W.h. Ireland Share Discussion Threads

[tanelorn] 04/1/2016 12:18

Gargoyle2> You are absolutely correct, the route cause was prior to his stewardship. My problem is with how the matter has been handled subsequently.

[gargoyle2] 03/1/2016 15:17

Bad press, but there's nothing new in the article. I'm not sure Killingbeck is the right person to blame here. As far as I know, the likely substantial fine from the FSA relates to practices during the first 6 months on 2013 -- he only became CEO on 1 January that year, and so it's likely in my view that he just didn't know what was going on. Lowe is probably at fault, having been chairman for a few years before that, and he's now gone (I assume that he was forced out once the extent of the bad practices, and the size of the likely fine, became known internally).

[tanelorn] 03/1/2016 11:54

More Bad press...( see lilac coloured box halfway down page ) ...

Richard Killingbeck, in my opinion, has placed WH Ireland in serious jeopardy. I doubt this 143 year old firm which has thriven through trials and tribulations can survive Killingbeck's hmmm ah, management skills. imo dyor etc.

[onjohn] 27/12/2015 09:34

1

Panmure Gordon fell 20% yesterday " after it warned of a decline in capital markets transactions" - according to a lead article on page 1 of today's FT.

At one point Panmure was 40% down yesterday.

The FT article continues " Aim- Panmure Gordon's focus- performed particularly poorly with a 47% drop in new equity issues".

Page 1 of today's FT refers.


Phillip Wale, chief executive, said they had had “two fairly substantial deals booked for December but the market is just not ready for them so we moved them in January. I don’t think anyone has had a great second half.

“It’s been one thing after another — a massive spike in volatility around August/September, concerns about China and a commodities sell-off.”

Panmure Gordon’s profit warning comes as the London Stock Exchange group cautioned last week that companies had shied away from issuing equity, and bond trading had slipped as rock-bottom interest rates suppress yields.

[tanelorn] 20/12/2015 15:00

Has anyone done a google search for 'WH Ireland' - I wouldn't like to work for their PR department.!!!

[gargoyle2] 18/12/2015 14:45

I wonder if the fact that the directors now realize that there will be a substantial FCA fine is the reason why Lowe resigned as chairman recently. It happened on his watch, so that has to be a possibility.

Other than the FCA fine, I thought the update wasn't too bad, given the market conditions. I did wonder though about the apparent adjustment, when comparing AUM against last year, for 'the announced office closures and business line exits'. I can understand the adjustment for business line exits, but should they really be adjusting for office closures? Surely when you close an office, the plan is to migrate that office's clients to another office, not just assume that those clients will disappear. Seems to me like they are massaging the numbers on that one.

I'd be disappointed not to see some more insider buying at this level. Either Killingbeck (who was buying in August at 122p) or Polygon/Oceanwood (both of which were buying in the autumn). My money is still on a takeover of the company within the next year or two.

[sportbilly1976] 18/12/2015 13:39

Having discretionary funds available from clients on an IPO you've underwritten I guess (if shown to be the case)....there was always going to be the temptation to support the Corp Finance desk.

conflict of interest surely hence the assumed FCA investigation

[a2584728] 18/12/2015 13:36

Investing people's monies their own IPOs I think and then losing vast sums of the investment.

[meijiman] 18/12/2015 12:43

what is this wrong doing that is referred to?

[a2584728] 18/12/2015 08:13

Worth 50p max IMHO.

[gargoyle2] 16/12/2015 14:26

Trading update here this week, I understand.

Will be interesting to hear if the Private Wealth Management division has suffered funds withdrawals after the negative publicity of a few months ago. Recent market volatility can't have been helpful either.

Pretty concerning that Rupert Lowe left so suddenly too. I did speak to the company about that and was told that they had nothing to add over and above what was stated in the RNS. There has to be the suspicion that he fell out with the CEO over something, but who knows.

[hydrus] 26/9/2015 15:18

New article today in telegraph, headline 'is this the UK's worst stockbroker?' Shocking stuff.

[tanelorn] 22/9/2015 22:53

Have they compensated the pensioner yet?,no? Better wait awhile for a share price rise!

[gargoyle2] 22/9/2015 06:35

Just looking back at the terms on which Killingbeck jointly owns 1,000,000 shares with the ESOT. The relevant RNS was in October 2013. Key points are:

RK has an option to acquire the ESOT's interest in the shares at a maximum price of 74.5p per share at any time between October 2016 and October 2023. The price he has to pay is subject to a formula based on the total return to shareholders over a 3 year period. It is dependent on the mid-market price on 28 October 2016 plus the aggregate dividends paid in the preceding 3 years. If that total is less than or equal to GBP1.15, the price is 74.5p; if it's 200p or more, the price will be nil. There's a sliding scale between those amounts.

In other words, RK has a strong incentive to get the share price to 200p within the next year or so.

[tanelorn] 21/9/2015 18:06

Yes, or at least it seems that way!

[meijiman] 07/9/2015 11:42

Yes very good advice to your sons. I think the issue here is that this man is 78 years old. I've never subscribed to a risk averse policy for aging investors ie out of equities into fixed income. But in this case he should have been put into larger cap/high yield equities.
He may well have filled in a form giving WHI carte blanche to invest on his behalf but the manager should have taken some view of his age/needs.

[andrewhbruce] 07/9/2015 11:30

Two sides to every story?
If you let somebody loose £500,000 you are totally barmy, so don't complain when it's gone, try taking a closer interest. My simple instruction to my 3 adult sons is 'look after your own money'

[meijiman] 07/9/2015 08:53

Thanks -I once had some shares in a company where WHI had a buy note on it. It went bust six months later.Guess what -it was one of their 'house' stocks.

[meijiman] 07/9/2015 08:30

The 6th is Sunday -Sunday Telegraph? What does it say?

[gargoyle2] 07/9/2015 06:04

Got it, thanks.

[hydrus] 06/9/2015 10:39

telegraph article published today