Proactis Share Discussion Threads

[whatthe] 04/2/2021 23:31

Good news gets put out early...let's see

[p1nkfish] 04/2/2021 23:14

15th March 2020 PHD closed the day at a price of 15p.

By 15th March 2021 I expect it will probably be > 3x that price.

If it gets back to 150p it's a 10 bagger for some. It has helped my portfolio this year and I hope others have been as lucky.

[p1nkfish] 04/2/2021 23:06

CFO Live Event on 24th, 25th Feb. I can't imagine there being a TU on either of those dates or a bad TU close to those dates. Proactis are a Gold Sponsor. News might be missing recently so as to be included.

Some of those talking look a very decent size, not small outfits.

If I was to release a TU I would do it well before, so next week, or well after even into early March for a change. The only reason for releasing in the week of CFO Live is if the TU is stellar or has very positive news of a win or similar.

Just my thoughts.

[cureboy] 04/2/2021 17:23

Strong economic bounce coming in Spring. Will there be a better opportunity for a buyer to take Proactis on the cheap?

[p1nkfish] 04/2/2021 16:38

Earliest TU from 2015 has been 11th Feb 2016.
It could be next week.

Latest TU since 2015 was 28th Feb 2019.

20/02 2020
28/02 2019
12/02 2018
20/02 2017
11/02 2016
17/02 2015

[cureboy] 03/2/2021 14:00

Too funny lol. Nice of someone to buy 60 shares...

[coldspring] 03/2/2021 13:40

More hoovering at the mid price whilst JS berates Tim via the BB for not saying hello to him at the water cooler 3 years ago......yawn

[cureboy] 03/2/2021 13:26

May be time to go private. Wonder if the company that bought JAGGAER are interested in buying Proactis? Small change to PE.

[whatthe] 03/2/2021 12:57

Amen Jonstrawberry. Absolutely spot on!

[jonstrawberry] 03/2/2021 12:47

Dear Tim,

You have been CEO of Proactis for several years now, and prior to that the company's CFO for over a decade. Therefore, you are undeniably responsible for the the company's strategy, execution of that strategy and, ultimately, its performance.

And that performance has been dreadful.

The company's M&A strategy has resulted in a business crippled with debt, unable to extract the value of its acquisitions, and encumbered by the (substantial parts) of the aggregated cost bases of each acquired business. The preference to focus on the Board on an M&A (roll-up) strategy was entirely your idea, which you promoted to Rod Jones, Alan Aubrey and Rodney Potts and began in 2006. In many cases, insufficient due diligence was performed on the acquisitions and it is also true that the Proactis leadership team, in several cases, did not understand the company, product or market they were buying.

I met Rod Jones once and discussed this M&A strategy. He said to me, and I will always remember this, "two dogs shagging is still only two dogs shagging". Well, there are a few more than two dogs in the Proactis story, but this still holds very true today. He further explained to me that organic growth through sales was simply too difficult and it was easier to "do an Infor". He credited you as the brains behind this strategy; something you later boasted to me as well.

Meanwhile, the company's market execution has been woeful with organic sales seemingly flat over the last decade plus. At a time when the SAAS spend management market has quite literally exploded, with many new players entering the market and immediately out-positioning, out-selling and ultimately out-growing Proactis in a short space of time. How can it be that a company that did not exist when Proactis topped the Gartner product ratings in 2009, Coupa, is now valued at $28bn, purely by pursuing the market that Proactis once promised to "own", while Proactis is still a sub £50m market cap firm with little prospect of ever breaking through? And GEP, a privately owned firm with zero outside investment, has grown into multi-hundred million dollar sales organisation in the last 7 years, while Proactis has been playing its pointless M&A games. And Ivalua is securing public sector contracts which (in at least one example) eclipse Proactis' entire annual revenue in one deal.

These failures are laid bare for all to see in the company's results and reflected fairly in the share price.

Many of us shareholders still believe this market has ample growth left in it. And that the Proactis product is still fundamentally a sound one. With the company's very best intentions at heart, and the above points taken into consideration, I implore you to stand down and for the Board to appoint a new leadership team capable of executing on the promise of Proactis. You have had more than a fair shot, plenty of backing from the Board and investors to make it work, and you have sadly failed. Move on, sir, and give this company a chance to re-build.

Yours,

A concerned (very long term) investor

[jonstrawberry] 03/2/2021 12:20

"My understanding is BePayd is simmering nicely with interest beyond UK markets."

They haven't got traction WITHIN UK markets yet.

For comparison.... Look at Coupa's last releases around Coupa Pay and subsequent analyst writings... they launched it after BePayd and have nearly 300 major customers using it already, with hundreds of thousands of suppliers and millions of payments.

