Member Info for BlahBlahDoh

Delay to mobile money obviously affecting the SP, but the results are so good it hasn't fallen back. Probably a sensible decision, although it's hard to see the volatility decreasing in the second half. The underlying story for this share remains phenomenal.

Do we know for a fact that it was a "money making asset"? It's sale purportedly reduces operating costs, that's the justification for it, but no mention of how it affects revenue. That seems like one sided spin. Since the sale amount is also undisclosed this is effectively a secret transaction with minimal transparency. Shareholders are presumably expected to trust management that this is in the company's interest. We shouldn't.

Nigwit has been saying similarly deluded things for years on this forum, as the companies outlook narrowed further and further.

Perhaps he's still holding out for the vertical farming dollar? : )

Because directors are human beings who have millions of other things to spend their money on other than doubling down on a company they have already invested a lot in? Anyone sensible diversifies. Because they don't happen to have any spare cash for a million reasons - health care, school fees, new house, new car? Anyone sensible uses their money to enrich their lives or help family members rather than hoarding it for gambling on a share price rise. Or because they regard the share price to be fair value or overvalued, and don't see any profit in buying. Or all of the above, and more.

If, for some reason, you regard director buys as a key indicator, then you surely should not "want to buy"? Perhaps it might be useful to focus on other indicators instead.

Over 6% voting rights in M&G obtained via a series of Equity Swap instruments extending over the next 20 months. Can't remember seeing anything like this before. Presumably a hedging arrangement to smooth out the TACO factor?

Today Sage price rose 1.1% when someone apparently misinterpreted a notification and reported that Chief People Officer Amanda Cusdin buys 36,000 shares. Later this was corrected, because she actually SOLD the shares, and the price dropped. Pathetic communication failure which could easily be prevented by replacing a stupid system with a sensible one.

As you didn't like our previous, comprehensive answers, perhaps you'd prefer this one from Search Assistant? :

"M&G's total equity is not progressively falling; instead, the company has shown signs of consistent growth and improvement in its financial performance, including a rise in its Shareholder Solvency II coverage ratio. The company is also focused on maintaining financial strength and delivering profitable growth.

M&G's Total Equity Overview

Recent Performance

M&G has shown signs of improvement in its financial performance, with full-year profits better than expected.

The Shareholder Solvency II coverage ratio increased from 223% to 242%, indicating stronger balance sheet strength.

Equity Trends

While M&G's total equity has faced challenges, the company is focusing on cost reductions and operational efficiencies.

The company has made significant progress in its asset management segment, achieving positive net flows and improved client inflows.

Future Outlook

M&G expects underlying operating profit to grow at an average annual rate of 5% or more through 2027.

The company is also working on innovative deal structures in the bulk annuity market to enhance its equity position.

Overall, while M&G has experienced fluctuations in total equity, recent strategies and performance improvements suggest a potential stabilization and growth in the future."

Todays RNS seems to indicate a substantial increase in voting rights by BlackRock, Inc. Does this imply an increase in their shareholding position or not?

The deliberately opaque presentation of these notifications seems silly and childish. It would be far easier to just state what happened in plain English.

Hi Scharnhorst, another "clown" here. Do you like my shoes?

You said "MicroBlate does not have FDA approval for endoscopic use. It is only approved for use in open, laparoscopic or percutaneous procedures "

Both laparoscopic and percutaneous procedures are endoscopic, so your sentences contradict each other.

Custard pie time?

Market seems a bit dim about Bloomsbury. It used to think they were reliant on Harry Potter, and now Maas. There was no reason to be surprised that Bloomsbury would publish more of her books. She is under contract for more after these two, and has ALWAYS published with Bloomsbury, who discovered her, but there is far more to Bloomsbury than one author, and they repeatedly beat expectations. It would be good to see the shorters take further hits from a resurgence in academic revenue, and a new wave of reading interest generated by the upcoming HBO Harry Potter TV series starting early next year. They have many other outstanding authors with enormous potential and have demonstrated their ability to find and develop talent.

