Member Info for CHEQUEMATE

Good evening GG. Just checking up on you to see how you are etc. Although a little fall back today the share price is still in the high 90s which is good. Not a lot of volume or trades. No new news from the GBG website; if there is I will let everyone know. Not expecting anything for another 2-3 weeks. Interesting evening here; been out lying in the woods in the cold and dark near Grasmere, waiting for the dogs to find me re. mtn rescue. Good to see friends again, both 2 and 4 legged. Watching the red flashing light on the dogs collar getting closer before the inevitable find, barking and game once the handler had arrived. Fun. Very foggy drive back meant late home, no dinner, just chicken sandwhich before bed (thats for me, not the dogs!). I noticed ATUK had a good day yesterday(?) for you. For both of us GBO seems to be on a reasonable roll right now, but for how long?, is this another false dawn?. Have you invested in Brady or SSY?. SSY was on my watch list last summer at around 58p, but I chose not to invest because the spread was significant and the sp stagnant. Just shows how patience pays off. Time is getting on again. All the best. Stay warm (getting colder here, some mention of snow). CM

Good evening Jas., good to see you on the board; tends to be very quiet here - usually a good sign. I bought into TRCS at around 82p and took some profits at around 153p; only to kick myself and buy back in the same amount I had sold at 165p!. In all honesty it was only 250 shares, so I haven't lost a great deal. You raise some good points. I think this share is a little dormant just now but may well spring back into life on more news of contract wins and especially a trading update near the end of February which should include the benefits of the contract win in New Zealand and any news from Scandanavia where it is looking to expand its business. I don't think I have ever held shares for anywhere near 3 years, although I wish I had with SNR, which I invested in at 35p, sold out at around 100p only to see it now well over 200p.........3 years later!.....or is it 4?. Problem I have is that I can not think long term, find it difficult to see beyond 9 months for reasons its not right to go into on this bb. A good choice for an investment. Don't expect fireworks, but you should be able to sleep ok with TRCS in your portfolio. As with any share though...........keep an eye on it and for any news it gives out.......good and bad. If the news is bad (and I have no reason to think there will be bad news) be prepared to sell. Regards CM

When I bought into GBG the sp was about 60p. A 3p rise would equate to 5% rise at that time. At 100p a 3p rise would equate to only a 3% rise on the day but would still be 5% of the original investment. A 5p rise at 100p, equal to a 5% rise on the day would infact equal to over 8% on the original investment. As the share price rises it is easier for share price movement to be greater. What is important to remember is the percentage rise on the original investment will also be greater. A share which is at 200p, a rise of say 10p would not be too hard to think of and could seem fairly insignificant, but say you had originally bought into that share at just 50p!........the rise would equal 20% in value in just one day!. The rise of 10p at 50p would however seemed near impossible. Plus of course there may well be a dividend, which hopefully would increase in value. Good reasons as why to run ones profits. On the other hand!.................if a share falls by 20% in value from when we invested, it would need to rise by 25% to return to its original level. If it falls by 33% in value then it has to rise by 50% to return to its orignal level, and a 50% fall a 100% rise (doubling) would be necessary!. Is that likely with a share which is so weak?. The falling knife syndrome. This is why it is so dangerous to average down and better to cut ones losses early. Just some thoughts that came to mind during a boring spell at work today folks. Regards CM

