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that's what the stock market is designed to do: humble us all
this stake building by AB is ofc v exciting...but I'm v keen on cash atm!
Hahaa blimey, I've been humbled very fast there! In hindsight I probably should've taken a punt
Well done all :)
you may be right, Libero...but clearly others disagree
sold half my modest punt @58p...now back on free carry here
yes noticed that , there are others interested as well
increasing their stake.....
Some good points Libero take it all on board , think that why the shares are resting at around 50p mark.
Time will tell and we will see soon in the next RNS which will come soon.
The 15th April Interim Trading Update was actually more positive than I would've anticipated, saying they were largely unaffected in April and May, but it's also clear the company believe they will be materially impacted by COVID-19 this financial year.
I also wonder whether the departure of the CEO (Gordon Wilkinson) who heralded this very impressive turnaround will have a negative impact in itself. The internal shuffles made to replace him will have a material impact on revenue and profitability (since the most senior guys' billable hours presumably are some of the most profitable so if they're promoted upwards and have less time for client work there's less money coming through the door I suspect).
As mentioned in my post on Friday I think a lot of their turnaround was dependent on rapidly increasing the number of staff. So I decided to check the vacancies section of their website and they are looking to hire someone out in Canada but that's probably because Canada is going through this PFI/PPP infrastructure boom. That 1 hire will not make up for the above.
Additionally it seems that the dispute resolution segment is a relatively small proportion of the business and therefore, even though I expect it to grow by a high percentage, it is unlikely to make up for the COVID-related falls in revenue elsewhere.
So, in the absence of anything being said since that cautiously positive 15th April statement, my feeling is that H2 of this financial period is likely to show a year-on-year fall. Consequently, even though I'ma big fan and believe Driver Group shall do extremely well in the longer term, I have decided not to invest at this point in time. Will keep a close eye on things with a view to investing when the time feels right. [For the meantime, I intend to continue investing in DLG]
Company is debt free ; with £3.5 million in cash.
The management have been very quick to adapt as shown last year with consultancy work collapsing in certain areas and even that the revenue was lower managed to increase % profits.
Shows a lean company that can adapt to and last years restructure cost £400k and was not used as a debt but included in there turnover.
So the profit before tax could have been higher , not the norm in accountancy
Been a holder for 10 Months and could of sold near the top in March but have good faith and is a defensive share as you have said Libero
good stuff, Libero
OK, having done some research, I really like this company but I'm unsure whether now is the right time to buy.
Basically these guys do a lot of clever consultancy work for complex engineering & construction projects in sectors like oil and gas, infrastructure of rail/road/etc, renewable energy, and the like to help these projects run as smoothly and efficiently as possible. Then, on the other side of it, when things don't go to plan and their clients end up in a lawsuit / an arbitration, they provide dispute resolution services and also earn money as expert witnesses. All of the work that goes into this is charged as billable hours to the client = revenue minus the costs of their services = profits.
The company turned things around partly by getting to the position where they could employ more staff to charge way more billable hours. e.g. in the UK (their main territory accounting for over a third of revenues in 2019) they increased the size of their London office from 3 staff in 2016 to 14 staff in 2019. All of which is v impressive.
It's also v encouraging to see they're now working in Canada. PFI projects have been around in the UK for ages but it's a much newer thing in Canada, and so they're going through a PFI / PPP boom over there, so it's good to see Driver is getting a slice of the action.
It's very clear that the dispute resolution part of the business is going to do very well in the months ahead, however I'm less sure about the other parts of the business, because the pandemic must have caused fairly lengthy delays to loads of projects around the world all at the same time. Without the projects to manage / consult on / add value to, what is there for these non-dispute-resolution employees meant to work on and charge billable hours for? APAC revenues fell from £11m to £9m last year largely due to delays in contracts in 2019, so that really is a cause for concern.
Also doesn't help that there's not a split between dispute-related revenue and everything else to help assess the potential impact on the business.
So I remain convinced of the company but undecided as to whether it is the right time to invest. Will have to think it through more.
This appears cheap on a forward P/E less than 9.5 and EV/EBIT multiple of 8 ish from the looks of it ... but that'll all depend on the outlook which may have changed since that 15th April statement.
Will do more research and take a view as to whether to buy some shares here or not over the next week.
