The Artisanal Spirits Share Discussion Threads

[james dean] 19/10/2006 08:32

Artisan says Rippon Homes struggling to close sales in H1 UPDATE

(adds detail throughout)
LONDON (AFX) - Artisan (UK) PLC, the AIM listed house builder and business
park developer, said it has had mixed results in the first half to Sept 30 2006
with satisfactory sales and margins at its business park division but
residential developer Rippon Homes margins hit and each sale proving hard won.
Delays in obtaining planning permission has also deferred expected sales
into next year.
In a trading update ahead of the Dec 12 release of first half results, the
group said that at Rippon Homes margins have been adversely affected by
relatively static sales prices and more recently purchased land being utilised.
Sourcing new land remains essential to the future development of the group,
it said. Rippon Homes now has a new land buying team fully in place and it said
it is seeing more opportunities for management to evaluate and tender for land.
After some recent success in obtaining new sites for current developments,
ADL continues to seek new land to provide for the requirement in future years,
but is finding fewer suitable sites available for evaluation at the moment, the
group continued.
It said it has evaluated some larger sites but they have been discounted
because they did not meet the required rate of return.
Artisan also said that getting planning permission within reasonable
timescales for both residential and commercial sites is also continuing to be
difficult and consequently slows the acquisition and development of sites.
Whilst both divisions have made progress, for this very reason some sales
expected on new sites for the current period will be deferred and Artisan said
it shall seek improved sales on existing sites.
The outlook for the remainder of the 15 month period also remains dependent
on attracting new sales reservations, particularly new residential reservations
in the first quarter of 2007.
Artisan said the recent rise in interest rates has not in itself
significantly affected the market, but future decisions of the Monetary Policy
Committee on interest rates "could yet be decisive".
Artisan also reported today on the switch from reporting under UK Generally
Accepted Accounting Principles to reporting under International Financial Report
Standards.
In revised figures for the year to March 31 2006 operating profit rises to
3.7 mln stg from the previously reported 2.6 mln on revenue of 28.7 mln stg, up
from 26.9 mln.
The interim results will be the first period under the new standards. A
consequence of the change to IFRS is that a significant 2.4 mln stg investment
sale which had exchanged at the end of the year to March 31 2005 but did not
complete until April 2005 is now reflected in the year to March 31 2006.


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[gjabrj] 19/10/2006 08:13

Something never seems to add up just look at the director buys over the past year all between 3.5 and 4p so they think the company is going in the right direction, they just like to paint a different picture.

WHY?

[addas99] 19/10/2006 08:08

gjabrj...entirely agree with your middle para. It's what I expect will happen sooner or later.

[wakeland] 19/10/2006 08:05

It is frustrating, it was when Dean was around and I have suspected for a long time that Stevens is a chip off the old block, un-trustworthy (who else would have kept Muselle around).
There probably is some value here but whether investors ever get to see it is another matter.

[gjabrj] 19/10/2006 07:59

The most frustrating share I have ever held.

To me it looks like the share price is being held back deliberately for an MBO or the issue of more discounted shares to Stevens.

Either way this is shoite!

[mistertibbs] 17/10/2006 17:57

Nothing better than a good old discussion getting the old juices flowing, especially if we have an update to keep us on out toes.

[sll] 17/10/2006 17:35

Thanks all - good points. Feel we should now await the trading update promised for October. steve

[bylow] 17/10/2006 13:51

Mister T...thanks for your response.
I too would welcome organic growth but the wherewithall has to come from somewhere. Whilst Stevens and Co have had a tough job pulling ART back from the brink of oblivion, the truth is that its growth is still in the early stages and there is not a lot to show. As SLL has pointed out, it is a case of the investing world out there saying "Show Me, don't tell me!"
This company is Steven's baby and the miserable share price is saying to the market "No one loves me. Is this because I am such a bad company?" I believe the majority of punters make decisions to invest on cues as well as basic research and if they see negative cues (such as a stagnant, albeit undervalued stock) they will pass it over. The share price is a symbol of investment virility if you like. The time has arrived for Stevens to be proactive and show that he cares about the price by doing some strategic sustained buying .Call it artificial or manipulative if you like, I do not care. I would call it sustained buying by the largest shareholder to get some recognition in the market. Artisan would then have legs to raise more capital for acquisitions if they were appropriate. You cannot do much without good paper.

[mistertibbs] 16/10/2006 22:46

Bylow-----sorry if you think I meant the part about patient being criticism, it wasn't meant that way. My apologies.

I am well aware the length of time some folks here have been waiting for a better return on their investments and can appreciate the frustration. Been there all too often myself. share price not moving as we all would like and no prospect of dividends imo. Your last comment may indeed be correct but believe the only route out the tiddler league for us here is organic. Maybe even strike it lucky with some as yet unknown strategic bit of land. As Chuck Berry would say " you never can tell"

Thank you for the broken stock explanation.

[bylow] 16/10/2006 16:39

Mister T........By "broken" I mean a stock whose price is much lower than it should be and we all agree that ART's stock price is seriously undervalued. The stock price is broken for legacy reasons which have been discussed ad nauseum but which still have life in them. I have held on throughout the very rough times and bottomed fished even when prospects became very bleak. With respect, I do not need advice on "patience". Stevens has a large stake but he is not yet sitting on a large paper profit. He appears to be in for the long haul but I fear that Artisan is going to remain too small to either attract a buyer or sufficient capital in order to break out of the "tiddler" league.

[mistertibbs] 16/10/2006 16:15

Thank you steve. Looks like we are holding hands on this one....oh dear.

