Member Info for barchid

@Sam

I fear you are spot on, we now almost certainly lose the variety of beers that MARS had bought up over the years for what is a rather small amount of cash relative to their debt.

Not exactly a stellar reaction in price after those results was there ?

One wonders wonders what they have to do to change the dial, perhaps it is because the market are still sceptical of their management ?

Even at 107p on a 14% discount they look tempting, I've added more today to my holding

I was thinking along the same lines as Shaperite this pm when I saw them trade under 30p again, with the FT currently showing market cap at just under £192m.

The fact that nobody has seemingly started buying a stake in these is hardly a good sign, in all seriousness every dog has its day, but the dearth of interest from PE (for whom this isn't even small change, just a rounding off sum) would indicate that the likely valuation of the pubs in a sale is somewhat about the same as their debt, the current market cap is surely less than the Danes would pay for their other 40% of the brewery ?

Perhaps Mr Market is wrong, but it is very odd for him to be so wrong for so long.

As long standing posters on this board would be aware I was lucky enough to sell the bulk of mine to pay a tax bill in Dec/Jan 19/20. I hung on to the few I had left with the intention of buying them back cheaper, then we had covid, but I still keep an interest in them although everything I have seen since leaves me uninspired.

However reading some of the bulls comments on this board is as amusing as Dear Deidre's stories in the Sun.

Yes, we can only be optimistic on this news re Thermo Fisher, it would seem that the agreement is working for both parties & with the long runway we have it is surprising to me that the shares still languish in single figures

Another video on youtube this morning with NT doing his, by now well practiced, apoligia for 4th rate performance despite clocking up a 0.61% charge for management with him boasting about making very few trades each year, frankly it is all becoming rather boring and the discount needs to widen rather more before this becomes a buy, imho.

Very encouraging RNS today, hopefully the market will also view it that way.

Quite a detailed update in their RNS today, but we are still not out of the woods with this one yet, sadly.

In 1st paragraph you say that MARS "are fortunate to have 40% of the brewing company".

Surely what you meant to say was that we were unfortunate enough (due to our debts run up by that nice Mr Fidler) to lose 60% of our jewel in the crown, because it was taken off us at a very low price as we were in dire need of cash at the time, so we are left with a minority stake and a portfolio of pubs, 50% of we are apparently also fortunate enough not to be able to sell, due to the tough deal the Danes made us swallow ?

Superpuffer

I am surprised that you did not mention the long article in todays Torygraph saying that in the 1st quarter of 2024, 239 pubs closed which is 56% higher than the same quarter in 2023, this certainly ties in what I have been seeing in London where the attrition has been awful for the last few years.

In 2000 there were over 60,000 pubs and today just about 45,000 which is starting to look less than ideal, as this shows it is not just Southern England where pub culture is becoming less popular.

@covgaz, thanks for your post, yes it was a nice start to the weekend for me !

@macq

Poor old super puffer leaps on anything remotely connected to MARS & puffs away, no way can he stay silent until he has something of relevance to say, he just keeps on puffing...

Who on earth wanted to know that his Godfather was the company secretary many years ago, but he tells us so ?

Still if it keeps him happy I guess he just has to carry on puffing, but without the wit that Syd James added to things when he was doing a "carry on".

@tenapen

I have just sent one, I agree with you this is a ludicrous amount of time to take for what is a small business

Perhaps because you bore us all ?

@dab808

I agree & even better we are paid a handsome divi for waiting, I thought these numbers were most encouraging

@LWHL

I guess you are right, we don't need to know too much with a 6p annual divi on a 67.5p stock where the management are well invested...

I added a few at 69.5p last night before the close, doesn't look so clever now...

Any idea why they have dropped faster than a scrubbers drawers since yesterday ?

May be missing it but I see no news...

@01234

I agree with you, this is significant as it underlines the relationship with Thermofisher & is their first payment to Verici I believe ?

As such this is good news & emphasises that their runway is looking good still

FWIW I topped up this pm, it seems a reasonable time to commit some more cash to this now the SP is 285ish

@iron

Dead right, Questor is a very good reverse indicator, them giving a stock tip is like the kiss of death...