The latest Investing Matters Podcast episode featuring Jeremy Skillington, CEO of Poolbeg Pharma has just been released. Listen here.
Interesting !!
Big week for Foxtons and the property market next week, time for a last bit of market game play ??
I haven't posted too much with regards to these posts as we all know by now that Foxtons are smashing it in every division and are now even offering finance on Auctioned properties, yet another CASH income stream.
UK property focused Budget in two weeks time and now quelle surprise the Chancellor has a few quid to spend so all looking good and whisper it quietly but who knows we may even get an interest rate cut ?
Foxtons now the fastest growing UK Estate Agency brand in the UK ??? :-
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/georginahowell_wegetitdone-foxtonscareers-workforus-activity-7165356160697503744-EmQ1?trk=public_profile
And for the industry as a whole, article published by Rightmove yesterday just re-affirming how property sales have accelerated since the beginning of the year.
Expect more of this in the coming weeks and especially after the housing focused Budget in early March following on From Foxtons annual results, the company's best results since 2014, the article in full :-
https://uk.investing.com/news/economy/uk-property-prices-show-first-annual-rise-since-august--rightmove-3342600
Nice article this morning to kick off the week, half term over and everyone back to their desks this morning lets see what the bandits do with the share price this week after it registered five out of five day for gains last week.
https://www.mpamag.com/uk/news/general/london-lettings-market-sees-surge-in-listings-foxtons/477616
Looks like the market was desperate for stock yesterday, hence this article in the Daily Mail lunchtime yesterday pointed out to me this morning , looks like they're trying everything to get shareholders to sell up and move on !
Not happening here so pretty much wasting their time but good to see that the Daily mail are now finally printing more than a paragraph of text about Foxtons when in the past its just been a few lines :-
https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-13074027/What-Foxtons-recent-revival-London-estate-agent-hold-stock.html
At 16:35pm today !
:)
Final count before the first trade of the morning of 2758 shares........8.1m !!
Brilliant stuff eh, expect more 'cloak-and-dagger' game play via the order book again today for yet the umpteenth time !
I mentioned a few weeks back just after the Foxtons end of year trading statement about all those huge volumes being dealt in the shares but away from the main exchange and away from prying eyes more importantly !! Well, we saw some 65m shares traded the day after the trading statement and around 2.5m shares traded on the following Monday.
Half term school holidays this week so many people taking time away except for these lot :-
Foxtons Group plc (FOXT.L)
LSE - LSE Delayed price. Currency in GBp (0.01 GBP)
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58.00+0.70 (+1.22%)
At close: 13 February 04:35PM GMT
Summary
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1D5D1M6MYTD1Y5YMaxFull screen
Previous close 57.30
Open 0.00
Bid 0.00 x 0
Ask 0.00 x 0
Day's range 0.00 - 0.00
52-week range
Volume 6,950,640
Avg. volume 600,441
Market cap 174.751M
Beta (5Y monthly) 1.71
PE ratio (TTM) 19.33
EPS (TTM) 0.03
Earnings date 05 Mar 2024
Forward dividend & yield 0.01 (1.55%)
Ex-dividend date 03 Aug 2023
1y target est 59.50
Yep, nearly 7m traded before the market open this morning. We know this figure will get scrubbed once the first trade is reported from 08:00am this morning but good to see there's no let up in keeping a lid on the share price by those devious market players.
And the link :-
https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/quote/FOXT.L?.tsrc=fin-srch
The company has already telegraphed around £147m turnover for 2023 with operating profits around £14m, with the rental side of the business accounting for just over £100m of that total.
With Alexander Hall and the sales side of the business to perform the best since 2014, this financial year could see the best numbers in Foxtons history as a a company.
We also know that the Foxtons management are completely f***ed off with the dire share price performance despite all the bullish and forward statements issued by the company and hence why all those share buybacks were stopped as it did nothing to the price and just ate up loads of cash !
But !
And it is a hypothetical but, what if management decide to stick a spanner in the works and really put one up the Banks and Hedge funds that are destroying the true value of the company here ?
We know Foxtons is a cash generating business and with all that money saved from the cancellation of share buybacks what if management decided on declaring a special dividend this time round ??
This will have a two-pronged attack on those keeping a lid on the price, it will encourage new buyers as the yield will improve no-end and thus attract income funds but with the end of the financial year just around the corner it will also encourage a further wave of institutional buyers and private clients as they look ahead to the next financial year with a bit more optimism.
It will also make a takeover of Foxtons a bit more difficult and a bit more expensive for those printing US Dollars like confetti !!
Just my thoughts but the next few weeks are going to be very interesting indeed !
Its been a while but thought I'd just take a look at the list of UK real estate companies appointing liquidators in the last quarter or so. We know that the trend is growing as the 'BIGS' get increasingly bigger in the sector and can pick off the minnows that is if they add value of any kind.
Nothing in the list that would interest Gittins & Co. but alarmingly over 100 small property businesses bit the dust in the last three months or so, expect this number to increase significantly as the government brings in tougher regulation for landlords and rogue property companies over the next few months :-
https://www.administrationlist.co.uk/search?SelectedNoticeTypeID=2&SelectedBusinessSectors=2
Well, its look like Alexander Hall are also smashing it out of the park as well as every other area under the Foxtons umbrella.
