The latest Investing Matters Podcast with Jean Roche, Co-Manager of Schroder UK Mid Cap Investment Trust has just been released. Listen here.
13:22, yes in theory, but it would mean each creditor above the pension fund in the pecking order would have to be unaffected by the weighting in favour of the pension fund - otherwise any creditor of higher preference who felt they had lost value would have a pretty strong case to against the administrators.
Whoever buys Arcadia out of Administration won't be taking on any of the pension liabilities, this point has been covered before.
Arcadia is in administration because it can't meet its liabilities (which obviously include the pension deficit). This isn't a private dodgy deal like PG did with BHS. The administrators will seek to get the best price for the assets, they will then distribute the proceeds to creditors as laid down in specific legislation that deals with the order of preference. The whole point of the process is that the assets can be sold without the liabilities - if the latter were sustainable then the business wouldn't be in administration!
Whilst the pension fund would be on that list, it would fall to the PPF to pick up the pieces as there obviously won't be enough raised to cover the whole deficit. According to today's Sunday Times PG ' is under pressure to dip into his fortune, calculated at £930m by the Sunday Times Rich List, to plug the hole'.
olddad, there are some very complex rules about selling and buying back (bed and breakfasting) outside an ISA in relation to CGT gains and losses. I don't remember all the details, but there's a 30 day rule, Section 104 pooled holding, same day buy and sell that all have different implications. Too many people were selling and immediately buying back for the tax break and the rules were changed to prevent this.
20:07, true as you say no CGT to pay this tax year unless profit tops £12,300. However a bit academic in terms of a trader starting out who has yet to make any serious profit....for future years there's a Pandemic to pay for, and pressure on Rishi Sunak to slash the allowance and up the rates to parity with income tax. Best not to take any of the current CGT rules as a given.
Chill out over the b100dy Guardian. It's a left leaning 'paper' that isn't behind a paywall - it needs left leaning (ie most of the final salaried 6+ weeks paid holiday public sector who are happy to float along above anything to do with grubby business) to actually subscribe to something that is free for the publisher to stay in business/turn a profit. They need to keep turning out what their readers want to read to achieve their objective - it has no effect outside of that parameter as it is not exactly breaking news.
Not sure K and TCM are the same. Think K older, he commented on a couple of occasions about the way he shops in his beloved Primark - touch and feel 20 garments before settling on one. Were all different, but I get the idea that whatever is in favour with him, whether shirt or share, requires everything else to have been absolutely rubbished to validate his decision.
TCM is young, away from demanding attention on BBs he couldn't turn a profit on a cake stall at a jumble sale even if his mum baked them for free IMO.
K, 13:12, I house 20 students and have picked up a fair idea of how they see life, you are correct about part time work being less plentiful and that may impact on discretionary spending. However, the assertion that they will save what is available to them for a house deposit or to pay off student loans rather than buy cheap fashion is extraordinary, these are not people with a middle-aged mindset, at 19 or 30 they do seem very much like children compared with previous generations and most I come across do seem to be heavily supported by parents during their 'student experience'.
Just like your previous assertion that 'all' landlords needed bailing out, your scenarios and predictions do seem very binary without nuance and weighting.
I do agree that the downfall of the high street names has been hastened by financial imprudence, Arcadia loaded with debt to pay the £1.2bn Divi and I'm all too aware of the problems with the leases at Debenhams, was invested 5 years ago as I thought they had a future, but realized they were hobbled about 3 years ago and sold.
K, 12:25. Yes, boohoo clothing may be more discretionary compared to Primark offer. However your argument of our losing customers that have to cut back completely ignores all the potential customers we might GAIN who are trading down from higher price point competitors.
Perhaps a spread of investments is the answer. Being all in on anything is always risky.
I agree with K about the stagflation, but having been a serious property investor since 1990 the summary of landlords fortunes in 08/09 was a bit simplistic, anyone who piles in too deep on any boom will be burnt when it ends, I picked up 3 more properties then as all the first time buyers who had been clamouring for a price crash for a few years were conspicuous by their absence from the market.
I just don't see this 'zero sum' argument of Boohoo v Primark. I see Primark doing well over the next few years and don't see that as a particular threat to us. After the consolidation on the high street the remaining bricks and mortar may well have a future if they can make the experience attractive. The last 'men' standing will certainly have more chance to turn a profit from the remaining shoppers. Future customers may use both channels. One thing is certain, free rent periods are not sustainable, just as selling Black Friday dresses online at 8p or whatever, isn't either.
Kilminster, sounds good and is guaranteed to get tick ups but there are so many factors at play that you can't make statements like that with any certainty.
If you look at the recent chart against ASOS we've actually done well over the past couple of weeks and are up over last 3 months whereas they have lost value.
triumph1, I don't think the £50m loan offer was perhaps quite as simple a play as you portray. There is so much ego involved with the likes of PG and MA and their is huge longstanding animosity between the two.
Topshop was supposedly valued at £400m pre Covid and half that now, not very realistic to expect to gain security over it for only £50m loan. Offer made first and foremost to wind PG up IMO.