Hey, GG, you're back!. Thought you must have been away on holiday or perhaps sold up, moved on or just had had enough and deserted ship!. Nice to see you back. Good day today. The trend now does appear to have reversed. I would have been happy with a rise of 1p to confirm (imo) a trend reversal. I was caught out by the size of todays movement. GBG is still the major holding in my portfolio but I am hardly in a position just now to invest more unless I sell elsewhere. Now, I am back to thinking I should not have sold any of my original holding and should have held, but you can go stir crazy thinking like that. After I sold some shares in GBG I felt I should have sold the lot when I saw the remainder fall to sub 90p. As Corporal Jones would have said "don't panic, don't panic!". However, with some of the proceeds I bought into UFG which has since risen by over 15%, ECK up by around 5%, PEN notionally up by 1% and back into GBG - down on my buy back in prices of around 99-99.75p, so reasonably ok. The recent positive movement is re-assuring. We all have to realise that no share will rise continuosly, there will be periods of fall back. However, with the right fundamentals, business, etc., the strongest of shares (not necessarily the most glamourous) will prosper. Sometimes we have to wait and be patient, but still be wary and keep an eye on things including general market conditions. Just hoping having posted the above, that GBG isn't just raising its head, sniffing the air and saying, "nah!, still dark and cold out there, still winter" and go back into hibernation. Bit like what I would like to do at this time of year!. Good luck CM

Hmm, interesting. Is this confirmation that the share price trend is reversing to be positive again?. Personally I would like to see more upward movement yet. Looking at the charts and using Bollinger Bands the 3 month chart using 9 day moving average shows the sp has broken above the upper BB, the 6 month chart using 20 day moving average shows the sp touching the upper BB but the 1 year chart using the 50 day moving average shows the sp not much above the lower BB. Using the 3 month chart again, it shows the BBs have turned upward having been moving downwards recently; this is a good sign. GBG needs more days of positive movement before any trend can be said to be reversed certainly. Is this a time to buy in?, well, it is a better odds gamble (if that is what it is) than a week ago, but do your own research folks. There is a trading update due at the end of the month. I believe there is more upside here but my funds are severly limited due to investing elsewhere. Good to see both the bid and ask price rising to their highest of the day at the day end. Taken a gamble today and gone against many if not all of my usual investment criteria by investing in FJET. I couldn't invest first thing and had to wait until gone 1.30 pm by which time the sp had risen significantly. I didn't pay top whack for the day and thankfully by day end the sp hadn't fallen back to below what I paid, although that of course could happen tomorrow. Why the gamble?; well, I like the story behind it, see the potential and think the management and backers are extremely good. Doesn't mean it will fly of course, excuse the pun. In a nutshell, FJET is trying to set itself up as the Easyjet for Africa, has Stellios onboard plus a no. of his team from Easyjet days. Not a huge investment, 10000 shares. Not sure how it will play out, but if the partnership with Emirates goes ahead then there could be quite some upside. Hope all is well with everybody. Looking forward to good news from GBG and of course any and all of our other investments. Good luck. Regards CM

Happy New Year GG., how are you doing/. Very quick post here, at lunch, due back shortly. Taken a bit of a gamble today by selling my NET shares and investing more in CCVU. Wanted to still have some funds left just in case. Think NET will be a slower burner than CCVU, matter of juggling a little. GBG seems to be holding its own just now. Hope all is well with you and all your family. Regards CM

Well, perhaps it was as well I had to work today, otherwise I am sure I would have been sitting in front of my laptap all day, with fingers poised on the sell button. I did write out a list of my holdings and what percentage of each I was prepared to sell with a stop loss but ran out of time to put a limit on so went off to work wondering if I should turn back home, do the necessary and then go to work late. Professionalism meant I bit the bullet and just hoped things would turn out ok; but I have to admit I was pretty nervous all day. Thankfully I was busy at work which helped to take my mind off financial matters most of the time. I have to say I was surprised the market didn't get hit badly today; perhaps the mkt. was giving the U.S the benefit of the doubt re. their going ons. As I post the DJI is up 160 points or more. Thankfully...GBG held its ground today; very surprised. I did expect it to fall below 90p. Very low volume. I suppose these times are sent to try us. Anyway all, as the old year closes (thankfully), lets hope 2013 is a better year in every way. I really do wish everyone all the very best in every way. Regards CM

