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Update ... OK ... the special dividend has been announced in previous years with the Q3 results that come out at about that time of the year (Nov) ... so it's down to what the financial state of the company is at that point in time. This is where you folk who study the balance sheets etc come to the fore ... what's the numbers been saying so far this year compared to previous ones? Mike
Sorry to say I don't have an inside track on this one ... but looking at the companies history dividend for the last four years they've declared a special dividend on 4/11/11, 8/11/12, 6/11/13 and 5/11/14 ... so if they are going to repeat the exercise its likely to be early in November for payment in December. In the past the amounts have been 44p, 56p, 28p, 76p ... so not trivial, far from it. I wondered if anyone had any idea what the companies intentions were for this year ... or whether they thought the balance sheet supported a significant 'return of capital' this time around or not. Mike
Looks like I'm going to have to find a home for the money that will be coming from the recent Amlin buy out and I'm keen to get a head of the wave ... Looking at LRE and their dividend history and trying to get up to speed on how this company works and thinks about things ... do folk have an opinion on what is likely to happen early in November as regards a special dividend to be paid in December? Any feelings for what it may or may not amount to? Mike
The Chronicle 3weeks mentioned that Lloyds of London might be a possible suitor for LRE, but did recommend to buy either Esure or AML instead, wasn't half wrong!!
The LRE company strategy is to focus on long term profit, not necessarily growth. Lots of mm's look at growth potential. The slightly unique aspect of LRE is to pay a modest dividend, not worry about the share price too much, and pay a significant profit share as a special dividend... I suspect in 2/3 years the share price will not be all that different... but so long as the total divi yield stays above the 7-8% mark, its a great income stock
Thanks for that regarding dividend yield...
Think of LRE as an employer in the sales industry who pays a modest salary with commission paid on sale results. The 1.70% is the "base" salary, and the special dividends are the commission.
Just a query... How is at present a dividend yield of 1.7% on LRE going to grow to yield 8.8% as morningstar.co.uk predicts in my link I posted below? faramog even states 10%. Is this based on a collapsing sp, as EPS shows a 25% decline for fy of 2015, based possibly on stormy US season. Views appreciated, as I have a Balfour Beatty pref 2020 which yields 8.1%, but when interest rates rise this yield is not guarranted. Was thinking of here when I read a piece in The Investors Chronicle and also Hansard Global as alternative ideas to swap stocks... ATB
Thanks for that piece of information from Sharecast. I saw LRE reviewed in last weeks Investors Chronicle as one for dividend holders... I'm watching this one over the next 6mths to see what impact the storm season in US plays wth the finances of LRE. I for one always question high dividend payers more so with one's over 6% and how long they have sustained it for. I say this as when interest rates rise it hits high divi payers the hardest. Could be totally wrong... I hold another insurance co which is rumoured to be a seller, but will use my money to place here over next 6mths.
(ShareCast News) - Insurance company Lancashire Holdings wrote a third fewer insurance premiums in the first half of this year from $635.1m to $423.6m gross written premiums. Shares in the company fell 4.17% to 643p at 1004, following its second half result posted Wednesday. The board declared a dividend of 5c per share, off book value per share at $6.66. Gross written premiums dropped by 43.7% in the second quarter of 2015 compared with the same period of 2014. Lancashire said first half profit before tax was about 10% lower at $88.6m compared with last year's $98.9m. Lancashire said there were sizeable losses offshore energy line to extent that market is around break-even point before we enter Gulf of Mexico windstorm season. Space and aviation markets also took a hit following a series of satellite losses. Shore Capital analyst Eamonn Flanagan said the result was broadly in line with expectations and said further returns were likely. Flanagan reiterated a 'buy' recommendation and said the shares remained attractive. Numis kept a 'hold' rating and target price of 790p, and said it expected a 100% earnings payout to generate a yield of 9.6%. "We think Lancashire's strategy of reducing its risk profile through increased reinsurance purchase and defending its core portfolio through leadership added value will preserve shareholder value through the downturn."
Just bought in here. Moved some profits over from junior miners on AIM. Would be interested in any long term holders news and views. The divi and special dividend history is the big draw and I'm from Lancashire !!
Any advice . Having secured dividend should I accumulate at present price ?
Yep. doubled my holding following the fall. Quite like this stock.
For clarity...The Ex-Divi' date is Thursday, the 19th of March...
TNW looks to be 41% above the market valuation. Low PE ratio - lower than all of its peers Price/Book value is relatively low Yield is REALLY high - 9% and sustainable. Wow! Other things -Combined ratio of 94% is good -The outlook is positive -Forecasts show LRE should return to profitable grown in 2015 and 2016 -Once interest rates inevitably rise, LRE will perform even better because it'll help trigger a hardening of the reinsurance markets.
