Pittards Share Discussion Threads

[clocktower] 12/5/2021 14:30

Right S - note all resolutions passed and details on the company website, so one might assume that JR was happy with everything, as voted upon. We shall see the numbers and be able to comment them but for sure the directors do not have enough votes to swing anything.

Now you would like my view as to the stock pile.

First and foremost, they used over £2m of it to support the business over the past year. Stock reduced for the first time in many years.

If you were a member of a BoD that made a plan, say five years ago that would enrich you in the way they are now most likely to be very well rewarded, you would set out a detailed plan of how this were to be achieve.

1) Buy Assets - (Property plus Stocks/skins)
2) Borrow against those assets
3) Increase Staff to handle and process all that stock/skins.
4) Depreciate the stock every year (even though inflation and wage/processing costs are likely to increase over the years of stock building.

Now rather than build a bigger picture, I will cut to the chasse.

5) Unexpected event - COVID-19 - adjust plan - Bigger stroke of Luck.
6) Make the best of a difficult situation.
7) Start implementation of the revise plan (not much of an adjustment anyway)
8) Cut staff, as you now do not require so many, as you reduce your buying/processing of skins.
9) Big Staff savings, as the numbers are no longer required.
10)Due to inflation,higher processing costs etc the stock value has in fact increased.
11) In between these times you have been doing more R&D and finding new large clients for which you can manufacture for. (SHOES - GLOVES - SPORTS GOODs ETC)
12) Use the stock to improve and return to positive EBITDA and increase your cash flow, which as they say improved significantly during H2.
13) Obtain agreement to adjust your share options, buy more shares before doing this though.
14) Bingo, let all guns fire and make hay.
15) Turn the corner show what a jolly good outlook and potential great investment PTD is.
16) Share Price Shoots up.
17) Alternative, find a buyer and take profits from all the share awards etc.

I could set it out in more detail but I think you will get the drift of things.

Hence I am buying shares, as funds allow as retail demand is once again picking up in all sectors, some saddle makers for instance are quoting long delivery dates due to demand.

Handbag makers are returning to huge demand - Golf players buying new leather shoes, the list is endless.

[smithie6] 12/5/2021 13:06

the MD

been the MD for years
& sorry but he has not done a good job
.& I get the impression that the only reason that changes are happening is because of the new chairman joining a few years ago

ie. that the MD does not have the basic skills to be an MD, no initiative, no ideas etc etc. as proven every year since he became MD before 2010; the ideas/changes have come from the 'new' chairman, & that claim is supported by the non-exec. chairman getting 30% of the options, that is unusual so the bod must see him as being the person proposing the changes, imo anyway.

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so, personally I feel that a new MD would be good for the share price

(& a new buyer, who stops buying shed loads of skins that there is no predicted need for !!)

[smithie6] 12/5/2021 12:49

clocktower

go on then, can you enlighten us as to why holding 1 year's worth of inventory/turnover is a good thing ?

( noting that the co. has borrowed a lot of bank money in order to fund all that stock just sitting there (& I assume also a bigger insurance cost, & bigger cost to pay for storeage space, shelving, heating/cooling)

& the interest cost for that debt is high wrt the annual numbers for profit/loss

Can anyone name any other listed company that has 1 year of stock ?

( more normal is 3, 4, 5 months worth, depending on the work, time delay etc to replenish inventory)

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maybe the dirs are dedicated to
- be nice to the workers in Ethiopia
- be nice to their children
- be nice to the providers of the animals that provide the skins
- be nice to the directors

& are phps running the co. as a social club or charity

with no interest in managing stock levels, making profits or managing the debt levels (just raise more cash as they did in 2015 with high % dilution) or ever paying a divi to shareholders


(& recalling that the previous perf. targets for growth in EBIT, the dirs couldn't meet them ! so they just deleted them !! ffs !)

[clocktower] 12/5/2021 10:08

Everyone disappeared this morning but we have a few sellers, so a little drop back before the next step up maybe.

[smithie6] 11/5/2021 23:07

My Retirement Fund
you say you have been a shareholder for years

can you explain this

turnover was markedly down in 2020
& there was a notable reduction of staff in Ethiopia
& not long ago they created a production sowing facility there
& they have 2 different sites

so, why are they setting up, building, a new site/facility ?

since they laid off 150-200 ppl in 2020 surely they already have over capacity ??
(& the co. is tight for spending cash)

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stocks/inventory
despite 5 years of allegedly trying hard to reduce it
as a % of turnover it is much much worse now than it was 5 years ago !!

You think these directors have the slightest clue what running a company is about ?!