Good to see the Sage bond issue 8 times oversubscribed. Risk reduced, strong support demonstrated, finances bolstered.

"The new AI models can replace the need for SAGE"

Can they? Won't the fact that they cannot count be a slight drawback? ( :

"My portfolio dividend yield always exceeds 7pc"

Surely that depends if such rates are available, which is not always the case. It also suggests you have a big appetite for risk. I would suggest M&G are probably a less risky asset than most companies paying above 7%? Yes M&G's yield has come down recently due to the rising SP, so that does call for a reassessment, especially if dividends are your priority.

"Not true. M&G Interim 12 Aug 20. £0.0000 Suspension 0.00%"

On LSE Share news, you can see M&G declaring a dividend of 6p in August 2020. Not sure where you are getting that zero figure from, but if you were not paid a dividend, perhaps you should ask them why? I am fully prepared to admit when I am wrong, and I'm frequently wrong, but I received a dividend payment, so I cannot agree that there wasn't one. The point is, most companies suspended dividends, and there were many people on this board worrying about M&G doing the same, and "experts" claiming it was unsustainable.

Seems to be a consensus that the only reason for the SP drop is misguided concerns about the impact of AI, but what about interest rates? Rate reductions were paused by the Federal Reserve in January after three successive cuts last year. Higher than expected rates likely results in a lower rate of expansion amongst smaller businesses and therefore a lower rate of revenue increase for Sage, and a corresponding downward revision to modelled expectations?

Sage's high leverage also makes the SP sensitive to interest rates relating to their own borrowing. It's not just the pause in cuts, it's also the uncertainty and loss of momentum.

If you've been here since 2019 then you should know that M&Gs business model has confused and defied analysts from the start, and continues to do so. You should also be aware that they maintained dividend payments THROUGHOUT a pandemic, when nearly every other company on the market did not. There are legitimate concerns, but they are not new, and there are mitigating factors such as predictions of a rebound in earnings. Your actions seem somewhat sudden, if I may say so, given the long term nature of M&G's business and of your holdings, but everyone here should be aware of their own exposure to risk, and the fickleness of the market, regardless of past performance. You now need to find somewhere better to put your assets - somewhere with, presumably, less perceived risk, less dividend, yet better prospects - not easy?

Sage software is a tool used by accountants. AI is another software tool, and glaringly complementary? I suppose the worry would be that AI could strip away all but the core tasks, reducing margins? Perhaps not everything Sage provides is counting, some is interface, output formatting, etc? Nevertheless, it could also go the other way: Sage could enhance the user experience at less cost to itself and to the customer, for mutual benefit. They seem to be pursuing that goal. An integrated, trusted product is probably more attractive, simpler, and difficult to migrate from, for most users.

SAGE is highly leveraged though, regardless of AI spending, so their position is not entirely different from other players.

From AI queries, it appears that AAF revenue grew faster than it's main rival, MTN, in 2025. Despite very strong growth from MTN, AAF was even stronger.

Needs confirmation from a more trustworthy source though.

"Expecting rationality from the market is unwise"

This is a slight pullback after a year of MASSIVE rises. The market is looking to the future, and presumably sees more risk due to cost of debt, currency vulnerability, and margin erosion. All these worries could evaporate quickly depending on the mood of the red braces brigade. In all likelihood this company has years of growth ahead of it, and is backed by the deep resources, financial and technological, of the Bharti family. SP likely to creep back up, IMO, but that's rationality speaking: don't trust it!

Apparently it is not the headline numbers which have damaged investor confidence, it is concerns about liquidity and leverage. Too much risk.

Management need to pull their fingers out and address this, and frankly should have foreseen this and done it earlier. It's not a corner shop, and they are paid more than enough to be on top of OBVIOUS concerns like this.