LRE It’s cheap on the fundamentals (against the market, and against its peers) It has an extremely impressive growth record (up 375% over 9 years) It has a yield of 9.1% and it has paid out bumper special dividends in 6 out of the last 7 years (2011 being the only exception), on top of the regular dividend. It’s one of the top Lloyd’s insurers and therefore currently a takeover target Judging by the recent takeovers of Lloyd’s insurers Brit and Catlin recently we can expect a takeover to pay a good premium to the current share price. All in all LRE looks superb. http://www.stockopedia.com/content/lancashire-holding-a-hot-pot-yield-92648/
I see the ex div date is 20th March. This for me is a wonderful new share discovery, .
Cracking FInals & another special Dividend...this time of 33p... Total Divi's for this Financial year = $1.85 (121p) = a knee trembling 19%. Congrats to anyone who got in & if yee didn't then there's still time (for this Finals' 60 cent dividend) as Ex -Divi' date will probably be in Mid- March?
They look pretty good and another juicy special dividend. Let's hope the market pushes up the share price
Thank you jange
But after the shares fell to just 506p in mid-December - their lowest level since 2010 - post-Catlin takeover rumours have helped them to rally around 10 per cent since. Yet they still trade on just 1.3 times Westhouse's end-2014 NTA estimate (of 625¢) - that's merely average for the sector and notably cheap compared with the share ratings of some rivals, such as Hiscox (HSX) or Beazley (BEZ), at around 1.7 times. With bid chatter still very much alive, and given the impressive income characteristics, expect more upside ahead.
Even if a deal doesn't materialise - and Lloyd's is littered with past failed bid attempts - the group's robust underwriting record still leaves Lancashire looking attractive. Indeed, the company reported a highly profitable combined ratio (comparing claims to premiums) of nearly 75 per cent for the nine months to end-September 2014 - that's a notably better underwriting performance than at most of its peers, which typically report ratios in the mid-80 per cent range. Moreover, the group is managing to deliver that robust underwriting result despite an increasingly soft pricing backdrop: in the first nine months, for instance, Lancashire's premium rates for property retrocession and reinsurance cover fell to 87 per cent of the levels achieved a year earlier. Such pricing slippage, however, is entirely in line with the sector's wider experience. With rates under pressure, analysts also expect Lancashire to continue to return capital to shareholders that it can't profitably utilise and that signals excellent dividend prospects. In fact, Westhouse anticipates end-2014's total dividend - the base dividend plus special dividends - to reach a chunky 135¢ (89p), implying a prospective yield of 16 per cent. Even for the historically high-yielding insurance sector, that's a fat payout: the average prospective yield for the sector is nearer 6 per cent according to broker Numis Securities. True, sentiment towards Lancashire's shares has suffered after founder Richard Brindle said he was stepping down as chief executive back in April - he was replaced by former chief underwriting officer Alex Maloney. That sentiment problem has been compounded by rumours that Mr Brindle is looking to launch a new rival insurer during the course of this year as it's feared he could poach business and staff from Lancashire
News late last month that New York-listed insurer XL Group (US:XL) had made an approach for Lloyd's underwriter Catling (CGL) has helped fuel speculation that wider sector consolidation could be on the cards. At present, insurance analysts mainly think that deal-doing in the UK is more likely to manifest itself through bolt-on acquisitions among the sector's smaller players and, crucially, mid-sized Lancashire (LRE) is being mooted as a potential target. Add that to the group's fairly modest share price rating, as well as its impressive dividend prospects, and snapping up Lancashire's shares now could prove lucrative. The arguments in favour of consolidation are certainly sound. Significantly, after several years without big costly catastrophe claims, insurers have more than enough capital to fund deals. What's more, that capital glut is also driving down premium rates as underwriters compete on price and such a relatively depressed market backdrop is making consolidation look more attractive. "Surplus capital will inevitably accelerate M&A," notes insurance analyst Joanna Parsons of broker Westhouse Securities. "A typical reaction to constrained growth and large balance sheets is that, if you can't get it organically, you buy it." She names Lloyd's insurer Novae (NVA) - but also Lancashire - as "easy to swallow deals". XL's offer for Catlin was set at about 1.5 times analysts' forecasts for end-2014's net tangible assets (NTA). Applying a similar multiple to Lancashire's shares implies a takeout price of over 620p, or roughly 11 per cent above the current share price
Considering an investment here. Any advice or opinion offered . Thanks