Omega Diagnostics Share Discussion Threads

[barrywhit] 10/12/2018 14:44

What will Evans do with his 4m plus shares?????

[gwr7] 10/12/2018 11:54

On 30th November Mr. Evans said:
Rest assured we will continue to work towards achieving success for all our stakeholders."
A week later he's gone.
Foresight was rarely a feature of his updates.

[gwr7] 10/12/2018 11:39

I got the impression Shepherd was getting money for old rope here. His last missive was clueless. If Harbinson goes as well things will be looking up. He looks like an FD who is numerically challenged. I take it he sanctioned the expenditure on the Indian debacle.

[bomber13] 10/12/2018 11:18

The Chairman finally going this morning after 18 years of presiding over zero increase in shareholder value is a further much needed sign of change . Perhaps his rather vague and uncertain interim statement only a week ago was the last straw . For sure , one is now more inclined to believe the more upbeat quotes coming from the CEO and FD in the two press articles that have been posted here .

This may also be a sign of impatience by the activist shareholder element , Sneller and Miller , who together now speak for 31% of Omega . Perhaps they will want to see an established and reputable outsider to be appointed as Chairman ?

[buywell3] 07/12/2018 18:03

So it all comes down to '' probably '' , '' hopefully '', ''projected sales'' and dealing with Nigeria ?

Is Nigeria the main target market ?

I note Zimbabwe comes after Nigeria ... so is that the second target country for ''projected sales''

Who is guiding who here ?

[barrywhit] 07/12/2018 17:56

buywell3, the market was expecting/hoping to see some projected sales figures for CD4 but they probably wont be available until Feb/March time after the Nigeria meeting/evaluation....then hopefully the share price will improve....

[buywell3] 07/12/2018 17:09

Can anyone please put this into simple English and explain what this means ?

He added: "I’m obviously speculating but my impression is that the markets were expecting us to guide on CD4 and obviously we haven’t given guidance there so there may be a little bit of disappointment on not guiding on CD4 but clearly what we want to do is when we do guide we get the numbers."

[barrywhit] 07/12/2018 16:53

Many thanks Rivaldo, it reads very well for the New Year...

[rivaldo] 07/12/2018 15:34

Big interview with the CEO - I'll paste it in full if you don't mind as access to the Herald's content is limited to only two articles per month.

Note that the CD4 update is coming within a month or so:



" Colin King, Omega chief executive, above, said: "Our results are where we expected them to be.

"Obviously over the last six months we’ve gone through a period of restructuring the business.

"I’m pleased with how that’s going, and once we get that clear it allows us to completely focus on our key growth areas, which are food, allergy and our CD4 test.

"In terms of progress in those three areas, again I’m pleased with the progress we are making.

"Where we do expect to see significant revenue uplift is with CD4.

"In terms of CD4, we have two products, the 350 test which is used as a gatekeeper for starting treatment for HIV patients.

"We are targeting the countries where we believe that test will be adopted."

Read more: Scottish biotechnology firm hails progress made with HIV test

Progress is being made in Nigeria and Zimbabwe.

He added: "Both countries are in the process of doing an in-country evaluation and we expect them to be completed during January or February time, so we expect the first commercial order for CD4 to Nigeria in February or March, so that is great news.

"At this stage we had hoped to give a bit of guidance on what that would look like.

"Unfortunately we don’t have that just yet - we are still running through that with our partner.

"There is a key meeting next week in Nigeria and we will get a better feel for what that will look like when our meeting is concluded.

"But we do expect it to be significant for us.

"Where we see the higher potential is in the advanced disease test (the second CD4 product) that we are developing.

"Overall we are making good progress there."

He said: "Probably the biggest challenge is where you can’t fully control your own destiny where you are working with other countries and they have to go through in-country evaluations, you always wish these things would go quicker than they do.

"They will happen, it is just more a case of timing that is probably the biggest frustration there."

He added: "I’m obviously speculating but my impression is that the markets were expecting us to guide on CD4 and obviously we haven’t given guidance there so there may be a little bit of disappointment on not guiding on CD4 but clearly what we want to do is when we do guide we get the numbers."

"By Christmas or early New Year we hopefully will be giving that guidance and hopefully that will get the share price back up again."

Kieron Harbinson, Omega finance director, said: "The overall message is that we’ve re-shaped the business, we are a leaner outfit and we’ve got three key product areas to focus on that can deliver growth."

Analysts at house broker FinnCap said the interim results were "in line with the October trading update, albeit complicated by the disposal of its legacy infectious diseases business, closure of loss-making German and Indian operations and exceptional profits/write-backs" and made no changes to its full year forecast which assumes an adjusted pre-tax profit of £200,000 in the second half."

[buywell3] 04/12/2018 18:00

Immunodiagnostic Systems Holdings (IDH) and ODX

If ODX are dependent upon IDH



IDH share price is back to what it was 10 years ago

It ain't pretty

dyor

[barrywhit] 04/12/2018 14:49

I'm afraid the company have lost the backing of the retail P.I's hence no retail buying, just either Sneller or Oryx picking up cheap stock, it's the retail investors that push up the share price ....

