Volution Share Discussion Threads

[cammy3] 17/6/2010 20:27

Argy - do you have latest view from TIPS?

[argy2] 17/6/2010 07:23

Ppresumably you're not t1ps' subscrbers then...they have several worse performers!

[greengiant] 17/6/2010 07:08

Hope you all voted against Jon Smiths reappointment then - I did

gg

[lionheart79] 16/6/2010 17:43

worst stock i ever bought

[cammy3] 16/6/2010 14:35

Will there be a trading update on Friday along with AGM?

[hh9] 04/6/2010 21:27

GG - Absolutely agree. Trouble is when the head's clueless the rest just get lost. Ho hum

[greengiant] 04/6/2010 10:45

HH9 - It is the individuals responsibility to let the company know, which they obviously have (updated website). It is then the company's responsibility to announce to the market. Which they obviously haven't. It just goes to show, if they can't get the basics right, what hope is there for the more intricate dealings?

gg

[hh9] 04/6/2010 08:13

Fernback and Smith!!!!!!!!!!

[greengiant] 02/6/2010 18:41

Also interesting to note that Phil Fernback has now moved out of the top 3% and the company has not issued an RNS - this despite the website being updated nearly 1 month ago.

gg

Edit - It has been added to Alan Fernback's holding - which means that the company SHOULD have released an RNS

[greengiant] 02/6/2010 18:39

Well looks like WdB have had enough of this incompetent management and are now selling out. Not surprising really. This company cant even be bothered to update the information it sends out to the market - from the bottom of the RNS

Entertainment/Sport - representation of media personalities and football players/clubs across the UK, Europe and the US by First Artist Management, First Artist Sport, Promosport and First Artist Scandinavia, together with wealth management through the Independent Financial Advisory firm, Optimal Wealth Management.

Pathetic once more

gg

[hh9] 25/5/2010 12:20

I suspect the breach is EBITDA to Debt/interest. the company took on debt to acquire Spotco, but the ebitda has not grown on a 12 month basis - hence the default. Ashmanor director is Fernbach, who is also a major shareholder. Fernbach is apparently a v.good friend of JS. Coincidence?

[greengiant] 25/5/2010 11:42

HH9 - I pulled the company house details on Ashmanor and can see no direct link. Altho' the company was set up just prior to the placing - which in itself always smells odd.

The company pays for failure doesn't it? Including the failure of JS to run this company - I have never seen so much value destruction and the CEO stays in charge. I will be using my votes to vote against the reappointment of JS. I do not believe people who have constantly under delivered should be reappointed.

I also cannot calculate their reasoning behind the breach of covenants. It does not make sense. I have asked the company to prepare something more detailed for the AGM.

gg

[hh9] 25/5/2010 11:18

GG

Whilst you're at the AGM, you can ask Smith why his pension payments rose so much (note 6) resulting in a 19% yr on yr to package rise, yet the business breached covenants. Also ask him who the key beneficiaries/shareholders are in Ashmanor Limited? You might be surprised

[isis] 24/5/2010 18:25

The sale of 5k was a pittance as well and a small percentage of the total holding - I wonder what was going through it's mind?

[greengiant] 24/5/2010 18:06

Whilst renegotiating covenants - the last thing a lending bank wants to see is a director of the company selling shares near an all time low. What kind of signal does that send the bank?

Also, we also have to consider that the banks are now dealing with a new group FD, because the last one no longer wants the job!

I will also be raising at the AGM how exactly the sale of the businesses has forced a breach of covenants. This is not possible for the sale of the 2 small businesses. My workings show that the breach is independent of the sale. I want clarification from the company.

gg

[hh9] 24/5/2010 17:04

The Theatre business will save them in the end. I doubt the bank will pull, but they may force a change in management. The Co.Sec is blonde!!!!

[isis] 24/5/2010 14:37

She's bought them back!

[glennborthwick] 24/5/2010 14:35

id rather give up a few pence until things are clearer. It could be worth a punt on recovery but not enough visibility for me just yet

[argy2] 23/5/2010 08:52

First Artist - Panicking? No.

First Artist has announced an adjusted operating profit from continuing operations (before exceptional costs and amortisation) of £2.53 million for the 15 months ended 30th November 2009, which compares to £1.72 million for the 12 months ended 31st August 2008 - the company having changed its accounting dates in connection with an ongoing strategic review. This has seen the Optimal Wealth Management and First Artist Management businesses sold post-period end, with these together with First Artist's sports division being classified in the accounts as held-for-sale and discontinued. The remaining sports division businesses are expected to be sold by 30th November this year.

Total group revenue for the period came in at £90.64 million and the company was again strongly cash generative from its operating activities, though the bottom line of the P&L was hit by a net £2.44 million of finance costs. At period end the balance sheet showed net debt of £13.40 million, up from £12.99 million at 31st August 2008. The numbers were also influenced by the October 2008 completed acquisition of Spot & Co of Manhattan, Inc. - which has provided First Artist with a prominent position in live entertainment advertising in New York's Broadway, complementing its position in London's West End via the Dewynters business.

First Artist reports that the theatrical entertainment sectors of the West End and Broadway continue to thrive - with a wide range of productions, high audience figures and several productions waiting to open later this year and next year. This should certainly benefit the company's media business and on its other, Events, side, ''signs of increased turnover and activity'' are now reported to be being seen after the reporting time frame represented ''a difficult financial period due to the client companies cutting back heavily on corporate activity in reaction to the economic downturn''.

The element which has clearly spooked some shareholders from the announcement of 20th May is the note to the accounts that ''the company is currently in breach of its current banking covenants governing the terms of the loans owing to Allied Irish Bank''. This - and First Artist's debt - are clearly far from ideal and bring evident risk to the investment case. However, the c.£1.7 million of disposal proceeds raised from Optimal Wealth Management and First Artist Management have reduced the debt a bit and ''following these disposals and the intended disposal of the Sports Division the existing terms of the bank borrowings are currently being renegotiated''. Support from Allied Irish has been shown by its providing to First Artist of a further overdraft facility to provide additional working capital and in terms of other loan notes and deferred considerations due going forward, ''based on negotiations conducted to date, the directo rs have a reasonable expectation that the financial obligations will be restructured satisfactorily''.

First Artist shares now trade at 12p, capitalising the company at £3.6 million. Even assuming net debt of say £12 million, this gives an Enterprise Value of £15.6 million. Even in what was a massively difficult period, the media business generated an adjusted EBITDA of £5.75 million, with events a small underlying EBITDA loss (£56,000). This was admittedly in a 15 month period but still shows the potentially highly attractive EV/EBITDA potential going forward on the company advancing its media and events businesses and paying down its debt. It has current financing challenges to overcome - that we acknowledge but we speak to the company regularly and this is not - we think - an issue. We are confident that these issues will be dealt with very shortly. The covenant breaches are technical (ratios skewed by disposals which the bank supported) and we cannot see how the individual businesses which remain are - even on a firesale basis - worth less than £30 million.

For us there are two ways forward. 1 The Dewynters and football businesses are at some stage sold in which case the net cash position would be a multiple of today's price. Or 2 -the covenants are renegotiated and First Artist just slowly pays down its debts (given the high percentage of dollar earnings Sterling's weakness will help) and thus on an unchanged EV multiple the shares are re-rated strongly. We see no cause for alarm.

Tom Whingerfrith

[argy2] 23/5/2010 08:49

Is she a blonde perhaps?