Opd Share Discussion Threads

[davidosh] 07/5/2009 18:03

I think they are well behind with the hard copies ..not received here yet.

It is available on the website and I understand the AGM will be held on 30th June which is much later than last year and in fact the last day of the first half year so directors will be in a position to update on the interims.

Is anyone going along this year ? There were only two shareholders at the AGM last year and attendance saved me a lot of money as I sold 90% of my holding days later.

I am totally against the payment of bonuses this year as I was last year to be honest as they have no comparison with reality. The rewards must give a very poor lead to staff, candidates and shareholders who will be really finding it hard right now and will have seen reductions in pay bonuses and dividends for the whole of 2008.

I would urge shareholders to attend this year.

[jeffian] 07/5/2009 15:52

I don't seem to have received my hard copy of the Annual Report & Accounts yet. Has anyone else had theirs?

Regards, Ian

[charlatan1] 05/5/2009 09:33

Cheers, nothing we didn't already know then. davidosh, OPD is getting left behind compared to the sector do you reckon its got further to fall, is there a chance it could go bust if the job mkt takes a turn for the worse although the balance sheet looks ok to me, seems odd the other recruiters are recovering of late but not here? OPD ar not as diverse as the others, so it is a concern!

[davidosh] 05/5/2009 09:19

The story continues with..


However, OPD is also the moniker of the recruitment group that owns Odgers, Ray & Berndtson, the headhunters known for their annual survey of FTSE 100 chief executives. It is by no means dead, but shareholders will agree that its health is not what it was. The shares have fallen from just below 500p to 39½p in two years, reducing it to a market capitalisation of less than £11m.

The name was changed when PSD bought Odgers, Ray & Berndtson at the end of 2005. It paid an initial aggregate consideration of £23.1m, made up of £19.8m in cash and the remainder in shares priced at 230½p, for up to 70 per cent of the issued share capital. It has since acquired the rest.

The acquisition brought on to the board Richard Boggis-Rolfe and Baroness Virginia Bottomley, the former Tory health secretary, as executive directors. The main terms of their contracts included an annual basic salary of £375,000 for Mr Boggis-Rolfe, with a discretionary bonus capped at 100 per cent of salary, and a basic annual salary of £280,000 for Lady Bottomley, with a similar bonus.

In mid-March the company announced its 2008 results. The main points , made in capital letters, were a 4 per cent reduction in net fee income to £90.9m; an announcement of the significant impact of deteriorating economic conditions on trading; and a decision not to pay a final dividend.

Pre-tax profits before exceptional items were 39 per cent down at £9.3m. The main exceptional charge was a £7.6m impairment of goodwill for Odgers, Ray & Berndtson, which left the group with a basic loss per share of 8.9p.

On Tuesday last week Mike Kirkham , the non-executive director who has chaired the remuneration committee since May 2007, resigned. On Thursday the company announced the submission of its annual report to the UK Listing Authority. It was signed off the day after Mr Kirkham resigned, and can be read on the company's website.

It shows that in spite of the company's poor performance, Mr Boggis-Rolfe and Lady Bottomley have been paid the maximum bonuses of £375,000 and £280,000, respectively, taking his total remuneration to £755,000 and hers to £562,000. Both were paid more than the chief executive and finance director.

The company was unavailable for comment on Friday.

The annual meeting, usually held mid-May, will not take place until June 30. Shareholders might like to point out to the board that the total of £655,000 paid to Mr Boggis-Rolfe and Lady Bottomley divided by the 26.5m shares in issue works out at almost 2.5p a share. Not quite as much as the final dividend of 6p paid last year, but better than nothing.

[charlatan1] 05/5/2009 09:14

Anyonw know what the rest of this article contains?

[davidosh] 03/5/2009 13:15

Schroders who hold 20% really need to take action here and in all honesty it would be closing the barn door after the horse has bolted. Important to make a stance for the future though.

[charlatan1] 03/5/2009 11:05

Has it got further to fall then?

[mt67] 03/5/2009 10:41

davidosh you're spot on there, share price performance dire.
target='window'>http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing-and-markets/article.html?in_article_id=483693&in_page_id=3

[davidosh] 01/5/2009 09:39

The annual report is now available having been delayed for about six weeks and the chairman of the remuneration committee has resigned. You may draw your own conclusions but a quick look at the remuneration report might make you feel somewhat in agreement with the ex-chairman who I understand refused to sign it off.

Shareholders receive no dividend and dire underperformance compared to the index

Directors still receive mega salaries, huge bonuses, superb 12 month notice contracts. If Carlsberg created companies just for directors this would be the model !! LOL

[crita1] 22/4/2009 10:12

A point well made, common sense.

[jeffian] 21/4/2009 16:57

empirestate,
Your flurry of oneliners suggest that you have recently lighted on this share as a chance to make your fortune and I fear you will be disappointed unless, like the rest of us, you are prepared to tuck it away as a long-termer. All employment/recruitment companies are cyclical so this will turn once the market believes that there is an upturn in the recruitment market. Based on statements from OPD itself, together with peers such as Michael Page and Harvey Nash, this isn't on the horizon at the moment. As for "consolidation", I doubt that OPD would see themselves being "picked up". They themselves have been acquisitive (though, thankfully, failed to land IMP) and as the CEO holds 20% of the shares with substantially more held in the boardroom, I doubt they'd be seen as an obvious takeover candidate.

Regards, Ian

[empirestate] 21/4/2009 15:49

still cheap on a nav basis, more likely to get picked up on consolidation

[empirestate] 20/4/2009 10:32

no need to panic, plenty of time for recovery

[empirestate] 17/4/2009 07:40

nav of 165p or gbp43m , £90m t/o, PBT pre except gbp9m n mcap gbp 11m outstanding

[empirestate] 17/4/2009 07:21

looks good value on balance sheet at this level

[deanroberthunt] 18/2/2009 12:05

I see Peter's stopped buying shares now he realises...

1. it made not a hapeth of difference
2. we're probably only half way thru the worst bear market in modern times
3. the share price will be much lower come the end of 2009

don't think i've missed owt.

[deanroberthunt] 09/1/2009 17:56

might be worth a punt in 9mths time when the bear market is in its latter stages....when at that time one may be able to pick this up below 20p

[iasike] 06/1/2009 15:10

drh, certainly seen some falls.

I think a new broker report is out, anyone seen it?

[the_doctor] 15/10/2008 20:28

Good summary jeffian (assuming its all right)

jeffian - 26 Aug'08 - 19:33 - 264 of 269

[deanroberthunt] 15/10/2008 19:20

and lest we forget his older brother Loads a Money.

[jeffian] 15/10/2008 15:16

He'll never have as many as his brother Peter.

8-)

[deanroberthunt] 15/10/2008 14:43

This is the Paul Hearn share buyback........he must be cost pound averaging

lol

[jeffian] 26/8/2008 22:18

Carlo,

I just don't know. Unless you know what is behind such transactions,it's a complete guess. Best to stick to the fundamentals and leave the L2 stuff to the daytraders IMHO.

Regards, Ian

[cascudi] 26/8/2008 19:27

Ian
thank you for your analysis.
one more question: what do you think about the quite big buy volume of today.
Could be a good sign or not?
Regards
Carlo