[tickboo] 04/12/2018 14:30

Well 50,000 bought against 643,000 sold. This should look like a bargain at this price but it still looks risky to me. Sure I'll be looking to enter again at some point.

[barrywhit] 04/12/2018 10:49

Someone is picking up the stock again...

[barrywhit] 04/12/2018 08:53

Alva-based medical testing kit firm Omega Diagnostics remains optimistic despite swinging to a half-year loss and citing “not inconsequential̶1; hurdles. The business, which is quoted on the Alternative Investment Market, saw shares slide on publication of the results for the six months ending 30 September. They closed down by 14.4 per cent at 14.3p. There was a 27 per cent year-on-year drop in revenue to £5.23 million, and an adjusted pre-tax loss of £510,000 compared to a profit of £220,000 12 months previously. Adjusted loss per share came in at 0.5p, compared to earnings per share of 0.3p in the first half of the previous financial year. The company said it is now a “smaller business focused on long-term profitability”, with its core areas allergy, food intolerance and infectious disease, and its flagship Visitect CD4 product enabling people with HIV to test their immune systems. And chief executive Colin King told The Scotsman that the firm’s three key areas are “where we expected them to be” while it is pleased with its progress to-date. Omega said the latest results reflect its “reshapingR21;, and follow the shuttering of its German business unit and Pune manufacturing facility in India, plus the disposal of its legacy infectious disease business to Lab 21 Healthcare for up to £2.175m with a gain on sale of £1.09m. It also hailed progress regarding commercialisation plans for the Visitect CD4 350 cut-off test. Coverage now extends to 11 countries, and negotiations are ongoing in a further five. Turning to food intolerance, revenues in this division were up by 12 per cent from the prior six months to £3.84m, with King highlighting confidence in further growth throughout the year. Omega added that the commissioning of a new 35,000 sq ft facility is proceeding to plan with an expected move mid-2019. “The upgraded facility underpins our view that the food intolerance division offers longer term growth opportunity, particularly in the US and China.” Chairman David Evans said in summary regarding the latest results: “Our short-term outlook is dominated by our efforts to realise value for shareholders whilst at the same time successfully accelerating our efforts to commercialise our CD4 offering. “The challenges are not inconsequential but I remain confident that in those areas where we can control our own destiny that we will succeed in delivering our objectives. In those areas where we are not masters of our own destiny then, by definition, the outcome will always be less certain. I believe it is best for our statement to reflect that reality as it stands today. Rest assured we will continue to work towards achieving success for all our stakeholders.” The firm also outlined projections for the current half-year period, in which it expects to post a £200,000 pre-tax profit.

Mark Brewer, director of research at FinnCap, said: “We have made no changes to our forecasts.”

[gwr7] 04/12/2018 08:35

They don't seem to know what's going on from one month to the next.

[bomber13] 03/12/2018 17:21

Indeed , it hard to fathom the difference in statements from early October , it is as if they were written by two completely different managements . I am disappointed to say the least . No mention of a stronger second-half , no mention of how registrations for CD4 are going , no comment from Colin King , no meeting with investors , and now an overdraft .

I do see , however , that the balance of £375/- from the sale of the infectious disease business is written into the balance sheet as a current asset under " deferred consideration " . They said in October that this amount would be received in coming months , so presumably this will eventually alleviate the overdraft position somewhat .

Selling and marketing costs are up 24% , probably no bad thing (?) , and there is over £1m of capitalised development costs ( CD4 ? ) in the last 6 months . Both point to front foot growth down the line , but , as the previous poster suggests , it is all being funded by Food Intolerance's growth and its 30% margins , which may be not enough . It would certainly be nice to receive WHO accreditation for CD4 before they approach shareholders ?

Anyone any idea what Finncap are saying ? Have they changed forecasts ?

[bomber13] 03/12/2018 17:21

Indeed , it hard to fathom the difference in statements from early October , it is as if they were written by two completely different managements . I am disappointed to say the least . No mention of a stronger second-half , no mention of how registrations for CD4 are going , no comment from Colin King , no meeting with investors , and now an overdraft .

I do see , however , that the balance of £375/- from the sale of the infectious disease business is written into the balance sheet as a current asset under " deferred consideration " . They said in October that this amount would be received in coming months , so presumably this will eventually alleviate the overdraft position somewhat .

Selling and marketing costs are up 24% , probably no bad thing (?) , and there is over £1m of capitalised development costs ( CD4 ? ) in the last 6 months . Both point to front foot growth down the line , but , as the previous poster suggests , it is all being funded by Food Intolerance's growth and its 30% margins , which may be not enough . It would certainly be nice to receive WHO accreditation for CD4 before they approach shareholders ?

Anyone any idea what Finncap are saying ? Have they changed forecasts ?

