Smart Metering Systems Share Discussion Threads

[johnwise] 16/3/2015 07:40

Great stock ideas:

Smart Metering Systems PLC Final results for the year ended 31 December 2014

[mach100] 30/1/2015 15:40

Yes, very good update today. Should be a good defensive stock due to its profitability and good visibility. After its results it took some time to gain momentum. I expect it to gain some traction quickly after the recent sell-off. Nearer 400P would be more appropriate for SMS which is growing nicely. I would like to hear a bit more on the international trials though and whether the company plan to expand into other territories.

[neurolodger] 08/1/2015 04:55

Looks like it is unable to breakout above £4

[mach100] 10/12/2014 13:10

Lots of buys at 400p so might be ready for a new trading range. Nearly 750k quid's worth bought today so it is very nice to see some faith in volume and not just price. I think SMS will be one to watch in 2015, given the favourable regulatory regime about to come in around smart metering.

[mach100] 08/12/2014 10:59

I think 400p will be retested soon. Buyers seem to have the upper hand on this. Still a struggle for direction as it see-saws between sellers taking profits and a new trading range of around 390p.

[mach100] 05/12/2014 15:09

Starting to power ahead today with buyers at all prices ahead.At around 390p. It is on a p.e of 32 on a fy profit of 12.5million, which would drop to 23 in 2015.
In the six months to 30 June, revenue was up by 44% at £18.9 million and gross profit leapt by over half to £12.2 million, giving basic EPS of 4p, up 23%. These figure might be a bit conservative. We shall see when results are out in March.

[mach100] 10/11/2014 21:28

I would saying a buying opportunity neuro. It has often bounced off 310p so if it gets that low I would certainly say it is worth it. The drop is overdone. If it was a bit high at 410p then it is certainly too low now. It has good visibility and the industrial meter sector where it is a leader is much more lucrative than the residential one. Meters will be compulsory from 2015 so the compnay is in a sweet spot. It has diversity into Wales (and internationally if the trials are a success.) It reminds me of a company I sold out too early from in Paypoint which is still doing quite well. I say buy.

[neurolodger] 07/11/2014 15:42

Any reason for continued drop in price or a buying opportunity?

[mach100] 10/9/2014 14:50

Yes painter. It is very well positioned and has made a good acquisition recently. The directors believe in it as almost 75k was spent yesterday by them. Not sure why the drop but it is a buying opportunity for new Pi's.

[painter] 10/9/2014 13:58

This is a puzzle. Good results, promise of more revenue to come. Anyone see what I have obviously missed here?

[string] 01/7/2014 12:19

Great to see this moving in the right direction

[mach100] 30/6/2014 18:38

Good write up Dragon! Should slay the sellers!

[dragonsteeth] 30/6/2014 15:17

This from a Trustnet article re Fund manager Harry Nimmo

Smart Metering Systems

Nimmo says he bought this FTSE 250 stock a few months ago, playing into a larger theme in his portfolio.

"There are a number of firms that aren't major energy companies, that can benefit from rising energy prices and this is one of them," he said.

"The company sells smart meters to both small businesses and households, helping users to be more efficient with gas and electricity."

"There is a regulatory imperative for the devices to be fitted over the next three or four years and so there is potentially massive market penetration."

Smart Metering Systems is currently a £200m company, but Nimmo says it could grow much bigger than this.

Since the stock was first listed, just under three years ago, it has risen rapidly by more than 400 per cent, but has fallen since the beginning of June by over 11 per cent.
The stock is held by seven funds in the IMA universe as a top-10 holding, including L&G Special Situations, L&G UK Alpha and L&G UK Active Opportunities. They all have between 4 and 6 per cent invested in the company.

The Old Mutual UK Smaller Companies and Old Mutual UK Smaller Companies Focus funds, run by FE Alpha Manager Daniel Nickols, have 1.7 per cent and 2.3 per cent, respectively. Star manager Paul Marriage's Schroder UK Dynamic Smaller Companies fund has a 2.55 per cent weighting

[mach100] 29/5/2014 19:11

I was about to ask the same thing string. They have rns'd to say all resolutions were passed. The CEO got a 14% pay rise two weeks ago but given that the share has risen quite substantially in the last year added to the cracking acquisition from Wales, even I will not quibble with his payrise. It would be interesting to hear from someone who was in Glasgow. We might get a write up from the Glasgow Herald tomorrow and If I find anything I will post a link.

[string] 29/5/2014 17:08

That was supposed to say any news from the agm

[string] 29/5/2014 17:07

Thanks Mach100 anyone's from agm

[mach100] 28/5/2014 19:59

String I think today's all if that is what you are referring too is exaggerated by the close and I expect to see a bounce on the open tomorrow.Besides the agm is tomorrow and I am expecting a positive statement from SMS which should give a boost to the price.

[string] 28/5/2014 17:01

Woah whats happened here?

