The latest Investing Matters Podcast with Jean Roche, Co-Manager of Schroder UK Mid Cap Investment Trust has just been released. Listen here.
London South East prides itself on its community spirit, and in order to keep the chat section problem free, we ask all members to follow these simple rules. In these rules, we refer to ourselves as "we", "us", "our". The user of the website is referred to as "you" and "your".
By posting on our share chat boards you are agreeing to the following:
The IP address of all posts is recorded to aid in enforcing these conditions. As a user you agree to any information you have entered being stored in a database. You agree that we have the right to remove, edit, move or close any topic or board at any time should we see fit. You agree that we have the right to remove any post without notice. You agree that we have the right to suspend your account without notice.
Please note some users may not behave properly and may post content that is misleading, untrue or offensive.
It is not possible for us to fully monitor all content all of the time but where we have actually received notice of any content that is potentially misleading, untrue, offensive, unlawful, infringes third party rights or is potentially in breach of these terms and conditions, then we will review such content, decide whether to remove it from this website and act accordingly.
Premium Members are members that have a premium subscription with London South East. You can subscribe here.
London South East does not endorse such members, and posts should not be construed as advice and represent the opinions of the authors, not those of London South East Ltd, or its affiliates.
with the Private equity groups interested in Serco's indian business, worth 500 mill and with some high profile investors on board following the kitchen sink exercise from the new CEO ( Churchills grandson ) sthe stock is finnaly breaking out . worth monitoring
Ray of light for Serco as investigation is dropped: The scandal-struck outsourcer Serco took a vital step forward in its rehabilitation with the Government, its biggest customer, after City of London Police dropped their year-long investigation into its £285 million prisoner transport contract.
Pedigree chum is a clue. @ the £1 mark this might be worth a punt. Until then it's barking (as is anyone buying the shares IMHO).
What's the reason for the big drop today??
Those that talk know nothing!!!! Those that know something, don't talk!!! The SP is more likely to go to £1 than £2!!!
Cheers Simmo. Bought in at 160p so fingers crossed! gla
Falling Serco share price unsettles investors: Unsettled investors are warning Serco’s new Chief Executive Rupert Soames that he will struggle to raise cash for a planned £550 million rescue rights issue after the company’s plummeting share price sparked concerns over the group’s financial health
CEO's, Chairmens, NEDs - the only profitable sector in AIM
Don't fret over the chairman. He has trousered investors money and will now ride off with it. Nice work if you can get it.
Soames bought 240,000 @ £3.54. Avoid this dog.
CFO shows faith in company
why not wait for sub£1?
I assume that with such firm conviction, and your personal integrity, that you are therefore short on SRP until you approach buy in price?
not a buy yet.
At last, the chairman announces his decision to stand down. Let's hope there is no compensation. Chief Executive's judgment is called into question as he states, "no one could have worked harder". Well the chairman could have stood down from roles at Towergate and Admiral many months ago to focus full time on Servo.
Glad to see that the Sunday Times has caught up today.
too soft a punishment!!! the lethal injection comes to mind!!!
If they're brain dead they might get a tag!
yes repeat yes some deranged individuals are actually buying this stock. Shall I call the police or will you?
designed to ''draw in the mugs''
now a case of when not whether!!!
The chairman of the BOD of this seeming basket-case has sufficient times on his hands to also be the Chairman and acting CE of Towergate which has its debt trading at about 60p to the £. About time he decided to focus on only one major challenge.
Three reasons to avoid Serco shares: Serco shares have now fallen to the lowest level in a decade but this is not a buying opportunity. There are important reasons why investors should steer well clear of the shares. The only thing that was missing was the resignation of the Chief Executive but that was because he’d already gone, with former Aggreko Boss Rupert Soames taking over in May. 1 - Election, election, election - Outsourcing companies thrive on a steady pipeline of new contracts to increase revenue and profits. These deals tend to be moving public sector work into the private sector but the upcoming election is causing a hiatus in new contracts. As a result, a healthy order book of £17.1 billion at the end of June could be slow to replenish. 2 - Goodwill and debts - While revenues and profits are more uncertain, the other issue for investors is the debt pile. Debt has first claim on profits, cash and assets when things start going wrong. Net debt levels – total debt less cash – are now rising and are expected to hit £675 million by the end of December. Putting that in perspective, the balance sheet boasted shareholders’ funds of £1.23 billion at the end of June, the largest constituent of which was goodwill. When you buy a company, goodwill is the difference between the cash you pay and the assets you get. Serco has said it is now taking a different view of the value of that goodwill, particularly in relation to its Global Services BPO business. 3 - Contractual problems - The other major part of the write downs or some £450 million is in loss making contracts. The tricky part for Mr Soames is that often outsourcers agree to deliver a level of service at a price for a number of years. The closer management looks, the more problems it seems to find. There is still too much doubt on the final amounts of the write downs on the goodwill and shareholders are looking incredibly exposed to further losses as the banks and bondholders gain the upper hand. The shares trading on 15 times forecast 2014 earnings per share of 15.6p, are still not looking cheap, especially given the challenges ahead. This is one to steer well clear of. Serco at 220.2p -96.9p Questor Says “Avoid”.
Serco: getting out the hose: Serco Chief Executive Rupert Soames is a fan of linguistic colour. On Monday the outsourcing company described the latest upheaval as a case of reculer pour mieux sauter – going backwards to make a better leap forwards. The going backwards part is everywhere: the £1.5 billion write off following a review of goodwill and mispriced contracts; the accompanying profit warning that, according to Citi, wipes about 40% off consensus forecast earnings for next year; the £550 million rights issue that may be required next year to shore up the balance sheet; and the share price drop of almost a third on Monday (taking the fall to 57% in a year). But if this is the prelude to a jump, then it is worth considering where it might jump to. In future the company will focus entirely on public sector clients (the “B2G business”) in a market which, it estimates, will grow 5-7% a year. It also thinks that operating margins might be 5-6%. So assume a recovery from a 2016 nadir and by 2018 Serco might be making £160 million of operating profit. Depending on the interest rate and tax charge, that might leave net profits of perhaps £100 million to £110 million. Monday’s share price fall put the market capitalisation at £1.2 billion, or 11 times that potential 2018 profit. Not cheap for profits that are so uncertain and so far off. Do not underestimate Mr Soames’ ability to turn Serco around. But in another turn of phrase, he likens Serco to a horse covered in manure, which he is planning to wash off. It is not yet clear whether the animal below is a thoroughbred or a donkey.