Robert Walters Share Discussion Threads

[its the oxman] 25/4/2019 12:30

Added today c.570p , look very under appreciated by the market, did touch 800p not that long ago.

[blondeamon] 21/3/2019 11:16

More funds piling in, almost 3% more shares bought by Kames just now.

[its the oxman] 01/3/2019 10:48

Yep, long term winner.

[gconvery] 01/3/2019 08:27

Excellent results....

[randomambler] 25/1/2019 16:13

Thanks sper for some excellent feedback. I'm glad that you enjoyed the article. Thinking back I don't remember RWA giving much colour around their revenue streams. In fact I think they only give the broad perm/temp split of 65%/35% or something similar to that level. Your point about the temp business being more valuable is an interesting one. It sucks up a lot of working capital but it's certainly more flexible and scalable. I may think about the split for other similar recruiters like Pagegroup.

[sper] 25/1/2019 15:22

RandomAmbler Very interesting analysis, very useful. Gross margin discussions are always interesting for recruitment companies as it is one area where a declining margin can be a positive to the valuation of a company! Recruitment company margins are predominantly made up of two revenue streams, temp and perm. Perm margins are normally 100% as there is no direct cost of sale. Temp margins are reported less the cost of the temps wages, NIC, etc. Two factors therefore affect the overall gross margin. The temp margin and the business mix; the proportion of temp vs perm business. Temp business tends to be valued more highly as it is repeat business and doesn't tend to decline as rapidly as perm in volatile, recessionary markets. In fact temp businesses can be seen to experience growth at times of economic uncertainty as companies favour the flexibility of temp over perm hires. The relative proportion of these revenue streams should therefore affect the PE multiple. Assessing the PE should therefore include an appreciation of the business mix and growth of temp. But back to RWA. They also have Resource Solutions, a very strong RPO provider. This muddies the waters somewhat, as the margins will be a combination of the above but will include a cost of sales for temp and perm fees where they sub-contract out to smaller recruiters. RPO margins will probably be quite small but because they undertake all recruitment for a particular organisation (thinking Financial conduct Authority) their risk is somewhat diluted and substantially less volatile! I've never looked at their results close enough to see if this can all be extracted in order to gain an appreciation of the relative strength of their revenue streams! Apologies if you know all this, I thought it was worth pointing out because I found your analysis useful and wanted to return a bit of the favour! Thanks

[randomambler] 21/1/2019 11:27

Wow this is a quiet board. I guess that RWA is totally off the radar for most investors despite its progress since 2008? Anyway I've put together a fairly lengthy analysis of Robert Walters in order to identify the investment case: hTTp://www.damiancannon.com/blog/robert-walters-its-all-about-asia/ Hope this proves interesting for somebody!

[brokertobroker] 14/1/2019 15:18

Record Q4. In fact, record quarters throughout the year. Trading cheaply on 11x with a solid balance sheet it's no wonder the insiders have been buying shares.

[descartes244238] 22/11/2018 19:08

As usual only the insider crooks know

[blondviking] 22/11/2018 14:57

Big drop. What's happening here!!

[imastu pidgitaswell] 26/10/2018 11:21

Yes, but look at the volume yesterday compared with the previous 3 months - massive. Haven't followed it lately (is it really 17 years since the author started this thread? ;-)), but looking at the rise from the Brexit Vote trough in mid 2016, some sort of correction had to happen. Some really strange trades - from 600 to 540-odd (briefly) instantly. No idea to what level though.

[hawaly] 26/10/2018 10:21

Lack of buyers to soak up panicky sellers..... one for the eventual upturn when it comes. Answers on a postcard as to when that might actually be.

[hawaly] 11/10/2018 07:21

Well so much for that..... many yield searchers will be panicked by current market action; a new experience for many who over the last 10 years have seen their investment return options limited. This may exacerbate falls.

[xajorkith] 09/10/2018 06:24

Another record quarter, 41m cash on the balance sheet, and confidently in line. Seems pretty good to me in the face of the current geo-political headwinds & clear evidence of the the longer term quality of the business.

[hawaly] 02/10/2018 12:51

Compnews1 Only that BREXIT is inducing a wider UK market malaise - perhaps many smaller investors, those with the opportunity to withdraw, to wait and see, are pulling funds out of the market until something more tangible transpires - mid November seems crucial. Rational actors take the back seats at times. Just my opinion..... EDIT: Having said that, the update due next week may provide a boost. GLA :-)

[compnews1] 01/10/2018 14:10

I believe RWA is a international recruiter, so BREXIT would not be the major issue, would it? With ROCE near 33%, PE less than 16 and DC greater 3 are very healthy indicators. Have I missed some things?

[hawaly] 28/9/2018 06:32

Impellam disappointed yesterday - possibly a read across from that. PIs pulling out prior to further BREXIT calamities? Perhaps it's a "keep powder dry" time.

[xajorkith] 27/9/2018 17:59

Not so good of late hawaly :( Steady decline through September a bit unsettling (Brexit fears?), but willing to hold given the quality of the business & positive H1 outlook statement. Lookng very oversold & due a bounce in the run up to the Q3 trading update on 9th October.

[hawaly] 22/8/2018 12:44

A mad mad share.... in a good way, today.

[xajorkith] 26/7/2018 17:01

Update from Liberium, courtesy of Proactiveinvestors: Liberum said the dividend was 15% ahead of its expectations and a signal of management’s confidence in the outlook for the business. Net fee income was also "marginally better than forecast", the broker said, leaving its 'buy' rating unchanged. "Although we do not expect consensus numbers to increase materially on the back of these results, we believe that the balance of risks to estimates lie clearly to the upside.”

[xajorkith] 26/7/2018 06:51

As per the trading update, another excellent set of results: “The Group delivered record first half profits, in line with recently increased market expectations, growing profit before tax by 32% (35%*) year-on-year. Growth was strong and broad-based across all regions and our permanent, contract, interim and recruitment process outsourcing revenue streams. "We enter the second half of 2018 with confidence and we have increased the interim dividend by 45%. The Group's platform for growth continues to be strong, across both emerging and well-established markets and disciplines, and we are well positioned to further capitalise on market opportunities as they arise.“ Based on previous years, they seem on course to deliver at least 50-55p for the full year, with 60p+ a likely target for 2019. With 25m cash and a forward PE of 16-17, I feel £10 is possible by year end, at which point we may see a further uplift as funds buy in ahead of a potential inclusion in the FTSE 250. Edit: another muted response to great results, as seems to be the norm here. A slow & steady rise good enough for me though.

[xajorkith] 10/7/2018 06:54

Excellent update with momentum clearly maintained through the second quarter. Expect further broker upgrades & 800p+. Nice to own a share that is so consistent. Edit: astonishingly light volume following such a positive update.

[johnthespacer] 09/7/2018 21:34

Trading update tomorrow

[xajorkith] 18/6/2018 13:40

Added here last week on the basis of the quality of the business, consistent upgrades & confident Q1 update. Promotion to the FTSE 250 also a possibilty further down the line, with a mkt cap of around 800m currently required.