Getting a handful of customers to give it a try, and put their names to a press release, is the first milestone on a marathon of a product launch. and Proactis has got no further than this.

Get real, man. You're not being rational. I share your hope and admire your commitment to the cause, but let's not kid ourselves that this is anything other than a disappointing mess.

[durthur] 03/2/2021 12:16

Can't imagine it will be that exciting. The guy who headed up BePayd left a few months back to head up a small factoring outfit, which tends not to be indicative of roaring success.

Plus the business is being left behind; the issue with Proactis for a buyer (PE especially) is that the business is increasingly looking like it has technical debt. The software they offer was good c.2 years ago, but has moved on about 3-6 months from there vs the rest of the market.

Hard to kickstart growth if your software is slipping from being market standard to being 'ok', and doesn't take much more for the software to end up being substandard.

I'm still a holder, as I expect there to be some upward movement in the next 6-12 months, but if it trades up to 60-65 I'm out.

Also to those of you who look at EBITDA -> make sure you subtract the capitalised R&D. That is after all a cash item.

[jonstrawberry] 03/2/2021 12:02

Lewis is always very quickly to default to accusations of who we are, what are motivations might be, etc. I've had some fun with it myself. Honestly, this is a STOCK CHAT BOARD.... people are chatting about stocks and giving their opinions on their prospects, sharing tidbits, etc. Why Lewis translates any opposing opinion as having an alternative motive is beyond me. But IF he's a true investor himself, I'm sure he'll be willing to answer the basic question that I've asked many times before (but received no reply)... What (more) will it take for you to share the view that Proactis' executive leadership have failed and need replacing?

[whatthe] 03/2/2021 10:28

Good news Lewis. We can see who's right really soon when we see an H1 release. Should be exciting

[lewis winthorpe] 03/2/2021 07:48

Far too many ex/retired employees on here who can't move on, strange how the triple act appears simultaneously.This stick has always been a slow burn, they messed up the US reverse takeover and it has cost them dearly.The company needs to prove the market wrong.My understanding is BePayd is simmering nicely with interest beyond UK markets.I have the luxury of a 26p avg and have made good money over the years devoid of sentimentality. So happy to hold and come back later.Lou.

[p1nkfish] 03/2/2021 07:35

DBAY still nibbling away at Telit.
They need to buy 698K more PHD before having ro announce again here, approx.

[p1nkfish] 02/2/2021 21:00

Dbay might have competition from one of the big UK outsourcers. They all have problems, and some divesting companies to help address debt, but Proactis is small change, Proactis debt is dwarfed in comparison to what some of them carry, and Proactis is a decent pivot. The cost savings post integration could be very substantial and the cross-sell opportunities massive.

Proactis could easily slip through DBAYs fingers to a number of other suitors.

Dyor etc.

[whatthe] 02/2/2021 20:20

Heartening to see more people coming round to the blindly obvious that Sykes and the Old men of Yorkshire have squandered a fantastic opportunity and an awlful lot of other peoples money. Being unable to sell a SaaS based cost control solution in this climate is actually quite a skill. Bepayed is what's it's always been a smoke and mirrors act to distract and bring in the suckers. Don't kid yourselves that Unit4 are going to buy them, they've had plenty of opportunities over the years and never taken it. Hold into your hats for another deeply disappointing H1 announcement dressed up with the usual spin and distraction and pretty soon Dbay are getting what they want which is pick this up for peanuts.

[97peter] 02/2/2021 20:05

I know Jon, I did believe a leopard could change its spots, but no Tim has lost the plot. SaaS and their other offerings in this pandemic and before just needed demonstrating and a good % cut from through flow and PHD would have been a top 5.
Now just hope Unit 4 are in a position to drive a sale and buy at a decent 65-80p.

[jonstrawberry] 02/2/2021 19:50

Peter you’ve changed your tune. Not so long ago I was derided for saying something similar.

[cureboy] 02/2/2021 17:49

They've sold it to the largest German DIY retailer amongst others recently...but the lack of news is frustrating since turn of the year for sure.

[97peter] 02/2/2021 17:18

Jon - if they bid 65p they can have my 0.5% of shares in PHD gladly, this is now a basket case, so to get out with an average of anything above 50p, is a small profit. Tim Sykes needs sacking for not being able to sell sand to the Arabs processes Proactis need to sell!

[jonstrawberry] 02/2/2021 15:01

UNIT4 would make good sense as a buyer, as it complements their Coda portfolio and has a strong play into their old Agresso education and local authority customers. They know it’s a basket case though, so price would be low low low.