Polypipe Share Discussion Threads

[philanderer] 21/7/2020 10:01

Down again today..

JEFFERIES CUTS POLYPIPE PRICE TARGET TO 519 (576) PENCE - 'BUY'

[philanderer] 08/7/2020 12:01

Friendless after that downbeat report yesterday... 400p support being tested now.

[philanderer] 08/7/2020 00:05

Polypipe to axe 250 jobs as virus causes the Doncaster firm's revenues to plunge

[philanderer] 07/7/2020 17:10

That went down well :-(

[philanderer] 07/7/2020 12:30

RNS

In light of this medium-term outlook, we are taking regrettable but necessary steps to adjust our manning levels and cost base to reflect this level of demand.

Unfortunately, it means that we are entering a consultation period with our employees to review these steps, which if actioned in full, will lead to the loss of approximately 250 jobs or 8% of the workforce.

It is important to note that there is no planned permanent closure of any facility, which leaves the Group well placed to react to any sustained but unexpected increase in customer demand.

...we are not yet reinstating financial guidance, and this remains under review by the Board for the time being.

[philanderer] 18/6/2020 00:40

Analysts at Berenberg reiterated their 'hold' rating on plastic piping manufacturer Polypipe on Wednesday, noting that although near-term uncertainty remained, the group was poised to be a "mid-term winner".

Berenberg said that after hosting a virtual "fireside chat" with Polypipe chief financial officer Paul James, on 16 June, it felt positive about medium-term structural opportunities presented to the group as it continues its transition into a "one-stop-shop".

The German bank said Polypipe's transition should also be aided by its "strong balance sheet" since its £120m equity raise in May but still warned that nearer-term, uncertainty was "high" and said it remained "cautious" on the pace of the recovery in key end-markets.

"Management said that the high uncertainty means that it is taking a cautious approach to capex budgets and M&A, with the next two to three months being crucial for how it chooses to proceed," said the analysts.

"When assessing this against current valuation, we see better risk/reward elsewhere in the sector," added Berenberg, which kept its 480p target price on the group unchanged.

[philanderer] 17/6/2020 12:52

Berkeley has said the housebuilding and construction industry will need government support, including a simplification of the planning process, if it is to play a leading role in helping the British economy recover from the coronavirus.

Rob Perrins, the chief executive of the FTSE 100 housebuilder, said the government would need to intervene to kickstart growth.

“Housebuilding and construction can play a vital role in the broader economic recovery following Covid-19,” Perrins said as Berkeley announced its full-year results on Wednesday.

[philanderer] 09/6/2020 10:03

Berenberg downgrades Polypipe


Berenberg has downgraded piping manufacturer Polypipe (POLY) as it believes it will have limited involvement in new infrastructure projects.

Analyst Lushanthan Mahendrarajah downgraded his recommendation from ‘buy’ to ‘hold’ and reduced his target price from 520p to 480p. The shares fell 2.1% to 445.5p yesterday.

‘There remains opportunities in UK construction but stock picking is crucial,’ he said. ‘Our preferences lie with those where we see more of a fiscal opportunities via infrastructure, such as Breedon, or regulatory tailwinds, or those names that have underperformed but where we believe end-markets will be relatively more resilient, such as Volution and Travis Perkins.’

[philanderer] 08/6/2020 10:49

BERENBERG CUTS POLYPIPE TO 'HOLD' ('BUY') - TARGET 480 (520) PENCE

[philanderer] 19/5/2020 14:19

Numis upgrades ‘well placed’ Polypipe


Numis has upgraded Polypipe (PLP) after its recent equity raise as it believes it can continue to drive outperformance.

Analyst Christen Hjorth upgraded his recommendation from ‘add’ to ‘buy’ with a target price of 525p on the shares, which surged 7.6% to 430p yesterday.

Hjorth said Polypipe would benefit from a range of long-term drivers such as ‘government focus on water management’ and thanks to the capital raise had an ‘improved balance sheet position’ although there were ‘short-term factors impacting the business’.

‘We conclude that the group is well-placed to drive continued outperformance and represents one of the highest quality companies in our building and construction universe,’ he said.

[philanderer] 16/5/2020 00:33

Over 3.2km of Ridgidrain and 1,000 “top hat” chamber base connectors from Polypipe under have been laid under an M4 motorway project in the UK.

[philanderer] 15/5/2020 09:30

Very out of favour this week

[philanderer] 07/5/2020 19:14

FWIW

Investors Chronicle:

Tip Update: Hold at 474p


Polypipe (PLP) has been operating at around 70 per cent below normal levels, supplying customers primarily from existing stock. Residual demand has been driven by urgent NHS and healthcare activity, ongoing infrastructure and commercial work and essential repair, maintenance and improvement projects.

Excluding lease liabilities, net debt had increased by over a fifth since the December year-end to £184m as at 31 March, attributed to seasonal working capital flows. An additional £50m revolving credit facility brings the total to £350m for the next 12 months.

Despite this additional liquidity, the group is looking to raise £120m from an equity placing to avoid breaching its quarterly covenants through to June 2021. Under a “prudent” scenario, the proceeds would reduce peak 2021 net debt from over 6 times cash profits (Ebitda) to 2.5 times – this is versus a covenant limit of 3 times.

IC View

Polypipe is assuming demand only starts to recover from July, with trading from September and throughout 2021 still 25 per cent lower than 2019 in its larger residential systems business. Move to hold at 474p.

Last IC view: Buy, 466p, 17 Mar 2020

[baddeal] 07/5/2020 18:14

As an investor no one likes to take a dilutive hit from an equity raise but my reading of today's move is that the board have done the right thing to position the business and balance sheet for the recovery. As a long term holder I think pp will emerge well and outperform others in the sector in the years ahead.Getting it away at only c10% discount is I think a decent outcome

[philanderer] 07/5/2020 16:22

Because they're trading at 20 times earnings ?

What a sh1te day .

[theprovosts] 07/5/2020 15:45

how come these are trading at 20 times earnings?

[volvo] 07/5/2020 15:10

out and surprised also...it must be a good company to have only let up 10pc

[philanderer] 07/5/2020 14:44

Well done mf..... I missed all this placing news today :-)

[mad foetus] 07/5/2020 14:37

Closed short for 16 pts, amazed they got placing away at 445, well done

[mad foetus] 07/5/2020 14:28

No question they are a decent firm but what are they worth? £184m current debt, increased RCF to £350m, dividend pulled, tax liabilities deferred (so probably next year's dividend pulled too) and needs £120m emergency support to stop breaching covenants. It's not pretty.

[scooper72] 07/5/2020 14:25

The thing about this is their pipes are going to be in demand as construction is already back up and running. Infrastructure is going to be happening and so they are supporting sectors that are likely to be chosen by the govt to kick start the economy- unlike various other service and retail sectors that are going to take a lot more work to get up to speed. So would have thought these are a decent firm in these uncertain times.

[mad foetus] 07/5/2020 14:10

I'm amazed it isn't near to £3 right now. The delay in announcing price suggests it's not the easiest sell

[volvo] 07/5/2020 13:41

Shorted this from the off at 475p...recon they can only get this funding away at 280-320p max.