Hello GG, how are you doing?, I hope you had a great Christmas. Before I forget, let me wish you right now a great, happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. Have you got your tin hat out?. I'm wondering quite what will happen on the market tomorrow depending on what comes out of the U.S.A and the fiscal cliff. There are contrasting opinions on whether a deal will be reached this evening or during tomorrow and whether or not it would be better to cross the cliff and pick up the pieces early in the new year with new Congressional representatives in place. The fc was designed to get the parties together before the last minute and concentrate their minds.........but!.......seems a bit like scenes from a playground to me. Any views?. Not sure if I should put a stop loss on all of my holdings because it is quite possible/likely that most shares will get hit regardless of fundamentals, good news and potential. Do I/we sell up and wait for a better time to buy back in?, a gamble yes, but the alternative may be to sit it out and watch the value of our investments fall back. Difficult one. I could argue the case both ways. Trying to keep tabs on what is happening in the U.S via Reuters or any news channel. This is a challenging time; I for one am nervous. Early morning for me tomorrow I think to get a feeling for things and what to do; will probably change my mind a no. of times. Unfortunately I have to work, so I am very limited during the day to trade. The markets are open tomorrow aren't they?. Very good luck my friend. Will be thinking of you. Regards CM

What!!!!...........my last post was cut short!. The last sentence should have read "For those of you who have children, I hope this will be an exciting, magical time full of fun and laughter. Must admit..........it kept you in suspence...........it could have been anything.....full of fun and mince pies, wine, chocolate.......oh yes.......chocolate!. Mmmm, chocolate!. Hey ho CM

Hey, crack open the wine, sound the trumpets, put the flags out, because?...............this is my 1000th post!. So what you say........yeah...........so what!. Oh well....... A fairly busy day at work, lot of people looking for ski jackets and down jackets. My ears always pick up when people mention the word SKI-ING, gets the old andrenalin going. The same when they are looking at the ski helmets and goggles we sell, difficult not to get just the eeney weeney bit envious, but I always show an interest and if there is time ask where they are going etc. Then they usually have to tap me on the shoulder, wave a hand infront of my eyes and say "hello.....hello....anybody in there?" because I am off daydreaming, sweeping down the piste, through the trees, blue skies, snow capped mtns., ghluwein, yodalling, snow falling...........erhemm,......just like now!. Sorry. So, just one half days trading left before Christmas break. Will be quite pleased for the break to be hones; these last weeks seem to have been pretty tiring. I wonder if we can hold without falling back and set things up for a good 2013. GBG has come a long way during 2012, and if anyone had offered around 90p by year end for what we (well I) invested in, I dare say we would have snapped their hand off. There are threats ahead of course, most immediately the fiscal cliff in the U.S and no doubt Euro worries will come back at some time, as well as the unknown. Re. the fiscal cliff, I read last night that Pres. Obama has left the door open for further talks and believes a deal can still be done before the year end. He has told all, to go and enjoy Christmas with their families and reflect what lies immediately ahead. I believe the Republicans feel the same way, but of course, the far right (Chimpanzee) Tea Party would like to hold the whole world to ransom........pause.......thinking we may have some friends across the Pond viewing this who would like to join in and give us their view on the situation and enlighten us. Am I scared GG you are peeping through my windows?, no, not really, not as long as you haven't got wild blond hair and threatening to boil any domestic pet you can lay your hands on. A roasted turkey would be much better you know!. Anyway, back to "on topic". I believe, that on the whole 2013 will be a good year for GBG, I remain confident. We all need to stay alert and do our research, try to resist the temptation to rush into any new investments on a hunch. Remember this is not "Deal or No Deal", it is our own hard earned money we are using here. What is our risk appetite?, what return over the year would we be happy with?. Remember high risk MEANS high risk, even low risk means there is STILL risk. I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year. For those of you who have children, I hope this will be an exciting, magical time, full of fun and