Bylow- I take it with broken you mean tarnished? Mr Stevens I believe has a good stake already. Steve above also suggests the same. Patience is for me, the eventual winner if a stock is decent as value tends to out, although I feel fleeced when Estates and General were taken out on the cheap in my opinion. I won big time on that eventually, just as ctg, pkw and rnwh are now showing good gains after a bit of a long haul since 1999 Sorry about the name dropping. Only using these as examples as patience. Need I mentioned bos when taken over at 300, I bought at 84 when they were constantly rated sell.

As Clint said, everybodys' got one---an opinion

[bylow] 16/10/2006 13:56

ART is now a good company but still is a broken stock
Stevens could quite easily repair the broken stock price by some strategic sustained buying to shake out the disenchanted holders in order stabilise the price at a higher level that is closer to NAV. Will he do it?

[sll] 16/10/2006 12:59

Andy - good post. I have been invested here for 2+ years and have built quite a substantial stake in ART, for a PI. Most AIM stocks have been under the cosh recently, but 'value will out' (here, in my view) eventually. ART's move to Brewer Dolphin and also their planned change of year end to either December or June (details will be in the post 30/9/6 1/2 yr close statement due out this month) to harmonise with the major players in their sector, all bode well. There may be a little turbulence with the move to IFRS, which I certainly expect to some degree, but that will be one-off. Frankly, this stock is now even more undervalued than it was when I first started building my stake - why?

1 the (then) over-hanging major legal issues (on which I took a view) have now been completely resolved and closed off.
2 the present discount to TNAV is greater now.
3 their 'like for like' profit record, since then, is very solid.
4 RBS are backing them all the way as they grow both land bank and capacity.
5 they (ART) are under-exposed to the traditional 'hot spots' which would come off the boil first in any down-turn or slow-down.
6 the group is 'cannily managed' (in my view) - and I know the management team.
7 the Chairman has re-inforced his own major commitment by investing further this year (via the placing) and by buying shares in the market since. So have other senior directors - albeit in modest parcels, given that (unlike us) they can't for practical purposes sell any stock.
8 the new management team is bedding in well after the mid-2005 shake up.
9 their two sectors still have legs, and growth prospects (notably away from the SE hot-spots, in terms of Rippon Homes).

despite all that - the past negative odours still pervade, and there are many disenchanted holders.
the city is not so much unimpressed, it is looking elsewhere. institutions (I share your views!) are looking much further up the size scale and taxing themselves so much less to do so than some of us have to do as the norm. Will happily compare my IRR over the past 7 years with pretty much any institution, if pressed (but not on here).
this is clearly a 'show me' don't 'tell me' stock, as are so are many in this size bracket.

Finally, I am neither ramping nor posting frequently (too busy), but I just wanted to fully underline your own thrust and independent PI view, so to speak. Best wishes - steve.

[mistertibbs] 16/10/2006 11:40

Institutions need not disclose below 3% so who knows if they hold zero?
Why would institutions look at a very small cap company valued around 10m?
Is it worth selling at these levels when they were recently higher?
Why did existing holders not implement a stop loss on the way down?

Sorry but these are questions that immediately come to mind. I believe, as a holder of only 8 months or so, they have too large a discount to nav and prospects appear to be on the rise, unlike the very recent share price You are correct in saying selling pressure exerted as soon as the price goes up. I would say however the spread appears to be narrower than it has been since I joined and for me, that is an indication not too much selling or buying pressure at any one time. Anyway, my profits from in particular tate now taken, are helping my pot to bubble nicely.
I noticed on another thread someone stated a particular share amounted to 40% of their portfolio. Ouch I say to that. Art is only about 1% of my portfolio so I'm a coward I suppose, but continue to accumulate and hope in time to increase by much more, unless circumstances dictate otherwise.

As far as what institutions think, I could not give a dried fig, so to speak. I'm only concerned with what I think in my own mind, rightly or otherwise and keeping an open mind is for me, the best way forward.
Andy

[wakeland] 14/10/2006 08:53

The problem is that this share has little institutional support, shares are mainly held by PI's at prices higher than they are now and often for a long time like yourself. Even the slightest rise will result in disgruntled holders trying to offload holding down the price, could take years to clear, the only chance for this is to be taken over. (and I still have a few before I am called a deramper, Artisan have a history of dissapointing)

[spital23] 14/10/2006 05:34

Hi

I to bought these at 13.75 in Feb 2001 on the strngth of TW in RHPS at the time.

However I have just joined Growth company Invester and they have these down as a Strong By from July of this year, perhaps like has been said above company news shortly may push up the price touch.

Also as a Strong By HSBC

[mistertibbs] 13/10/2006 22:52

I wonder if the better spread allowing disgruntled to settle for 3.55p My opinion unaltered and believe we could/should do better.

[gjabrj] 13/10/2006 15:35

Hopefully a good trading update next week will kickstart the rise north.

[shawzie] 13/10/2006 15:31

Any investor who comes to this share with fresh eyes, will surely only see a
sound company to invest in, with a good track record since Michael Stevens took over as chairman.

[johndavison] 13/10/2006 02:11

Don't tell me Tom W is still pushing these shares...he ought to know better after the Stephen Dean debacle. I bought at 30p ages ago and looking now many years later I'm surprised this company still exists, I would have thought it would have been taken over and put the long suffering shareholders out of their misery.

Good luck all ...and see you here again in another few years time.

[jfishy] 11/10/2006 17:51

Thats why I'm here - still holding from 18p! Didn't buy all that many though so it's not like I'm sitting on a huge paper loss :-)

[m.t.glass] 11/10/2006 00:16

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[m.t.glass] 10/10/2006 23:20

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