Ultimate Finance Share Discussion Threads

[the shuffle man] 16/10/2012 12:29

i might be wrong, but i dont think you are going to see much weakness from here.

[shaka198] 16/10/2012 10:34

Thanks Shuffle, am inclined to agree, supported by a decent yield. Certainly worth holding or adding on any weakness to see what happens.

[the shuffle man] 15/10/2012 20:46

Always difficult with small caps as they are not very liquid but it shows sentiment is changing and this should break strongly to the upside. There is no stock about and the recent results were excellent. The shares look very cheap and I don't think they will stay at this level for much longer.

[shaka198] 15/10/2012 18:34

Interesting chart, imho getting close to a long term break out, any expert chartists out there, or is this too small/illiquid to be valid?

[thetoonarmy2] 04/10/2012 08:56

No chance of Lloyds buying this more chance of a Bibby or Aldemore or even some private buyers but it will depend on David Newton & Helium anyway as long as it isnt Pepler trying to get some mugs to back him in a buy out.

[shaka198] 03/10/2012 13:44

Agree, in the market place,they are doing quite well at picking up clients in their segment of the market. With getting traditional bank funding not easy, good opportunities for the likes of Ultimate, and at better margins. They seem to have bad debts under control, which is always the big unknown in this business. I am sure at some stage Lloyds might take a fancy to this, when they sort themselves out.

[thetoonarmy2] 02/10/2012 16:42

Much better results obviously since Jeremy Coombes has taken over from Pepler he has had a really beneficial effect, in fact this is growing nicely and I can see further growth over the next 12 months hence I am now buying these as they are getting much better broker support for its products.

[shaka198] 02/10/2012 14:59

All good stuff, have followed it for a while, agree too cheap, but bit small for institutional interest, although Helium are in there, but in the meantime good yield and continuing growth and takeover prospects. Worth hanging onto, and buying on any dips.

[mjcferguson] 02/10/2012 09:23

Going in the right direction

[pugg1ey] 02/10/2012 08:55

looking at the recent rise wonder if anyone had insider knowledge.....

[pugg1ey] 02/10/2012 08:54

I did but not at the moment. Results look encouraging though

[the shuffle man] 02/10/2012 08:45

Excellent results, Dividend up 14% and with adjusted EPS of 2.38p puts the shares on a PE of 6.8x. Looks way too cheap for a company growing so strongly.

Anyone else following this company ?

[the shuffle man] 13/9/2012 20:39

I am pleased to see the helium fund increase it's holding the fund has a good track record so I am in very good company. Looking forward to the results.

[magic198] 13/9/2012 18:58

Not sure whether Helium is a growth or recovery fund, or both, at this rate they will end up owning the Company! Perhaps forthcoming results will reveal more,later than last year, I believe, but IMHO never an encouraging sign.

[the shuffle man] 13/9/2012 14:20

Gone very quiet here. The shares look like they have hit a recent bottom and with results due soon i have added to my holding.

Is anyone else following this company ?

[donemyhomework2] 02/4/2012 17:15

Some of the comments at the time the shares were issued :-






Magic198 - 12 Oct'10 - 15:59 - 268 of 308


Yes, expensive dilution, as expected. Presumably fee includes more than just acquisition fees. Hopefully the deal will be earnings enhancing. Ashley are at the small but more expensive end of financing, hopefully more profitable.

Magic198 - 15 Oct'10 - 18:38 - 270 of 308


Agree price seems very high, good deal for Ashley, not sure about for Ultimate. As banks will not lend, market should remain OK for discounters so long as they can manage their bad debts. Overheads will rocket, can they maintain Ashley's margins?

[donemyhomework2] 02/4/2012 14:43

32fred,

You asked specifically " what is in the accounts that suggests they are not sparkling?".

I replied.

The EPS is always a good indicator since the extra shares issued to make the pie bigger(ie the Ashley aquisition shares) are the ones that make the EPS lower and its important to see what you earn per share!!!


PS Provision for bad debts at traditional levels when this country is going through one of its biggest recessions may be telling!!

[32fred] 02/4/2012 13:36

Glass half full or half empty. The fall in EPS is because of the Placing to acquire Ashley - the 2010 number is based on a weighted average of the shares in issue during the period. So is the fall in EPS really a negative? I would expect the benefits of the acquisition to take a while to flow through to the enlarged number of shares.
They said on bad debts that it remains at its traditional level - who knows whether they are under providing; only time will tell. I suppose it depends on whether you are a buyer or seller

[donemyhomework2] 30/3/2012 15:42

Well I can think of one reason why the results are NOT sparkling!!!

Look at the basic and adjusted earnings per share ( EPS)

BASIC EPS 0.47p ( 2010 H1 0.80p) down 41.25% !!!!!!

ADJ EPS 1.06p ( 2010 H1 1.28p) down 17.19%!!!!!!


Both of these are quite clearly shown in the accounts !!!



PS And bad debts at only 1% may be good but it may be due to under providing!!!

[the shuffle man] 30/3/2012 12:48

WHI reitterate 24p price target with shares trading on a PE of 5.6x this years earnings. They basically say that these interim results reflect a period of adjustmemnt within the business brought about by the new CEO and that a cautious approach against a poor economic backdrop meant them getting rid of some low quality margin business leading to a drop in client numbers and receivables.

They expect greater H2 seasonality from the actions taken in H1.

Ashley is ahead of management expectations.

I for one am pleased they are sticking to their principals and only lending to decent clients. If the economy turns down again the competition will get stuffed. With the banks still out of the market i think UFG has a great opportunity and i stll think the shares look cheap.

[32fred] 30/3/2012 11:33

Cant see what it is in the accounts that suggests they are not sparkling. perhaps you could enlighten. I understand they are recruiting in Bristol at Head Office and net job losses are minimal. Where did you get this losing market share stuff? They appear to be increasing business - are you saying that the market is growing faster?
All in all a weird post Fat.

[fatcontroller2] 30/3/2012 10:53

Shuffle. Dont think so mate have a good read of the accounts not as sparkling as they make out, Closing offices and getting rid of staff will have a further cost implication as well as a dwindling market share Asley is the best bit but they so overpaid for it the Ashleys guys are still in a state of shock that these guys paid what they did.

Good post on iii I will copy & paste it later see what you think?

[the shuffle man] 30/3/2012 09:00

Seems like a very positive interim report. T/O and pre-exceptional profits up by 44%. Good to see the bad debts remain low at 1%.

Looks like these are due a re-rating