[smithie6] 11/5/2021 22:57

2015 RNS. share option scheme for dirs

1/2 of options with perf. targets linked to the growth in EBIT

& 1/2 linked to turnover I think

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options were priced wrt 120p

the price that money was raised at in 2015.
Personally I do not think it is morally/ethically correct to give a % of the assets/cash raised in 2015 to the same MD as asked for that cash raise at any price below 120p.
If he had told those investors that he would get rich by the share price getting to just 70p (50p lower) then those ppl would not have invested £5.5 million.
If he departed & a new MD then tried to get results, then the new MD could morally/ethically get some options without reference to the 120p, but not the MD who raised £5.5 million at 120p.

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if the share price were to fall to say 35p, would the directors just change, again, all the conditions for the dirs. share options ?

sorry, but its not ethical imo.
If an MD can't get his options to be 'in the money', one assumes 'cause he is not very good, then in my opinion he should phps just leave & give someone else a chance; rather than change the performance requirements & the exercise price, just to suit the dirs. !!

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at Northbridge they didn't do that.
(ok they did endlessly issue new options to the MD at ever lower prices ! but he finally retired at 68, with 1 million options still 'out of the money' !)
The co. performed poorly over 15 years (due to the collapse in oil exploration drilling due to the fall in the oil price).

[smithie6] 11/5/2021 21:15

2 company options schemes
1 for dirs & 1 for normal employees (SAYE scheme)

The directors' scheme, the directors decided to extend the last date for exercising the options. They also reduced the lowest perf. target to start exercising process from 120p to 70p & reduced the exercising price to 51p.

The directors looked at extending the last date for exercising options in the other scheme, for employees. And they looked at reducing the exercise price.
They decided not to change either !!

One mentality for employees options & the opposite mentality for the directors' options schemes ?

(& also recall the pay cuts for management staff but not for directors)

scores for the directors

- motive staff 0/10
- lead by example 0/10
- lead by example in having values & principles 0/10
- motive staff by treating everyone in the co. with respect & consideration; & consideration of their aims/desires 0/10
- motive staff by sharing share options with workers/management & not just 100% for the directors 0/10

Overall
0/10

(if directors behave like this for these things, I don't think they will be very good at any other stuff, if they can't do the basic simple stuff)

[clocktower] 11/5/2021 20:29

I only just saw your last post S after I had posted my last post.

All I would like to say to you, is I hope you’re posts are being well read but it is only if JR dislikes the current successful line up that things could change but then before you say nothing has changed, note the last period remarks about a return to positive EBITDA during the second half of 2020 as the cash flow improved significantly during that period. The re-shaped business is more agile and set for growth and the creation of longer-term value, and bear in mind the strong start to this year,

I am just looking forward to hearing the next update as the share price should really take off IMO.

I really hope they are able to reap rich rewards from all their share awards, as we also will S.

So look on it with mixed blessings and rejoice as we might all be looking at more than £1.00 a share very soon.

[clocktower] 11/5/2021 20:18

S maybe there were less management numbers and that might have accounted for part of reduction of 27%.
One thing you can be sure of though, it will only be the BoD and shareholders that reap the real rewards from the rapidly rising value of the company but think how many jobs the company supports in Ethiopia and the good works the company does.
Maybe you should look at some of those video links I posted.

[smithie6] 11/5/2021 20:16

noting various stuff in the accounts which infers a low quality board of directors imo, as noted in the above posts.
Perhaps you can't expect much in a co. with a cap. value of only £8 million ?
but the bod still costs about 1/2 million & imo for that one can expect better than what is indicated as the bod quality in these accounts.

another example
page 62. Share Options

"exercise price...70p"

not true !!
ffs !

exercise price is 51p not 70p !!

70p is the minimum performance target.
this £1/2 million bod don't have one O level English among them ?!

when one reads accounts one rightly expects to read truthful stuff !! pah.

in neither the accounts nor the RNS for modification of the scheme is the scheme correctly explained/revealed. Why, imo to avoid any criticism of it (if ppl don't know what the scheme is or how it works, then they won't criticise it)

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AGM resolution no. 1
" to receive the accounts"

The MD thinks that shareholders will officially "receive" the accounts.
Whereas there is supposed to be a vote by shareholders to see if the shareholders decide, or not, whether or not to "approve" the accounts as presented to them. It is not the same thing.

It is yet another example of the poor conduct of the MD. (if I had > 5% of the votes I'd call a special meeting to replace him :-). Poor perf. for too long imo & got lazy imo & got the wrong attitude wrt shareholders (the co. owners & hence his boss :-) ).

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phps some of these problems are the result of having 1 MD in the position of power for so/too many years. Easy to get used to being in power & phps losing/lost their drive & interest in producing truthful accounts & start believing that they own the company. Same happens with politicians in power in some countries for too long.