Hi C8. I need to look into UTW more for you, although I have uncovered some info. The following comes from growthcompanyinvestor.com share recommendations, dated 9 October 2012. "Energycost management consultancy Utilitywise (LON:UTW) has reported that pre-tax profits were up 16% to £3.9m on revenues that saw a 32% jump to £14.4 million for the full year to July. Its net cash position improved to £8.2m (2011: £200,000) while it has also proposed a maiden dividend of 1p. The company specialises in energy procurement and management services for different businesses. In short, it renegotiates rates with energy suppliers and helps companies across the UK and Ireland to manage their energy consumption. Regarding the results, chief executive oficer Geoff Thompson claimed that the year had seen "exceptional progress" for the business and that the recent acquisition was proof of the company's strategy of "complementing organic growth". The company's hopes hinge on forecasts that predict an increase in energy prices in the short term. Utilitywise believes that this will lead more customers to become aware of the ways in which they need to look at reducing energy costs across the board. Analysts at finnCap are forecasting pre-tax profits of £6.6m on revenues of £24.7m for the year to July 2013. Having started well and with a business model focused on reducing costs for a client base during deepening recession, this consultancy looks set for growth. Buy." I need to look at graphs, ratios etc.. There aren't too many shares in issue, the share is relatively strong at present, I can not see there is too much competition (but will undoubtably be some), P/E and EPS seem reasonable, mkt. cap seems ok - not too high. One thing that concerns me are the Directors holdings, the CEO has over 40%, and the COO 11.68%. There is only one Institutional investor (above 3%) which is Legal and General with 4.52%. Ideally I would like to see the directors holding far less and there to be more institutional holdings. As it is, the directors can do just about whatever they want. The company may want to issue more shares to get more institutional investment, MAY, not certain. This could dilute private individual holdings, but this is mere speculation on my behalf. Unless you are considering investing tomorrow morning before the market closes at mid-day then there is no rush, and I doubt there will be massive movement one way or another to make much difference. I will see what else I can find re. RNS etc. I'll try and get back to you with any further info. before year end. Regards CM

Hello GG, good to hear from you and as entertaining as ever. Who needs t.v and Strictly or the X whatever it was. Work beckons unfortunately, so have got to brave the elements in a mo., blowing a hoolie out there. My friend could have done with the Terminator in Asda in Barrow yesterday, couldn't park, then struggleld around the store, trying to dodge the crowds and being swept up in some giant tidal wave of sweaty Barrowovians taking her down the wrong aisle whilst stretching out her hand to her friend shouting "help....I'm over here......save me!", before disappearing amongst screaming kids with half eaten sausage rolls (not yet paid for) stuffed in their mouths. Hey, ho, Christmas eh, where would we be without it?. Totally off subject folks, I know, so sorry, but catch up with you later. Have a good day. CM

Hello GG; hope you are having a good weekend. How was the party?. Feel a little bit on my own here. Banging in a bit of research. Non GBG topic here folks coming up. GG, a little while ago you mentioned Brady in one of your posts - the Cambridge connection. From the same issue of growthcompanyinvestor is an article about Brady. "Brady is a company that feels young and fast growing, but has actualy been around since 1985. It was founded by Dr. Robert Brady a former fellow of Cambridge University who also set out to create software that would enable companies trading commodities to manage their transactions and risk. Brady is still on the board as a non-executive director, but the company is now led by CEO Gavin lavelle, previously a director at Deutsche Bank. Lavelle's tenure has coincided with an impressive spurt of expansion from sales of £5.7 million in 2007 to an estimated £30 million this year, with forecast profits of £5.3million. This has been driven both by acquisitions the latest in November 2012, and contract wins, which has occurred with impressive frequency over the past 12 months. But this growth is built upon a reassuringly strong foundation. The company is debt-free and reported cash of £7.8 million in its results for the six months to June. About half of its revenues are recurring (£6.7 million out of £12.1 million in those recent results) and it has customers like Eon, Xstrata, HSBC and NM Roschild. Accordingly it raised its final dividend tfor 2011 to 1.5p from 1.4p the year before. Clerly, the conbination of momentum, potential and balance sheet strength comes at a price, the company's trailing price-to-earnings ration is 17.9. The optimism surrounding it also makes it vunerable to temporary rerating if it doesn't quite meet market expectations. But the mid-term prospects are excellent. Growth Company Investor tipped the shares in april 2011 at 73p but since then the story has only got better. Buy." I don't know about you, but I keep finding shares worthy of further consideration. Problem is of course, we all have limited funds with other priorities. If only the market was more stable; the U.S fiscal cliff thingermegib still isn't sorted despite optimistic comments one day and then pessimistic comments the next. Brinkmanship they call it. Can think of other words I would call it; none of which would be suitable on here. Blimey O'Riley,......time is cracking on again!. Domestic chores are awaiting.............well, if they have waited this long......then they can wait a little longer. Guess your little angels are getting all excited with Christmas just a few days away. Oh to be so young again, wonderful!. Have a good weekend; hope the weather is being kinder to you down there than what it is up here. CM

