved by 12% over the period despite very unfavourable weather conditions.

The firm remains confident in meeting its 2018 guidance and believes that its product range and strong market position should ensure long term growth. The board has announced an interim dividend of 4p per share, up from 3.40p last year.

Chief Executive Martin Coffey commented that: “The Group continues to outperform the Construction Products Association’s (“CPA”) growth figures, despite ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty. The CPA’s recent Summer Forecast predicts a decrease in UK market volumes of 0.6 per cent in 2018, followed by an increase of 2.3 per cent in 2019, while the underlying indicators in the New Build Housing, Road, Rail and Water Management markets remains supportive. Recent trading has been very strong with both June and July revenues up 21 per cent against the prior year period.”

[lauders] 16/8/2018 12:52

Well that's what you call a positive reaction to results. Hopefully the good weather will continue for more than the last couple of months. Looking good for the long term IMO, and obviously the market's, at this point.

[waldron] 16/8/2018 08:41

Frank Prenesti
WebFG News
16 Aug, 2018 08:01 16 Aug, 2018 08:01
Marshalls H1 profits bloom, despite 'Beast from the East'
marshalls rhinoguard eos bench
Marshalls
445.60
08:23:34 16/08/18
5.49%
23.20
FTSE 250
20,393.03
08:23:55 16/08/18
0.36%
72.68
FTSE 350
4,186.56
08:23:55 16/08/18
0.27%
11.17
FTSE All-Share
4,132.95
08:23:55 16/08/18
0.26%
10.71

Interim pre-tax profits at Landscape products group Marshalls rose 12% to £32.5m despite winter's “Beast from the East” storm hitting sales by £9m.

Revenue grew by 12% to £244.3m. The group said recent trading has been strong as it continued to experience strong order intake and was on track to meet full year expectations.

Operating profit increased to £33m from £29.8m, with operating margins slightly ahead at 13.7% from 13.6%. Underlying profits rose to £41.6m from £36.7m.

Basic earnings per share were up 10% to 13.24p and the interim dividend to 4p a share, up 18%.

“Revenue in both June and July is up 21 per cent against the prior year period. Encouragingly, despite wider political and economic uncertainty, the underlying indicators remain positive in Marshalls' end markets,” the company said, adding that positive cash generation has continued in the period.

Despite the bad weather, domestic market results were in line with the prior year period reflecting strong growth either side of the bad weather period, Marshalls said.

[lauders] 30/7/2018 01:10

Good to see that MSLH even do their bit to recycle plastics in a constructive way:



This is just one of their recycled plastic products so hopefully they manage quite a lot of raw material, which let's face it, is readily available and should be almost free to acquire!

Also good to see that the water management side of the business is in focus:

Slow the Flow Calderdale (STFC) is a multi-award winning group of volunteer engineers and water professionals who are committed to mitigating flood risk in the Calder valley. They manage multiple projects but their core activity is to use NFM techniques on the side of the upper Calder valley – initially around the Hardcastle Craggs National Trust property – to hold back the water that flows from the hill tops down into the towns at the foot of the valley.

To help us better understand our role in the water management hierarchy, this July the entire Marshalls marketing team will spend 2 days on site with STFC using NFM techniques to reduce the volume of surface water that would otherwise flow down into Hebden Bridge. The town has suffered a series of devastating flood events over the past decade so this work will have a real impact on the town’s resilience, making life better for our colleagues and friends in the local community.



I am sure that the citizens in the Calder valley will be very grateful for any improvements when the rains return!

Hopefully MSLH will decide to update their website's news section one of these days. Still no cooperation from Sophie after her return, yet as the above shows there is plenty if news at MSLH's to share, which is not surprising given its size and different business that make the group up.

Good range of products on show here too some with MSLH's partner company Escofet:

I finally received my dividend too! Only just under a month overdue! Shocking sub-par performance from my portfolio managers and a letter will be on its way!

[lauders] 21/7/2018 01:39

Many thanks lozzer69! Not very good service when compared to Selftrade but still way better than my situation. I am STILL waiting and the reason for the delay is "being looked into"! Amazing.

I also contacted Sophie at investor relations and asked why MSLH's website newsfeed is not updated more regularly. March 12th was the last update. She said she has been ill and returned recently and will look into it. Hopefully we shall see some new news added shortly. Would be nice.

[lozzer69] 20/7/2018 17:59

I got an email on 12July from Hargreaves saying div had been paid in on that day.

[lauders] 19/7/2018 15:28

Thank you Glaws2! Appreciated.

[glaws2] 19/7/2018 15:21

Lauders - received dividend on 29/6 at Selftrade.

[lauders] 19/7/2018 13:52

Probably not many readers/followers here but for those with a holding I would be interested in knowing whether you have received your last dividend? If so what date please? I haven't received mine and I think I am being given the runaround! Thanks.

[lauders] 13/7/2018 02:55

Some news that MSLH could have shared via their website:



When Jack Clarke was hired to become the finance director of building materials company Marshalls four years ago he recognised that despite the group’s strong reputation, there was plenty to be gained from resetting its strategy.




Jaz Vilkhu, Marshalls’ Managing Director of Landscape Protection, argues that the new PAS 170 standard will offer organisations an assured product to secure against criminal threats and accidental impacts for the very first time.



Marshalls was selected to supply Scoutmoor Yorkstone Natural Stone Paving, which is quarried less than 15 miles from the project, and used throughout the town across the Oldham Metrolink project. Together with flags units, Marshalls also supplied a mixture of setts, tactile units, steps and cladded planters in Scoutmoor Yorkstone facilitating a cohesive external landscape in the space.

Marshalls also supplied bespoke Prospero Granite planters and seating which were jet cut with detailing representing the textile trade in the local area. Intricate artwork was sandblasted into the surface of the planters, and then painted to give the detail a more prominent finish. A number of yorkstone flags were also inlaid with bronze detailing to give the scheme a premium finish.

[lauders] 12/7/2018 13:37

Coming back a bit from the recent sell-off and wish there was some news to show why and perhaps allow us to step-up to another level. Staying consistently above 450p would be wonderful. I have contacted MSLH PR to update their website as no news since March which I think is a poor show. Not surprised that my observation has so far been totally ignored. Not even a reply to say thanks for your observation and as a shareholder we will address the lack of news. Nobody at the company can say they have had NO news to report for the last 3 and a bit months. Especially one the size of MSLH and with so many parts to it!

[lauders] 06/6/2018 02:17

Nice to see the designs and work being carried out on a weekly basis here:

Love some of the before and after landscaping etc...

Edit - Never realized MSLH offered this service: