Proactive Sport Share Discussion Threads

[cockneyrebel] 20/3/2002 14:40

Took my chance to add today another 10K @ 24.75p.

Just 1 mm left on 25p offer after a 40K buy went through.

Will look like a bigger theft than the one at Heathrow yesterday come the results April 25th.

CR

[beckaroo] 17/3/2002 11:26

Just a bit of news I have found on some other PAS players (Paul Stretford link). Before anyone asks, its old news (Feb) but I am putting it up becase I didn't know that the Jenas or Blake were on the proactive books. Thats another high profile player that has been transferred that we did not know about. I do wish there was a list of all of their players somewhere. I have a feeling the interims next month are likely to be outstanding.

Article:

Depending on who you believe, we're either paying £4m or £5m for Jermaine Jenas of Nottingham Forest, and after passing a medical and agreeing personal terms on Tyneside during Friday, he is now a Newcastle player. A press conference will confirm this at 2pm on Monday.

Rumours of the transfer have persisted in recent months, and it seems as if the recent decision by Jenas to be represented by agent Paul Stretford has been a key factor in oiling the wheels.

Article: (This deal was announced the day after - Jan 25

Robbie Blake has agreed terms with Burnley and the player will complete his move from Bradford City subject to a medical.
The 10-day saga surrounding the record-breaking transfer, which could be up to £1.25million, has taken a step closer to a successful conclusion following a meeting between his agent Paul Stretford and Clarets chairman Barry Kilby.

Burnley and the 25-year-old striker are now just a medical away from agreeing a deal and Kilby today commented: "It is now just a case of sorting out the minutae. Nowadays you can never say a deal is done until it is signed, but we are very close.

"But the fact is that with the player having an injury at the moment there is still a very strenuous medical to go through. We have to be 100 per cent certain there is no serious problem.

"And we have taken our time over the deal because there is no immediate chance for him to play and we want to get it right. We are making sure we spend every pound wisely."

[cockneyrebel] 10/3/2002 18:04

From ‘The Business’ – today 10/3/02

PROACTIVE IN PREMIER LEAGUE
By David Ladds of the Aim Bulletin

The City has been rightly sceptical about investing in football since the short-lived boom in football shares. It has been players’ agents and sports marketing companies that have profited on the back of soaring media rights. In the past two years, five have joined AIM. Of these, Proactive Sports is one of the most dynamic and marketing orientated. It represents 238 players and also substantial hospitality and sports marketing interests.

In the latest results, which cover just 4 months to may 2001. Proactive reported pre-tax, pre amortisation profits of £1.3m on sales of £3m. During that period which covered the busiest part of the transfer season, Proactive was involved in 38 transfers or contract negotiations.

Proactive appears to live up to its name. If 30% -35% of its clients match the industry average of moving or negotiating a new contract each year then its 238 footballers should produce an annual turnover of £4.5m - £5.2m . This has to be matched against the reality so far. A total of 17 deals have been completed since august, including the high profile transfer of Andy Cole for £9m, from Manchester United to Blackburn.

Proactive’s sports marketing division has secured deals with EA Sports and US trading card giant Upper Deck since floatation. This year the division should produce sales of £1.3m - £1.4m.

Proactive’s third division, corporate hospitality, is expected to turn over around £1.5m this year. It is one of five official suppliers to corporate hospitality packages to the England football team.

Management owns 36% of the company, with its executives all coming from football backgrounds, either as star players, managers or soccer administrators and directors. For example, Proactive’s finance director, former Republic of Ireland international Kevin Moran, is not a qualified accountant.

Its shares have risen by almost 50% since December’s 18.5p low to 26.5p, valuing the company at £28m.

House Broker Teather & Greenwood predict 2002 pre tax profits of £2.72m or 1.84p a share. In 2003 profits of £3.12m are pencilled in by the brokers. If Proactive can hit these targets the City may be forced to sit up and take notice.

This summer’s World Cup will be the showcase for at least 20 of its clients and should lead to a number of transfer opportunities.

Buy.

Sunday Business is an excellent and well informed Business Paper, on sale Sunday and Monday for just 50p – well worth the read.

[taurusthebear] 05/3/2002 05:09

CR

I agree about eggs and baskets, but I wasn't giving a reason for personally buying SM, but looking for the reason why punters might have bid up it's price. I always like to look at shares and ask myself why others might buy them - what I think is only half the story to a successful investment.....

PAS could be a good one, without doubt, but how do we know that the majority of those players are not in the 3rd division? Do we all have to call them up to find out who is and isn't on their books? Also, I find it ironic that someone from Durlacher is tipping them - despite the mega-rise (and fall) of DUC shares, one of the main criticisms levelled against them was that there was little "visibility" in knowing which tech and dotcom shares they owned from month to month, and therefore DUC was little more than a punt (very profitable or not, depending when you bought and sold). However, I take your points, and wish you well, but for now I feel happier with the likes of HRN, where the end-product sales are a lot more "visible". I also reserve the right to change my mind at a future date....

T :-)

[taurusthebear] 05/3/2002 00:52

I only say that because the SM. price fell 10p when Tyson was refused a license last month, so the market obviously feels it is a big deal. But that's the problem - how much are the deals worth, and why is this not made more public? Certainly a 100 million dollar fight has got to be juicy for SM. somewhere along the line, whether it's a one-off or not! And why should there be MORE players being transferred just because it is World Cup year? I like the idea of PAS, but for me, for now, there is just too much "invisibility" on earnings.

[cockneyrebel] 04/3/2002 19:34

Taurus

I'ts like having a portfolio of shares.

If you have Lenox Lewis you have one big share tat you are exposed to.

If you have 238 players across the world, the chances are that some are on the move or doing business somewhere.

Nobody knows what deals the company is doing which they invest in, you just have to look at the stable of products, in PAS case its 238 products plus the corporate hospitality side.

I don't see an abrupt end to soccer transfers, just a steady increase at larger prices, boosted by the World Cup and all these players being on the worlds biggest stage.

I won't try to persuade you :-)

CR

[cockneyrebel] 04/3/2002 19:29

Tipped tonight on Bloomber by Dru Edmonstone.

Nothing we didn't know - 238 players, World Cup about to come into focus, lots of corporate business should stem from it. 1.3m profit last year on £3m sales - £2.7m expected this year - high profit to sales ratio.

Mentioned that football shares are no good, but pointed out that this is player management.

Dru Edmonstone is from Durlacher - good chance well see nothingventured.com (Durlacher's website) tip them too in the near future then.

I think I will be adding before the results despite these being my third largest holding.

D

[taurusthebear] 04/3/2002 16:42

OK, but that's what I mean - you have to wait until each set of results until you have any idea of revenues etc. If they don't say all the players on their books, and (therefore leave a potential investor to sus) whether a transfer is upcoming, you can't tell before the event, but merely when the company decides to tell the masses. Bit like an Investment Trust!

[cockneyrebel] 04/3/2002 10:27

Not at all.

The Tyson fight will be a one off if it comes off, although Lewis will probably have a defense against Tyson after it or with someone else. But that leaves a lot of SM's eggs in one basket.

So do you want to buy a stock that has a lot of expectations in it and likely to disappoint, or one with less expectations and likely to please?

PAS benefits in that it is an agent for soccer players in 7 countries. Internation movement of players will be greater and greater, especially after the World Cup this year - the focus will be very much on the international scene.

I spoke to director Neil Rodford on Friday. He feels their biggest benefits are their size and their international base. He also confirmed Rafael Van Der Vaars is one of their players ("he is very big" I was told) and he confirmed Shares Mag got it wrong recently by saying Van Nistelrooy was a player of theirs.

Results are due April 25th.


CR

[taurusthebear] 04/3/2002 05:48

Surely SM. are a different ball game to PAS (excuse the pun), for which investors are prepared to pay more. Isn't there some anticipation in their price, for example, of a big pay day if/when the Tyson-Lewis fight ever gets off the ground?

