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New high reached today following URI's 26% increase over the last month and further 2.7% so far today.

Why the big fall? Ashtead is a good company but cyclical. 28th September last year they hit 2461 but by Christmas they had fallen to 1586. Also as they make about 95% of their profits in America they tend to follow their competitors there. So at the moment its mainly about Trump and his trade wars, the possibility of a global recession and Brexit. I watch the movements of the likes uf URI and H&E. URI have third quarter results on 17th October.

Big fall in share price today following URI's fall of 4.07% yesterday and premarket fall of 1.67% today. I sold some at 2350 last month and may buy back in shortly. I'll see how today goes.

I note that, according to the Telegraph and under pressure from the City, Ashtead is scrapping pensions worth upto 40% of bosses' salaries and capping them at 15% for future executive directors.
Good on Brendan Horgan, leading the way.

1.2.X.U.
Are you taking the interest on the debt into account?

I see that Trump's wall is back on the cards as the US Supreme Court has said that he can use£2bn of Pentagon funds for a section of wall on the southern border.

URI results beat expectations however they trimmed their guidance for the full year. Hence the fall in the SP of 12.73% on the week and the consequent fall in the SP of Ashtead back to their results in June.
C' est la vie!

URI post finals on Wednesday 17th. Their share price rose 3.8% yesterday.

Now there's a turn up for the books.
Ashtead actually rising on good results and what's more pulling URI up as well!

Geoff Drabble steps down as CEO today. Let's hope Brendan Horgan can do as well as Geoff over the last 12 years with the share price then being around £1.40.

United Rentals is expected to report a Q3 increase in EPS from $2,87 to $3.1 when it reports after hours on Wednesday.
Both URI and AHT shares have risen in anticipation this week. It remains to be seen what happens on Thursday.

LoveMusic
If owning individual shares causes you sleepless nights perhaps you would be better off with investment trusts where the risks are spread.
You know what they say: "if you can't stand the heat get out of the kitchen".

I guess the markets are worried as to how the debt of £3.72 billion is going to be serviced when the inevitable downturn comes.

Damning criticism of share buybacks in the Sunday Telegraph today. They line the pockets of underperforming boards. The effect is mainly to enrich top management because it makes their bonus targets easier to hit.
It also limits the amount spent on R&D particularly by pharmaceutical companies. US law makers call it 'Corporate Cocaine'

Matt. There is no need to pay taxes on dividends. For the past 20 years I have invested through first PEPs and now ISA self select platforms where you don't pay taxes.
I think you will find that most retail investors are with me on the futility of share buybacks

Are they all abandoning the sinking ship?
First Geoff Drabble, now Ian Sutcliffe.
On the positive side, I note there have been no share buybacks since the 20th December. One can only hope they have come to their senses.

I can't see any reason other than that the house builders are down on falling house prices.
All AHT's U.S. competitors are up. URI up 2.34%, HEES up 1.61% and HRI up 1.14. at the time of writing. It's a conundrum

AAS
It is precisely because the dividend is well covered that the company can well afford to pay more'
6.5p with a profit of 98p per share: Ridiculous. When I see the value of my share holding fall by 35K I do not consider that the share buyback is in any way "returning profit" to me.
If they won't further increase the dividend or pay special ones as the builders do with surplus money I would much prefer them to pay down the debt, which they are paying interest on, ready for the inevitable downturn, instead of wasting my money on share buybacks.

Yet again Good results followed by a muted market response.
Who would want to invest in a company that pays a paltry dividend yet wastes millions of pounds supposedly
"returning profit to shareholders" by buybacks, while carrying huge debts?

Very sad to see Geoff Drabble go. He has been an excellent CEO over the last 12 years.

He also replied personally to my email to him about buybacks earlier in the year explaining the situation.
How many other CEOs would bother?

BARCLAYS SLASHES PRICE TARGET FOR ASHTEAD

(Sharecast News) - Ashtead is facing a flattening off in its construction equipment end-markets, Barclays said on Monday, slashing its price target for the FTSE 100 company.
Analysing how the current economic cycle might differ from the last one, Barclays felt that lead indicators "have likely peaked" and currently strong activity levels are likely to lead into flat end-market volumes in the year to April 2021 and negative in the two subsequent years.

Barclays, which cut its price target to 2,200p from 2,580p, said the "shape" of the current cycle is very different from that in 2008-10, which saw very aggressive growth followed by a sharp downturn. Currently growth has been steadier and so a less severe correction is expected. Furthermore, Ashtead has a stronger balance sheet this time.

"By the time AHT's end market conditions have deteriorated enough to be evident in financial performance, the shares will likely be closer to a buying opportunity than a selling opportunity."