[smithie6] 11/5/2021 19:48

interesting (or disgraceful)

the accounts (page 61) mention that dirs & management staff took a reduction in pay during the Covid crisis, to help the co. cope with the reduction in turnover & income

dirs.
total reduced from £480k to £470k
a 2% reduction.

management staff outside of dirs.
£302k to £221k
(a 27% reduction)

so, 2% compared with 27%

looks to me like the dirs. tell porkies & happily cut the wages of others but not for themselves !!

[clocktower] 11/5/2021 16:53

I can think of a lot worse S but I understand where your coming from but I am sure that if you are still holding a fair few from those heights and do not have the funds to average down (which I understand, as I was there many many years ago) you will at least be delighted to see the share price back to the £1.20 plus mark. Many would decide to exit just when they are able to make a further profit though, so I would caution against taking that action S. However, each to their own.

I wish you well.

[smithie6] 11/5/2021 16:46

would it be fair criticism to comment that Pittards is perhaps the only listed co. imo rewarding its dirs if the share price just gets back to what it was when the news of Covid hit European stk mkts in Feb. 2020 ?!

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the buying by J.R. is interesting
he hasn't stopped over the last X months, going from ~15% to ~23% now.
sure is a big punt !

[clocktower] 11/5/2021 16:37

I wish I had 23% of this Smithie6 especially when the share price goes through the roof at over £1.00 which I expect it do do before to long.

JR was buying at lot some time back at around the 60's/70's and I believe at higher levels before that but now all the ducks are in line, and the stock is tightly held it is likely to really motor on the next set of good news, which if my research is correct will not be to far away.

If I had purchased this stock at around £1.20 plus some time ago, I may well feel as you do S but what will drive the BoD now is lining their pockets, so all should enjoy the rewards that buy now or hold imo.

Good luck though.

[smithie6] 11/5/2021 16:30

clocktower

"it has taken them years to turn the tide and.."

jury still out on whether that is true phps

- lots of debt
- large fall in turnover (£22m for 2019 to £15m for 2020)
- big fall in EBITDA. +2m (2019) to -ve for 2020, 1.1m !!
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"taken them years to turn the tide"

& have they just repeatedly dropped the exercise price to get 10% of the company ?
or was the recent drop from 120p to 70p the only time.
71% reduction in the exercise price !!, if measured wrt the new price of 70p.

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Pittards has been around for > 100 years.
If poor perf. of the directors was rewarded with 10% of the co. (obtained via share buybacks not by issuing new shares)

then Pittards would no longer be listed since decades ago it would have become privately owned; 100% owned by the dirs. !!

[smithie6] 11/5/2021 16:28

you are not John Randell then, with 23% of the co. ?!

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you agree with some of the points that I have made ?

incl
- any/all share option schemes to take some of the co. assets should/must be voted on by the owners of those assets, the shareholders !

- that issuing 10% in 1 go appears to break the idea of a max of 10% in 10 years, since some shares have already been given out & also it would mean that no incentive would exist after this option package, & if the MD or the FD is changed in coming years then they can't be given any options, & that wld be nuts.

[clocktower] 11/5/2021 16:19

MRF, It seems I missed the boat on topping up, still I have a fair number now, and will sit and wait. MM were playing games, as you said it seems, still a few more weak holders out.

Smithie6 - I note your comments but like many others my shares are held in nominee accounts and it is to much hassle to arrange the votes. Plus of course it is really down to the big holders like the one you have pointed out in your post.

That said, it has taken them years to turn the tide and I would rather them be well rewarded in share options than salary and perks.

The recovery is underway and I think current shareholders will just have to suck it or exit if the large ones are happy as I am in this case.

Good luck anyway.

[clocktower] 11/5/2021 14:06

MRF - The MM maybe holding back a slightly larger sell because I can buy a fair amount under the last buy still. So I will hang on to see if there is a little drop and then have another nibble.

In the meantime some might want to take a look at these sites and Pittard lovers:

[my retirement fund] 11/5/2021 13:17

It looks like there was only one sell. Market makers may mark it down to try encourage a bit of turnover and tease out sellers and you never know for sure but don't count on it, most of the weak holders have probably been flushed out.

[clocktower] 11/5/2021 11:36

Another sudden rush of buying this morning, and I was hoping for a little drop of a penny to top up. Still, I can buy a fair amount online, so I will wait to see if I can get more at just under 56p as the last trade was a sell.

Still, a little bit more on PTD and it's good to see the recovery well on it's way now.

[clocktower] 11/5/2021 10:47

A smart branding with an exciting future imo.