&, with interims out at end of month, a little interest here
if first half op profit (EBIT) come on around £1.5-2m, then this is trading at pretty low multiples
so much will depend on outlook?
explains why share price dropped yesterday , mms had a order to fill
28-May-20 12:24:21 50.00 500,000 Buy* 46.00 51.00 250.00k
A lot of business coming Driver way
Contractual disputes loom for one in four
11 MAY 2020 BY LEM BINGLEY
The latest Construction News survey has found that contractual disputes are likely to become widespread as the coronavirus crisis continues.
Around a quarter (24 per cent) of respondents to the CN survey said the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to lead to a contractual dispute or has already done so. One in 25 respondents (4 per cent) said legal action or another dispute process has already begun.
As one respondent to the survey put it: “[We] need clarity around the contractual position otherwise lawyers are going to make millions prosecuting/defending claims on contracts.”
While these figures suggest that the industry will be affected by a very large number of disputes over the coming months, many in the sector may be surprised that the number is not considerably higher. Almost half of respondents (49 per cent) said they currently have no contractual concerns, suggesting that a relatively high proportion of firms are adopting an understanding and flexible approach to contractual commitments in the crisis.
On 7 May, the Cabinet Office issued guidance pleading for that outcome, stating that all “parties to contracts should act responsibly and fairly, support the response to COVID-19 and protect jobs and the economy”.
The government guidance continues: “Responsible and fair behaviour in contracts now – in particular in dealing with potential disputes – will result in better long-term outcomes for jobs and our economy. In complex contracting arrangements, this should apply throughout the contracting chain. It will in the long term protect businesses, supply chains and opportunities in the economy. Bad behaviour will be bad for jobs and will impair our economic recovery.”
Whether anyone will heed this non-binding advice remains to be seen. Seamus O’Doherty, director of the construction practice and a specialist in contract and claim analysis at consultancy Berkeley Research Group, described the government statement as “essentially toothless” because “the document states the guidance does not override, broadly speaking, the existing contractual relationship”.
As a result, O’Doherty said, “it does not change anything and parties will be left to decide what to do on a case-by-case basis, although it is possible that it may have some impact with public sector employers who may find it more persuasive than the private sector.”
For many, the pursuit of compensation through a lawsuit or other dispute process may be less about indulging in so-called “bad behaviour” and more about simple survival.
“The industry will be very cash poor [as we exit the crisis], leading to disputes, payment issues and the collapse of various contractors, subcontractors and suppliers,” one survey respondent predicted. “Our industry was poor before we went into this.”
The CN survey also revealed that many in the sector have not yet been able to secure emergency funding to support th
https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/financial/contractual-disputes-loom-for-one-in-four-11-05-2020/
Driver’s Covid-19 action plan
Driver (DRV:41.5p), a consultancy that provides clients in the construction and engineering sectors with specialist commercial management, planning, programming, project management, and dispute resolution support services, has guided investors to expect profits for the six months to 31 March 2020 to be significantly ahead of the previous year. The results will also be in line with internal budgets which were based on full-year adjusted pre-tax profits rising from £3m to £3.7m on revenue of £59.9m to lift EPS from 4.8p to 5.4p.
The pipeline for April and May is “encouraging”, too, but the board is taking a cautious approach in light of Covid-19 economic downturn in case customer behaviour changes in the future. Prudently, the directors have postponed all non-essential operational and capital expenditure, decided to pass the interim dividend and taken a 20 per cent pay cut. Importantly, Driver’s balance sheet is robust. Current assets of £27.7m were more than double total liabilities of £12.1m at the 2019 financial year-end, and the company currently has net cash of £3.3m and access to a £3m revolving credit facility.
I would also flag up that Driver’s dispute resolution business should do good business in the downturn.
The Company has shown in the past that can react to situations , cost cutting to efficiency of running the company
the beauty of a successful turnaround
#rare
Delayed announcement of trade by 3 days , would of made a difference on the day
Date Time Trade Prc Volume Buy/Sell Bid Ask Value
31-Jan-20 16:26:58 64.00 100,000 Buy* 62.00 65.00 64.00k
Research this company and taking some good leads ; notable there been a surge in new contracts with Driver that are pending and could lead to a 15% increase in growth
Thanks, donmac101 ....I was wondering what might have caused the uptick.
Just been tipped about time.
Sorry for multiple posts website kept crashing !
Not showing on LSE for some reason