Saga Share Discussion Threads

[koetser] 04/7/2019 13:20

big buyer I think as every time it hits a round number 37, 38 ,39 the share price plateaus and then pops through

[sharebuddy1] 04/7/2019 13:05

Very interesting. Is something afoot?

[koetser] 04/7/2019 12:59

More interesting price action

[glavey] 04/7/2019 12:15

Justice, Why the need to copy and paste loads of PR guff? The link is surely sufficient, particularly as the same thing was already posted a day ago, don't you think.

[spotdog40] 04/7/2019 12:14

Interesting essay Erogenous

It's a difficult act to keep customers, employees, shareholders and management all happy at the same time, but it seems like management have had the best deal here recently.
The best example of poor management I've seen was when they said they were trying to sell a couple of non-core holiday businesses, that "made only a modest contribution to their profits", for around £100m. Surprisingly that deal hasn't gone through yet!
Surely IF you've got a trusted brand, it would be better to bring those businesses under the same umbrella. It they're "luxury" holiday businesses then start a Saga "luxury range", charge accordingly, and make these companies profitable. Their customers might also like expensive insurance.
It maybe that insurance and travel are both pretty competitive sectors to try and make a profit in. Rather than trying to compete on price, they need to work on the quality of their offering, and hope that the punters will be wiling to pay a premium.

[justiceforthemany] 04/7/2019 11:26

Spirit of Discovery has sailed into Dover, where she will be named by the Duchess of Cornwall no less, this Friday. Here we take a closer look at Kent-based Saga Cruises’ newest ship.



What’s the skinny?
The long-awaited third ship from Saga Cruises, Spirit of Discovery will be officially named on Friday July 5 at the Port of Dover before setting sail on her maiden voyage, on July 10. Spirit of Discovery is the first vessel to be named at the Port of Dover for more than a decade, and the first to dock at the port’s Dover Western Docks following a £250 million redevelopment.

She represents a great choice for those who aren’t fans of colossal cruise ships that competitors are creating: the 774 foot (236 metre) Spirit of Discovery can accommodate 999 passengers making her exactly the same size as Viking Jupiter, the sixth new ocean ship from Viking. Saga Travel CEO Robin Shaw has hailed the new ship as "Britain’s first boutique hotel at sea."

[justiceforthemany] 04/7/2019 11:24

Very surprised no bid has come in yet. Shares a fifth of what they were in 2017. I wonder if the board have been open and honest in releasing such information and any discussions that may or may not have taken place with interested parties....

[dr biotech] 04/7/2019 11:05

Always think it’s a bit dangerous to look at some of those review sites as people that have a bad experience are always more likely to try get even via an anonymous website. That’s no to say they aren’t true of course. Think the share price will cycle up and down for a bit before the next major announcement and then we will have a clearer direction of travel.


I quite like your drivel too EJ

[koetser] 04/7/2019 09:15

Interesting price action today

[edmondj] 04/7/2019 06:55

My concern is "the nasty, oily and inefficient part" being the toxic culture, employees continue to cite in online reviews, that has developed in recent years e.g. in the insurance broking call centre side, that must change if Saga is to thrive now 50s+ folk have seen through the largely uncompetitive pricing and service issues, currently generating a stream of 1-2 star reviews on customer review sites.

I thought the flotation was best avoided since, being pitched with Saga home/car insurance, these weren't at all competitive when I compared the market. They still weren't competitive, at my renewals last December and ApriI still don't find them competitive.

I thought it was interesting and potentially attractive, how Standard Life racked up a circa 15% early this year; quite whether just prematurely or a mistake, time will tell.

In a highly competitive insurance market and after underwriting reserves releases appear largely used up (to boost profits), the insurance side does need to stabilise and gain traction, otherwise liability to be a drag on the hoped-for profits from the new cruise ships, building up.

If anyone has a more positive view of Saga insurance, shoot! ;-)

[nav_mike] 03/7/2019 16:29

4m off book trade just gone through at 37.3p

[optomistic] 03/7/2019 16:11

Setanta Asset Management Limited
Upped their holding by close to 1%

[spotdog40] 03/7/2019 16:01

justiceforthemany

Strangely this is one of my least shorted shares. I tend to go bottom fishing, getting lured in by sad charts, high yields and low p/e. (I've already missed the bottom though about 3 times with this share!)
It must be the investors who thought this was good value at £2.00 who have been dumping them at sub 40p. I can't believe there's any potential in this for shorters at the present price, but it seems that when the momentum is against you, even good news sends the share price lower.
Hoping this is just oscillating now before it sets sail upwards again.

[koetser] 03/7/2019 15:45

Setanta Asset Management Limited increased holding form 7% to 8%

[diku] 03/7/2019 14:43

No claim discount protection!!...are we told the truth and nothing but the truth so help us god...

[justiceforthemany] 03/7/2019 10:11

0.5% threshold just crossed again by BlackRock who seem to have a short on everything.

[edmondj] 03/7/2019 09:54

Irritates customers as well though, and so unnecessary if the product is good.

Was a great company in the early years
Many various roles (Former Employee) – All over Kent – 26 June 2018
As with all big companies, the attention to detail sometimes gets overlooked and the workers become mushrooms (kept in the dark and fed manure) . It's only gone this way in the last 2/3 years and is a great shame, as it was fantastic to work for in the beginning.
Pros
Salary was good
Cons
Where does one start :(

[diku] 03/7/2019 09:51

Post 2537...it is just another form of pressure selling in a invisible way...unlike a double glazing guy who comes to your home and does the talk the talk...

[diku] 03/7/2019 09:47

Does the £346mln price tag include all kitted out including furniture, decor, etc etc or just the shell?...from the above link photo it does look like a floating estate...

[edmondj] 03/7/2019 09:44

This employee review reflects frustrations among insurance customer reviews also. Plenty needs to change in Saga's corporate culture; how long will this take?

"I worked here for 2 and a half years as a customer service advisor. The job in itself is ok, you get your fair share of grumpy customers but generally people are ok to deal with and you never know what the next call will be about which adds some variety.

The problems I have with this company are that you are basically bullied into saying certain things to customers to get them to either buy something like an add on or to renew regardless of the type of customer you have on the other end of the phone.
If you aren't hitting targets you are threatened with coaching contracts on a regular basis.
Any tiny mistake will have you in HR begging for forgiveness. So demoralizing.

Commission is very easily lost...it seems that they will go out of their way to find a fault with you so you don't get your commission you worked so hard for.

In a nutshell if you really need a job it will get you by ok for a while but I couldn't stay here long term."

[edmondj] 03/7/2019 09:39

Much attention on potential upside from the new cruise ships, I would not knock although having spent 5 years on the receiving end of uncompetitive Saga insurance pitches I'd like to see the broking side at least stabilise - especially given the reserves releases from underwriting appear to have been largely used up, to bolster profits.

Employee reviews don't lend a great deal of encouragement, affirm a crass management culture, although in fairness Direct Line doesn't inspire in this respect either:

[american idiot] 03/7/2019 09:38

A few very nice images of inside the SoD.

[tonybaloni] 03/7/2019 09:35

Buy carnival. They give on board spend to shareholders