[yashbalggan] 02/3/2002 14:38

anyone have an idea of when the results are due out................
thx in advance

[cockneyrebel] 27/2/2002 19:17

By the way - SM are moving up - the market appears to think they are cheap.

CR

[cockneyrebel] 27/2/2002 19:01

Sports Entertainment and Media (SM.) results were out on Monday.

SM. 1.4p dilute eps in H1. Share price 62p

PAS 1.16p dilute eps in the 15 week period accounted for at the finals. Share price 28p.

Are PAS cheap or what? And the sector hasn't moved ito favour yet - wait for that too. SM will do around 5p eps this year - PE 12 - what's PAS's PE going to be at the results?

Oh well - only about 7 weeks to the results and the City's big wake up call.

CR

[bigman] 25/2/2002 10:56

Deals are Profits are cash, no accounting problems here or cash burn etc, no stock losses or products that go out of style, market saturation of products, mature businesses, high tech bubble, developement costs, research costs, this company simply do a deal and make money, wish this was the case for all my investments and with their stable of sports stars they will just keep doing deals as each sports person renegotiate a new contract or is sold etc every three years so it is simply a conveyor belt when the stable is of a size and quality that PAS have.

[cockneyrebel] 24/2/2002 13:51

Courtesy of Bud99 on iii - the latest from Shares Mag.

"Shares in football agent Proactive Sports (PAS) could
receive a welcome boost on news that global giant Nike
has pinpointed two of its clients – Manchester United’s
Ruud van Nistelrooy and Ducth player Rafael van der
Vaart – as ‘iconic stars’ over the next decade. Shares
understands that the deals could be initially worth up to
£3 million for each player, with Proactive taking a hefty
cut of around 20%."

[dave46] 14/2/2002 08:49

In todays shares magazine as a buy

Dave

[cockneyrebel] 06/2/2002 14:34

Alf

While you've been debating it over the last month the stock has risen 50%.

Listen, I have spoken to the company recently and am very confident from what i heard. Don't worry about who is getting a back hander here and there - that goes on everywhere in business - you just hear about it in Soccer. These transfers are virtually 100% margin - sales growth means profit growth.

On the back of the Mail today, Fergie to stay. As part of the deal, his son that is part of the management company that organises lot of the transfer deals, Elite Sports Management, have to miss out on the deals as it is becoming embarrasing to Man U. So who is going to get that business? PAS are in with Man U, Kevin Moran and Jasper Olsen are directors.


This is a monster earner in my opinion, I've been adding more and more - now holding a truck load and intend to add more at the best opportunity (isn't it a beggar when you hold stock and hope it will come off so you can buy more).

CR

[alfwilson] 06/2/2002 13:44

CR

Everything you say is true ... there is no doubt in my mind that this business will generate the money you talk of. My problem with this business it is a people business and in my experience it is the partners / directors (agents and the like who by their very nature are selfish and greedy and only see things from their point of view ... or they would not be agents)who will make sure they get the money and not the shareholders ... and hence all that money (or enough of it) never gets to show up in earning to justify a proportional growth in share price ... which is what you CR are hoping for? I hope I am wrong for your sake ... but I (who could easily be a good agent) will sit this one out.

[cockneyrebel] 05/2/2002 00:38

How long has everyone been asleep to this stock?

Every top soccer player throught the world will be on display in the world cup. This will stimulate buying and selling as big european clubs see displays of tallent that they want.

PAS are managers of 238 or more players and even if these are not at the world cup there will be some that are transfered to make way for bigger names while others are bought through their tallent.

All of this has to add to the business done by PAS.

Add in the corporate hospitality side of the business - this should also benefit from greater business throught the world cup, and you have the recipe for bumper earnings.

All in all, at the end of the year I think these will be a great deal higher than they are today.

Well worth holding longer term in my view.

[cockneyrebel] 03/2/2002 19:27

Cheer for the article reetus.

Post it a bit quicker next time, you could have saved me going out in the pouring rain to buy a copy :-)

Good positive article - looking forward to the interims.

CR