[neurolodger] 19/5/2014 17:52

I hope to see some activity here, SMS has risen despite market going down.

[mach100] 18/5/2014 20:38

You got a good price neuro. I know the wider market is hard to judge.I don't think SMS will fall on fundamentals, mainly due to wider market sell-offs. I suppose if it fell to 340, 320p you would be kicking yourself for not selling s you could buy back more cheaply. However the spread is quite wide so it is difficult to trade. I think patience will be rewarded rather than trying to time it. I have seen trades of half a million quid a pop on these. I reckon those who are lashing out that kind of dough must be fairly confident. And I am sure this is a growth stock with more to come.

[neurolodger] 18/5/2014 09:06

Thanks I got around 310 I was thinking to come out I might hang in till 5Yes the P/E ratio is high hoping if it comes down may hang on longer

[mach100] 15/5/2014 19:24

Hi Neuro. Nice to see someone other than me here. SMS is on a high trailing P/E of 51 but i think that this should come down very quickly. You can see from the last results that there is plenty of growth to come this year as well as guaranteed recurring revenue of £15.5 million. As below there are estimates for 22000 I and C meters this year. These are equivalent to 300000 domestic customers so that makes 480000 domestic customers in essence. If it could grow its EPS by 52% again from 7.86p for y/e 2013 to 12p for y/e 2014 then we would be on a p/e of 35 for a share price of 425p. I don't know what p/e similar companies trade on but I expect it to be high given its phenomenal growth. I am waiting for 500p myself as there are some really chunky buys here which tells me large institutions are accumulating and happy with the direction of travel. There are also customers taking trials which would add to the bottom line as well as diversify risk. I bought in a bit late to these at 350p. They are slightly range bound but we saw a similar yo yo pattern between 310p and 350p for many months before they broke out. I had a similar company before in Paypoint which I bought for about £1.80 sold out at £3 quid odd and it went over £10. So I am being patient with this one.


"During 2013 we made substantial progress in all three areas of our business. Following a strong first half where we saw our meter portfolio increase by 60,000 and break the 400,000 level, growth accelerated in the second half with a further 69,000 added leading to a 38% increase year-on-year in our gas meter portfolio. The progress we have made in establishing long-term recurring revenue was evidenced by an increase in year-end annualised recurring meter rental revenue of 44% to £15.5m and £300k data provision sales from our ADM™ device. The company had only delivered 2000 I and C meters by December 2013 so there is 10x times that to come this year

Industrial and Commercial meters

During 2013 we were delighted to announce a number of major new contracts for the provision of gas meters within DONG Energy, Opus Gas Supply, Flow Energy, Daligas, and Crown Gas and Power. The current estimates are for a total programme in excess of 22,000 meters to the end of 2014, of which over 2,000 had already been delivered by 31 December 2013.

In addition, SMS has also signed contracts with five energy brokers who provide brokerage and energy management services to small, medium and large group consumers for the provision of the ADM™ device and gas meters. The broker business is at present a small but growing part of our portfolio. The increase in customer base during 2013 now means that SMS has contracts in place with over 80% of the total I&C meter market.

Once installed, these meters will be on SMS's long-term index linked contracts and provide recurring revenue for the lifetime of the assets (expected to be 25 years).

The size of I&C meters is typically much greater than that of domestic meters and therefore the revenue per meter is substantially higher: the equivalent number of domestic meters for these 22,000 contracts would be in the order of 300,000.

SMS has now installed over 16,000 ADM™ devices and feedback continues to be very positive. The ability of remote reading alongside SMS's full service capability in the I&C market provides a major opportunity for the Company in extending the service we offer and the ability to seek out further markets for our overall service.


The small I&C market, estimated by SMS at over 1.1 million meters, has until 2014 to either opt for an advanced metering solution such as the ADM™ device or, alternatively, to be included in the government's proposed domestic roll out of smart meters.

SMS believes that both market segments will find the ADM™ device an attractive solution, based on its competitive price and ease of installation.

The Company received full European Patent Approval for ADM™ in 2012 and continues to progress the potential use of the ADM™ device in other sectors such as the UK's water and LPG industries and internationally where trials have commenced.

Domestic Meters

SMS was successful during 2013 in obtaining 2 further contracts in the domestic market. As previously announced SMS has been contracted by SSE to provide Meter Operations Services in all regions outside Scotland and the South-East of England up to April 2014, and is on track to complete the original 180,000 meter program.

SMS will continue to support its existing and potential new customers in the domestic market for gas meter services, leaving the business well placed to support our customers in the domestic smart programme, now expected to commence in the autumn 2015.

We are well placed to capitalise on the this potential rollout of smart meters in the domestic market, though our future strategic growth is not reliant on this taking place, either in terms of capturing market share or in terms of increasing revenue growth."

[neurolodger] 15/5/2014 06:15

Hi Mach100What would you consider as fair price for this company. I did hang on to it after results!Thanks