Good evening folks. GBG is rated a buy in the latest edition of growthcompanyinvestor.com: "Identity management specialist GB Group offers its clients the chance to better understand their customers in 3 ways; connection, communication and transaction. In order tohelp the client achieve this, the group offers 4 primary service lines: ID verification, ID customer registration, ID engagement and ID tracing services. The first offering heads up the Data Authentication division while the following 3 make up Data Solutions. In a world where individuals privacy is increasingly a controversial topic, GB would argue tht it only helps these businesses better serve their consumer bases while also protecting them from identifty thieves. The group holds external agreements with 72 clients such as Thomas Cook and Scottish Power. It differentiates itself from the competition through the exclusive data sources while designing its technology at high cost of change to its clients. It also boasts an international aspect to its service - it claims to be able to verify anyone, anywhere, anytime. Chief executive Richard Anthony Law currently leads the group. Having been finance director since 1995,he was appointed to his current role in December 2001. Life before GB Group saw Law acting as a coporate financier with Ernst & Young. Current finance director Dave Wilson's experience lies in board-level positions with some well-known technology and computer based businesses including Fujitsu and Eazyfone (brand envirofone.com). Meanwhile, steering the helm is chairman David Rasche, appointed to the board in September 2010. He is founder and chairman of Software Solutions Partners, a large specialist insurance software house. He has more than 37 years of IT industry experience, with close to 30 years at board level. The groups latest set of results saw revenues jump 44% to £17.7 million for the six months to September. Increases in cost of sales and operating expenses meant that the bottom line was dented to record pre-tax profits of £500,00 (2011: £700,000) but a tax rebate saw these restated at £600,000. Cash remains a strong point, with a balancfe of £5.8 million (2011: £4.8 million). The dividend also rose to 0.4p to 1.5p. Growth Company Investor has watched the stock breach the £1 mark this year, and with full-year profits expected to hit £5 milllion and almost as much cash sitting at the bank, this looks like a sensible investment, with momentum on its side as demand forits services increase. Buy." None of us should of course rely solely on such articles but GCI have highlighted some very good shares previously. We still need to do our own research; this just helps to build a bigger, better picture. GCI do not ramp nor deramp any share and are not bias. GCI recommended ASOS as a buy when it was 9p; the spread of 7p-9p put me off. Where is it now?.......over £20!!!!.

Good evening folks; hope you have had a good day. Day off for me today and a dry one; a rarity. Took the opportunity to get out on the fells with my furry four legged friend and enjoy the fresh air. Good to get out and think only of the views and where Bliss (the dog) had dropped her stick!. Ok. So another day down, but i really don't think we have too much to worry about. The share is 10% down from its' year high as we approach the year end. If I found a share like that and with the fundamentals that GBG has, I would be looking to find a buy entry point, not a sell exit point. It hasn't been a great last 5 or 6 weeks but it hasn't for many shares. Looking at the revenue for year ending 31 March 2012 it was £31.83m with pre tax profit of £2.51m. For year ending 31 March 2013 revenue is forecast to be £40.65m with pre tax profit of £5.06m (figures from digitallook.com. The dividend is forecast to increase too. I still believe it is better to wait for confirmation of the share price trend to reverse but maybe it needs to take a number of us to buy in now to show the mischief (market) makers that there is real interest here. GG - hope you had a good evening last night; have you recovered yet?. Interesting portfolio; any particular reason why you are in PGB?. How are your U.S shares doing?. Regards and have a good weekend. Still waiting for the end of the world at midnight to see if I have to turn up for work tomorrow. Should I set my alarm?. Regards CM

