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The four directors in stumping up nearly half a million pounds to buy shares are making a bold statement. We know that factors outside their control have put them through the proverbial wringer but they are made of stern stuff up north. They have become used to swimming against the tide of events and have reacted swiftly to stop the bleeding and put together a plan focussing particularly on their knowhow and enormous land assets to turn things round-good luck to them.
Rather than us attempting tosecond guess the situation-a company statement-ideally before AGM in a fortnight- should reassure market that the 9 Elms panic is vastly overblown and hence stock gross oversold as we all, believe.
I share your incredulity re. day to day pricing. The big picture however is intact-despite going ex . the 200p div in a few weeks the stock has held up ever so well despite market weakness. Most of us are in for the ride based on the rock solid fundamentals of a reliable earnings stream heavily underpinned by residential bricks and mortar (over £160 a share),conservatively run by a capable team. Market makers cannot change the inevitable upward march but patience is required and will , I believe,be rewarded as it has always been thus far.
Irrational markets in my experience of over 50 years make for the most rewarding investments. To say that a discount to assets of around 25% on a p/e of around 3, having just announced a record year is irrational is, in my view, an understatement., given the superb track record of this management. I have therefore been happy to add to my substantial holding
Mr Market has presented a buying opportunity that I have been pleased to accept to add to my holding in the confident expectation that when the dust settles on present market turmoil it will look like a sensible purchase. To buy into a dynamic, proven management in a great niche at a p/e of little over 7 at a discount to solid land and business assets is a tasty opportunity. The stock is cum a well covered dividend of 3.14p on April 2nd.
A purchase of over £330,000 today pushed shares back to year's high- still well below asset value!
With a P/E ratio of under 8 and a record year promised , trading at 90p below the year's high ,despite nothing but positive subsequent statements from the Board , the market is missing this one. In previous years the Management's proven ability was rewarded by a shareprice at a considerable premium to asset value, whereas, as has been pointed out, bizzarely they now trade at a discount of around 10%. Given that the midland region where they are strong is set for a buoyant period backed by Government incentives-what's not to like?
I for one am very happy that the interim dividend has been doubled to 200p, hence avoiding heavier taxation later in the year, as very satisfactory. I make no reference to the final dividend. Clearly you can't please everrybody!
Mr Market has so far ignored the massive disparity in the pricing of the high class assets run by smart people at Hansa. The discount of over 30% to diversified assets appears to be based on the perception that the large holding of Ocean Wilsons is a problem- being based in Brazil. I see it as an opportunity to be represented on the board of a thriving company in a good niche albeit in a challenging part of the world- personally my boots are full and I feel the only way is up.
Your October blog encapsulates what value investing is all about. Having identified an undervalued stock you often have to sit on it for years until Mr Market wakes up to the situation. I'm a holder of SMP but in particular I discovered that Mountview hadn't revalued theirstock of trading properties. They finally announced this last year (some 10 years after my discovery)and 'bingo' they shot up in the blink of an eye .
Mr Market has kindly presented us with a discounted opportunity to top up our holdings, The company still expects to make £90 million or so this year, as against £98 last year -and yet is suddenly deemed worth over 20% less than yesterday This despite being embedded in the generally thriving building industry and generally known to be a well run outfit. These irrational market moves create the backdrop for serious market operators to thrive.Carclo was another last week.
Been in 5 years or so. They saw most of recent events coming but clearly the speed of events and depth of fall in coal price could not have been predicted and is an enormous challenge-hence fall in share price. Their disposal of tanker division was timely, giving them firepower to adapt. The purchase of opencast operation was done in a smartly structured way to avoid exposure to reparation of land whilst maximising ownership of massive land bank for potential building/solar. They are a bunch of resilient,clued up guys who have shown they can adapt to whatever fate throws at them but undoubtedly governmental dithering on power doesn't help forward planning-as always time will tell.
I didn't count ,but possibly 30- probably affected by appalling weather (A1 was closed through flooding) and fairly remote,albeit impressive, location. This ensured that Management clearly appreciated those who made the effort and were very accessible.