Expect much more of this as the year progresses and even more so after the March budget where the government will throw everything at the UK housing market.
Here's what Mr Gittins had to say yesterday :-
'Guy Gittins, CEO of Foxtons, commented: “Interest rates being held at 5.25% since September 2023 has helped to both steady and stimulate the UK property market, with buyers reacting positively to a greater degree of economic stability and a reduction in mortgage rates. Since the start of the year, weekly mortgage referrals to our mortgage broker, Alexander Hall, have been higher than any weekly level seen throughout 2023.
“This has led to an improvement in mortgage approval numbers in recent months as buyers have acted with urgency to secure these lower rates while they last, while also taking advantage of their improved position in the market with respect to their purchasing power.
“In turn, this has caused mortgage approved house prices to increase and today’s figures from Halifax provide further evidence of this growing market momentum.
“However, it’s important to note that interest rates remain at 5.25% and there is no guarantee of when this will change.
“In the meantime, those looking to purchase with the help of a mortgage are best advised to do so with the support of an experienced mortgage broker to ensure they secure the best available rates and avoid overpaying on their monthly repayments.” '
And the article in full :-
https://propertyindustryeye.com/property-industry-reacts-to-latest-rise-in-uk-house-prices/
I mentioned early last year that we would see a rapid consolidation in the sector and how lettings would become the main driver of an estate agents business and without a large book of lettings many would crumble leaving just a handful of the big players left in the market picking up anything of value.
Well here's a well written article posted this morning :-
https://propertyindustryeye.com/how-will-independent-agents-survive-if-the-sector-is-dominated-by-mega-businesses/
What a load of old c**p !!!
Yes, there was a lot of talk late last year about a price tag of £1.20 -£1.25p a share for Foxtons but that boat has well and truly sailed off into the distance never to return.
Foxtons are now in its best shape financially and performance wise since it came to the market back in 2013 and has only recently started to shrug off its image of the estate agent cowboys and mini boy racers club as it secures it position as the No.1 Estate agency in London and in the UK.
These Private Equity charlatans are always out looking to snap up companies for next to nothing and have missed a trick here, last year yes they may have bought Foxtons on the cheap and loaded the company up with huge amounts of debt just like BGC did in 2007 but not now.
There may be a couple of disgruntled shareholders out there but even the Foxtons management know that the share price is severely undervaluing the company but who is in control of the share price, yes banks and hedge funds and mainly the American ones at that and not the Foxtons management !
What people don't realise is that American Banks and hedge funds can trade world markets RISK FREE, yes RISK FREE courtesy of being back by the FED and its 24hr a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year USD printing press.
If they want Dollars they make one phone call to the FED.
Its that simple with no risks attached !
Do the rest of the shareholders here want to see Foxtons being loaded up with another some £450m of debt again, I very much doubt it and I don't think the management would be too keen either !
Complete non-story just like our hedge fund man before Christmas who claimed to have a 4% holding in the company.
Geez, where do they find these people...........
I mentioned the daily volume in Foxtons shares yesterday being the biggest in over a year at just over 10M unofficially, well remember my post about all those large volumes in the stock conducted away from the main exchanges and prying eyes, here's the unofficial count this morning so far on the Yahoo Finance website :-
Foxtons Group plc (FOXT.L)
LSE - LSE Delayed price. Currency in GBp (0.01 GBP)
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52.70+0.10 (+0.19%)
At close: 25 January 05:15PM GMT
Summary
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1D5D1M6MYTD1Y5YMaxFull screen
Previous close 52.60
Open 0.00
Bid 0.00 x 0
Ask 0.00 x 0
Day's range 0.00 - 0.00
52-week range
Volume 56,400,000
Avg. volume 580,597
Market cap 158.782M
Beta (5Y monthly) 1.66
PE ratio (TTM) 17.57
EPS (TTM) 0.03
Earnings date 05 Mar 2024
Forward dividend & yield 0.01 (1.71%)
Ex-dividend date 03 Aug 2023
1y target est N/A
YES, that's 56,400,000 !!!!! The biggest ever in Foxtons shares, if you don't believe me take a look for yourselves before 08:00am when it will be updated to reflect just the U/T of this morning, one way or another we're in for another cracking day !!!!
The link :-
https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/quote/FOXT.L?p=FOXT.L&.tsrc=fin-srch
Wowza, some lumpy trades reported after hours !!
What a day that was for Foxtons, we saw the biggest volume in Foxtons shares for over a year, the Yahoo Finance website report over 10m shares traded.
Hopefully after today we'll finally get a lot more institutional interest now and which will make a takeover of the company increasingly difficult whilst the share price is languishing at ridiculous lows.
Well played all !!
#Long & Strong
But not here, yet another improved outlook going into 2024 !!
Onwards and upwards team !
Confirmation of further merger activity in the sector already touted on here previously :-
https://propertyindustryeye.com/eye-newsflash-leaders-romans-group-acquires-stirling-ackroyd-alexander-co-and-peter-ball/
Some nice early buying this morning !
Ok, will do !
:)
The MM's game play will be well and truly on this week, remember that they want sellers , so expect the unexpected !!