[buywell3] 03/12/2018 15:58

I mentioned the 100k left in a October 2018 post ... I have also mentioned the fact that I think ''loan notes'' are coming a couple of times.

I have also said that I never liked many parts of this business and that the food intolerance bit was the only bit I liked ... CD4 is and always was a shot at the stars for a small cap like ODX and the PUNA idea was not a good one , the sort of move a medium or smaller big cap pharma would have made , so much money has been wasted... if ODX is to survive then they should have bit the bullet and sold off all else and concentrated only IMHO on the food intolerance part which todays results has shown is the only part making any money as losses rise.


I see this as profit warning number 2

Loan notes within weeks now as overdrafts cost monies in high interest rates ... banking covenants limits have not been reached yet , but the overdraft limit is 2M

So those looking to provide them might say around 10p perhaps ?

Circa 3M cash needed IMO

dyor

[gwr7] 03/12/2018 12:39

In the trading statement of 10th October 2018 Colin King, CEO of Omega commented: "We are making great progress implementing our revised strategic direction and the narrower focus is already starting to deliver in our three key areas. Overall, we believe the actions we are taking will ultimately deliver shareholder value both in the short and long term."

How long is the short term?

[gwr7] 03/12/2018 09:59

I hope you are maintaining your sense of humour Hyperboreus. What makes me laugh is the assurance that one can rest assured because "we (as in Harbinson and Shepherd) will continue to work towards achieving success for all our Stakeholders." It's like being told to rest assured while Laurel and Hardy move your piano for you.

[supernumerary] 03/12/2018 09:22

If the results were audited, there'd be a going concern statement. Where's the cash? They must be running on fumes. A fund raising coming, surely? Or an IDS buyout?

[barrywhit] 03/12/2018 09:10

Not sure we are clutching at straws, the 3 sections of the business are progressing as we expected in my opinion:

Visitect(R) CD4

The Company continues to make good progress with the commercialisation plans for the VISITECT(R) CD4 350 cut-off test. Two additional distribution agreements have been signed since the trading update dated 10 October 2018. Country coverage now extends to 11 countries; Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Zambia, Kenya, Columbia, Indonesia, Guatemala, Cameroon, Uruguay and Brazil with negotiations ongoing in a further five countries.

The VISITECT(R) CD4 Advanced Disease test (utilising a lower 200 cut-off) continues to make good progress. Since the trading update a third validation batch has been manufactured and is currently being externally tested in India. Although still to be finalised, external results completed to date for all three validation batches are looking promising. We now have ethical approval in place to start our performance evaluation studies with initiation planned as soon as the ongoing site training has been successfully completed.

Discussions are ongoing with key HIV stakeholders to formulate plans for the procurement and implementation of VISITECT(R) CD4 Advanced Disease in low and middle-income countries at the earliest opportunity. Up to 40% of patients diagnosed with HIV are already at an advanced stage of the disease. Identification of advanced HIV disease is a critical issue that can improve the effectiveness of HIV control measures and it is widely recognised by opinion leaders that utilisation of the VISITECT(R) CD4 Advanced Disease test will play an important role in ensuring patients receive the most appropriate package of care.

Allergy

Since signing the distribution agreement with Imuunodiagnostics Systems ('IDS') in April of this year, we have continued to develop allergens for IDS' automated instrument. Since our last allergy update announced on 27 September 2018, we have CE-Marked two additional allergens, extending the menu to 60 allergens in total. We have also now shipped our first order to IDS and anticipate one further order for the final quarter of this financial year. We are working closely with IDS and there is regular contact between our respective commercial teams. We will continue to support IDS during the launch phase for this product range.

Food Intolerance

We are encouraged with the sales result from our Food Intolerance division for two reasons; sales for the six months to 30 September 2018 recorded growth of 12% when measured against the immediately prior six-month period to 31 March 2018 and; sales of Food Detective(R) of GBP0.95m for the six months to 30 September 2018 were equivalent to H1 in the prior period, despite that prior period including sales of GBP0.23m for the retail kit version which did not repeat in the current period due to the ongoing regulatory issue. We continue to work with our notified body on how best to resolve the issue.

The commissioning of a new 35,000 sq. ft facility is proceeding to plan with an expected move during the middle of the next calendar year. The upgraded facility underpins our view that the food intolerance division offers longer term growth opportunity, particularly in the US and China, and the Board continues to explore how best to realise value from this division given its stage in its current life-cycle.

[hyperboreus] 03/12/2018 08:15

Seem to be clutching at straws here, haemorrhaging cash, the Board sending out confusing signals on the Food Intolerance business, since when was the commissioning of a new plant previously mentioned?

Hardly any concrete positive news in the pathetically worded outlook by the Non-Executive Chairman.

[barrywhit] 03/12/2018 07:58

Lets hope the Interims are what the main holders were expecting, as there doesn't seem to be many P.I's left. Not sparkling but what I expected, progress being made on the CD4 side....