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12% is a significant holding. Warrants seat on the Board in my view (whether Board / Exec like it or not - or whether it is a good or bad thing). Strange it was released at 4:30pm
Thanks sb. My point (and I just might be in a mood with THG) was the following from the RNS. No firm offer yet. I do hope one arrives. It’s just a bit black box at the mo >>
confirms that it is currently in receipt of a highly preliminary and non-binding indicative proposal from Apollo Global Management Inc. ("Apollo") on behalf of certain of its affiliated funds, to acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital of THG (the "Proposal").
There can be no certainty that any firm offer will be made
I think less than 170p (as an accepted offer) will create significant scrutiny. And long-term institutional investors may cry foul : or at least query. That said : it would make sense for Apollo to massively low-ball as a starting gambit.
I think is would stink a little if Apollo took out (or took out as part of a MBO) at less than 170p. So agree yes 200p feels like the floor of a defensible price that Exec could agree too. At the mo. I’d take that and be done with it.
Thanks Hosai, Pearls, maybe your right. I guess if I’m in Apollos shoes I want to take out THG at lowest possible SP. And my thinking was that can’t be blocked by MM post Sept (and things may get worse by then : we’ve not had a positive Exec update for a long time). I guess on the flip side if say you think it’s worth multiples more than it’s at now (with some surgery) then you just get on with it. The truth is I have absolutely no idea what is going on now - and that’s quite unnerving - I think that’s in part always the case but Comms from Exec inc guidance have lost basis of late.
Would be not to proceed with offer and wait until Sept for premium listing. SP likely to dive if offer doesn’t come through. Apollo can go again in 6 months. Only benefit is doing a MBO with MM and QIA. Even then waiting may help negotiate a lower price. The risk to Apollo is another is in the market (no noise on this) and it may have capital it needs to deploy.
Same old same old.
Short article in Sun about F&B.
Guess we’re waiting for AGM and/or Oasis next move.
It is bittersweet where PE see opportunity because of suboptimal performance. Results on Tuesday were terrible. With no forward guidance. The loss was unexpected and the exceptional items exceptional in scale. Management will have know revenues at Nutrition and Beauty were falling. And I don’t completely buy this is a consequent to a shift to higher margin. There is a risk that these platforms and their products start to be seen as junkyard sale when I had seen as THG pitching above Amazon in terms of curation and customer focus (customer being vendor in this case). And am concerned that unchecked blaming the market is a distraction from changes that need to be made internally. Coming round to idea that move to premium market, listing, Board and Exec change is probably best outcome for investors. This would include some sales. Equally I would take 200p on Monday if offered… in part because I don’t feel I now understand this stock or particularly management or strategy … there’s just too much going on to make sense of it.
These are awful results. More so as some advance guidance could have been given. It simply gives impression Exec are inexperienced at running a big opp and too much is of the cuff. Perversely such poor Exec performance maybe where PE see opportunity. Very very bad revenue updates for Nutrition and Beauty (falling) well have to see whether this is migration to higher margin goods or more talk.
I can’t see THG getting through investor briefing w/o Qs on Apollo. Apollo will have offered a price. So I wonder if that will be announced off the bat as an RNS tomorrow morning. Else every Q will be … what did they offer. Roughly what? Etc etc. I guess a defence would be - they are not the only offer on the table (!) or others are expected. Or it’s privy as a Chinese wall is now up consequent to MBO also underway. Who knows - but the offer will out - I can see it getting through tomorrow without either THG, Apollo or someone else outing it
As they are over at THG. On a more relevant note RTN must be prime for a PE but-out?
I don’t think results will be great. Can live with that, and so can market I would suggest, if there is transparency on BU performance, forward guidance on strategy execution (inc. cost management) and similarly indication that inflationary effects are passing (read future margins rising).
I can see QIA wanting to est. a THG centre in Q serving Asia / global markets with spillover benefits. But I don’t think THG is big enough to be significant to Q yet. Though maybe the IP is… support a MBO and divert focus thereafter.
I think we get a lot of intel of accounts for nutrition and beauty are split out and presented. Much much easier for market to value… or better put it’s explicit so will be valued either positive or negative. That will drive SP. Hoping market / PE see value in SOTP