Plant Health Care Share Discussion Threads

[mdrans1] 17/8/2010 08:39

"The challenge for Plant Health Care was to ensure that distributors, which would now regain control over seed treatment, employed Harpin, Mr Brady said.

"We feel distributors will be more willing to pay for Harpin $1-1.50 an acre than the $10 an acre" for Monsanto's full Acceleron treatment, he added.

Additional prospects

Mr Brady also highlighted that, with Harpin now eligible for application to all Monsanto soybean seed and for cotton rather than just Roundup Ready 2, it could potentially be applied to 40m-45m acres.

This year, about 6m acres were planted with Roundup Ready 2 soybeans, compared with a Monsanto target of 10m acres."

[envirovision] 16/8/2010 12:11

Looks like the BOD really do a good job here, but are frustrated by the fortunes of their partners. Moreover, they are unable to provide an increase in confidence at all for 2011 and hence the market is not happy by this half year report.

[coincall] 14/7/2010 18:10

More insti stake building tomorrow? £222k @ av £1.80 today

[ukinvestor220] 01/7/2010 14:12

* Monsanto, the US agricultural technology group, reported a 45 per cent drop in quarterly net profit income.

So they arent selling much then it seems.

[coincall] 18/6/2010 15:27

CEO doing a series of presentations to institutions yesterday and today.

[envirovision] 18/6/2010 14:11

LOL looks like an error, they printed it the wrong way round, a citywire error.

[ukinvestor220] 18/6/2010 13:24

its from citywire:

[envirovision] 18/6/2010 12:03

ukinvestors please post, as Evolution are the House broker. This is what they said 2 days ago.

16th June 2010.

At Evolution, analyst Philip Sparks said that the "slow start" for Roundup Ready 2 would prompt him to cut to 50m acres, from 80m acres, his forecast for the amount of next-generation seed coated with Harpin that Monsanto will sell in 2015. "Harpin and Roundup Ready 2 are valuable products, but Monsanto may need to rethink how they are marketed to farmers," Mr Sparks said.

He reduced his rating on the stock from "buy" to "hold".

[ukinvestor220] 18/6/2010 10:50

* Evolution upgrades Plant Health Care to buy from hold

[watchout2] 18/6/2010 10:50

17p up a share , what to do, take profits or ride ??

[mdrans1] 18/6/2010 10:21

No PUGUGLY, not the "only way", unless you think Monsanto's customers are the only ones who know, or can be trusted, to tell the truth. You could phone PHC. coincall, (see post 17 Jun'10 - 18:36 - 252) has explained how the information was delivered to him. I think it unlikely that they would tell blatant lies.

[pugugly] 18/6/2010 09:25

coincall: Thanks for further details. I agree with your comment on root stimulation. the old way used to be plenty of humus an deep cultivation to break up hardpans. From what I have been able to gather Herpin can give the rootlets greater impulsion. From my own experince (some years ago however) one of the main problems with coated seeds was the need to ensure the coating was kept moist but not dry so the rootlets were not constricted.

I suspect the only way we will find out if there was/is a coating problem would be to identify and phone some of Monsanto's customers.

[watchout2] 18/6/2010 09:07

Couple of decent buyers at 99p should have placed the orders on the sets
board and got filled at 95p, looking good though for a bounce back into
3 figures.

[watchout2] 18/6/2010 08:09

Bounce today or seller continues to control ?

Got to rebound at some point if it's a "one off" !

[coincall] 17/6/2010 18:36

PUGUGLY

Info has come to me via stockbroker who has been following the company for a few years. Both of us have a keen interest in natural root biostimulation as we see this as the only way forward as oil becomes ever more expensive and difficult to find (see reports and news from Matt Simmons).

As I said, it was the PHC pr response from a phone call to them yesterday where they said the problem was at Monsanto rather than a problem with Harpin. I have no reason to think the product advantage to plant growth is at issue, if it is a coating bonding problem which works on the other seeds used by Monsanto, then the question is why? Have Monsanto used different adhesives comparred to the trial coatings?

Ps the quote was from yesterdays RNS not the accounts

[mdrans1] 17/6/2010 17:17

PUGUGLY - 17 Jun'10 - 16:21 - 250

I will settle for the coincall explanation, unless you have reason to suspect he made that bit up about the word from PHC's PR people.

[pugugly] 17/6/2010 16:21

coincall:> imo you can read anything you like into the statement in the accounts. May just be lower sales due to reduced demand or could just as easily fit a coating problem (as suggested above) resulting in less coated seed available for sale and hence lower sales.

imo If it was a customer demand problem I would have expected words such as "lower than estimated customer demand" The omission of these words leaves the exact position of Herpin open to speculation.

Wording in my view is as clear as floodwater. (Any other views on interpretation of the statement?)

[bobdouthwaite] 17/6/2010 16:08

Coincall, thanks for the insight.

[coincall] 17/6/2010 15:59

envirovision,

Monsanto's fault. Hence the statement yesterday...

"The Company announces that following the notification by one of its key
customers of lower than expected sales of the Company's Harpin product in the
current growing season resulting in an unanticipated carry-over of inventories,
the Company has reduced its expectations of sales of Harpin in 2010 and, in
consequence, its expected profit before tax for the year.

The Board believes this is a onetime event and the excess inventory will be
moved through the customer's existing channels by year end and deliveries of our
Harpin product will realign with its expectations beginning with the 2011
marketing year."
-------------------------

I am not seeing this as a problem with Harpin and note that the announcement states "onetime event".

[watchout2] 17/6/2010 15:58

Ah it let me buy after all, somebody selling in 1k lots on sets, they
need clearing first before any bounce.

[watchout2] 17/6/2010 15:56

Cannot buy these online, trying to but no quote, might be a buyer around
these levels, it's dropped quite a bit in 2 days.

[envirovision] 17/6/2010 15:53

coincall, if thats true then that could mean theres a problem with harpin. So are they trying to say its monsantos fault or are they saying they are not sure why its not working well?

[coincall] 17/6/2010 15:38

bobdouthwaite,

Word from PHC's pr team suggest that harpin did not adhere to the soya seed in their (Monsanto) commercial coatings (whereas it worked fine in tests) - is this an error/cost cutting by Monsanto? All other applications to Monsanto seeds have worked as designed. Maybe soya is smoother/oilier/heavier in transit/sowing than other seed? Anyway, that was the reason given by PHC.

Farming is a fine balance between profit and loss. The extra price for Harpin coating will increase yield and therefore profit compared to uncoated.