Hi Wishey. Thanks for the post. Sorry I'm a bit late getting back to you. It's been my day off work and I've been out walking in the fells with the dog; not long back. A dry day for a change, even if I could see diddly wotsit for the first hour or more. I will have a look at OCG over the weekend possibly and get back to you with my views. Did you invest in CCVU?. Not much movement today, but I will always take any movement Northwards. Have a good weekend. Regards CM

Hello there. Really wasn't expecting any reply; talking to myself I thought. Dealing in minnows really is fraught with danger, particularly from my experience in the oil and gas market; I've had my fingers burnt too many times. I tend to do extensive research these days before I invest, so this one was a little bit of an exception by investing without quite so much research. Having looked at the fundamentals though and ratios I am reasonably happy although I will keep my eye on it. I think the share price rose this morning on the back of the NT article, so you may have a better chance tomorrow. It was up 4p at one time today but dropped back by day end. The sp graph looks good too which I always look at before investing. I like shares around 50p - 80p to invest in, high enough to be on some radars, but low enough to have further growth (all other parts of the jigsaw being in place including good RNS and positive Chairmans statement and outlook in latest trading statement). It has worked very well for me previously with SNR, CZA, and with present holdings in GBG and TRCS. Good to see there is life on here. Regards CM

Well. this is a quiet board isn't it?. Hello....hello....hello......anyone there.......there.....there? CCVU mentioned in dispatches in the Naked Trader yesterday so I had a look into it further. Made a small investment at just under 76p. Most of the criteria I set using the Zulu Principle are met. Keeping some funds back to possibly invest further if the shares do well and averaging up, not down. Wonder if my friend from Cambridge will pay a visit?. Regards CM what's that?........do I hear something?..................no...........just the wind in the eaves CM.........don't panic!. Better light the candles..........awfully dark in here!. ....... was that the door creaking?.....hello....hello.....hello.

Good luck C8. I have decided to wait a little longer to await that confirmation of a price trend reversal. Didn't want to put the mockers on it for you by investing. Thankfully GBG didn't lose any ground today, it needs to be steady for a while and form a base for further upward momentum. However, I did make a similarly small investment to your top up in GBG by investing in CCVU. There was a brief mention in the latest Naked Traders diary yesterday so I had a fairly quick dig around for data. Most of the criteria I set before investing using the ZP are met; the fundamentals are strong. Kept some funding back so that I can average up if things go well, (not keeping funds back to average down) and won't have so much invested if things don't go so well. Worth a look, but of course, dyor. GG, hope you had a good evening. I too don't do fb. perish the thought. Perhaps I should keep a little more to the topic in future; I'm easily distracted. Boiling bunnies is not my scene either.....no......much prefer them roasted or pan fried. I think it is good to share our thoughts on GBG and other shares and generally to be able to bounce ideas off one another. I will do my best to help where I can. Good luck all and apologies for any off topicness. Regards CM

You know, not so long ago I was quite a quiet poster!. Honestly. Then along comes this poster from Cambridge who appeared to be following me around, investing in the same shares........and the rest is history!. Before I forget GG, have a great evening tomorrow. My works Christmas do was last Friday. I was South this year so got out of going. To be honest the only reason I would have gone would have to have had something for nothing from our Lord and Master. Take my hip flask and top up on the feebies, after filling up the flasks first!. Nice thought C8 re. barbecue and Sanghria, who knows, maybe one of these days. Hey, if GBG hits that £2!. Whereabouts in Hampshire are you incidentally?. I like to know where everyone lives......well...... the town would do, no need to go as far as house number and street!. Gosh is that the time?,,,,,,,,,ecky thump........zzzzzzzzzzzz........goodbye early night!. Regards CM