Member Info for JohnLewis79

Elsewhere Playtech (used to hold 10% of Spo) issued a profit warning and the shares slumped 21%. From memory T. Sagi was personna non grata in the US due to some financial stuff and sold out of Spo who were applying for US licences at the time.....

PP expect OP profits of c. £450-465m for '17. PP are less exposed to any drastic reduction in fobs spin stakes indeed the outgoing CEO has been highly critical of these machines and has called for a max £10 spin. A new CEO will have to deal with this in Jan as BC is off to pastures new. Elsewhere the Western Australian Govt has slapped a 15% tax on bet revenue costing PP c. £7m pa.

Interesting read. We know the opportunities for Zam and Zambia in general wishing to diversify away from mining. Agriculture is the surest way to achieve long term growth of the economy as long as eating food don't go out of fashion. A growing population will see to this with demand expected to triple from $8bn to $24bn by 2031, that's a lot of hungry mouths to feed in Zambia and the surrounding countries. Zambeef is best placed to supply the increasing demand for basic foodstuffs. If only the market could look beyond tomorrow?.....

Trading update 6/11...

Could be...but will take the gloss of the offer price if bidders had factored in the SC not overturning prev rulings. I'd say 140 well out of the window now.

Some decent vols and bargains traded since post Agm. Might have been some positives heard at the drinks session later...heh heh heh! Ooops this ain't a Grand Met issp up Agm....mores the pity!

Win one lose one....I guess!

SC rules in favour of HMRC on interest / vat re Littlewoods.

A bit of selling and the Barrow boys take fright...not worth bothering about if your waiting for an offer. It ain't written in stone we'll get one!

A recent study found in 2014 that £13bn had been wagered on the one armed bandits by the poorest 25% of the population, racking up over £400m losses. Most of the squandering took place in the country's most deprived boroughs which contain 2691 betting shops. Scince the relaxation of the Gambling Act (2005) an additional 2m people have been identified as at risk of problem gambling. The proliferation of tv ads on sport channels imploring one to bet on the next corner, goal scorer or whose down the pub is symptomatic of the lax attitude to gambling. Most of the current legislation was watered down under G.Brown's chancellorship (he bottled the super casino network) he used the gambling revenue to fund his grandiose state ambitions. Remember this was the man who sold a chunk of our gold reserves at rock bottom prices. Mistakes of the past are not been heeded (so far) and Parliamentarians look set to fail yet again to learn lessons from history. The Govt had a great opportunity to act on the Fobs they passed the parcel back to the bookies for more useless chin wagging and reviews on the last review. No wonder sfa gets done these days.

Discipline, discipline and more discipline is needed if your a gambler at any form of betting. We often hear gamble only what you can afford to lose which is plainly sensible if you like a punt be it the ponies or shares. Else you will be broke and on the borrow and a life of misery. I always figured the odds were stacked against me and feeding these one armed bandits never appealed. I suppose if your stupid enough to lose hundreds of pounds on the spin of a wheel you deserve all you get. Unfortunately it's the fall out from problem gamblers that cause concern in terms of crime and family breakdowns. Tinkering with the problem achieves nothing. Regretably the Govt want their cake which will trump any social concerns. From personal experience I drink in a pub that has lots of gambling activities and some serious punters. Of ten I know of three play the machines exclusively. Guess which ones are permanently broke and on the cadge. When the fun stops....stop. Yea right!

Some considerations up for discussion.. stakes reduced to max £50-30-20-10-02. Spin speed currently 20sec slowed to 30sec a spin. Currently it's possible to lose £18000 (£100 a spin every 20secs) in an hour if your chasing losses. Average losses per punter per machine is £9 according to the bookies. If that is the case, surely they wouldn't mind a big reduction in spin stakes? Govt figs say there are 35.000 high stakes (fobs) in the UK which provide the huge cash flow to betting companies. A £2 spin would mean a max win of £36 that's at roulette hardly what an addicted punter would consider worth bothering with. So be it.

Bookies happy at open...

.....or say should be at least halved! Thanks for that..

Could be a classic fudge coming up....kick it down the road for further discussions / consultation periods. These reviews are meant to happen every three years so by the time this one has had numerous talks and then implementation it will be time for the next review. Talk of options...a choice of £2, £10 £50 per spin won't cure the problem just add to the confusion. With all the opposition parties in favour of a max £2 spin that's another headache the Govt can do without. When in doubt. ..do nowt.

Pressure to change is overwhelming not that ethical funds will be much bothered but other iis might be seriously worried that dividends will be impacted from reduced machine turnover which provide nearly 50% of bookie revs. How much of this is already priced in to falling bookie sp's (Sads & WH having a bad year) im not sure but if its anywhere near £10 a spin or a rduction in the nos of machines per shop.......expect further falls. We might know more details today. One thing I'm fairly certain of is someone who needs the thrill of £100 or £10 a spin bet won't turn to a Handicap race to get his kick and will probably move elsewhere. I guess a plus from a crack down will be a big reduction in Sads fixed cost estate. While driving punters to mob betting makes sense many of the old stagers will abandon betting altogether or seek out a rivals shop. Attempts to 'blood' a new generation of young punters is already being frowned on though imo they are far more interested in video gaming than the 4.00 o'clock at Kelso.

Expect a trading update next week.

Face a tough week as the Gov prepare to slash the £100 spin to possibly 20p. Those close to the action think its likely to be £20 a spin max on the 'fobs'. £2 a spin would crucify the betting shops profits, turnover and jobs which would reduce the Gov take so imo such a drastic action is a non starter. Its been est that Sads eps would fall by 25% at £10 a spin. Elsewhere Betting companies that to contribute to efforts to tackle problem gambling will be named and shamed. Gamble Aware the charity said it fell £5m short if it's £13m industry contribution target last year. Kate Lampard, chairman said she was shocked and found it inexplicable. It is a huge risk to the industry. There is no legal requirement to donate though the recommendation is 0.1% of total staked in effect 10p in every £100. Data from the Gambling Commission earlier this year showed more than 2m people in the UK were deemed at risk. Spo are a risk free bet should co's dependent on machine monies seek new revenue streams.

I'm afraid London Mining scared me off the sector and it's been rerated upwards considerably (copper in CAML's case) since 2016 as metal prices have increased. Not getting involved unless my partners decide to out Zam. Unfortunately they tend to leave the "'sell"' advice to me....so it's a 'what do you think John?" Having come a cropper elsewhere my confidence in stock picking and let's face it that's the name of the game is pretty much shot and when you lose your confidence you dither or make the wrong move. Joining a train steaming off into the distance doesn't appeal. Atm there's no compelling reason to sell out of Zam a Co thats so dominant in the region. Even with the political background it's a 60/40 risk I'm reasonably happy with. Having said that I'll put CAML on my watch list. PS like your 'BadAdvice' moniker!!!

With the bid only 4 above the £10m Placing at 75p for the Please Tech deal holders might be getting a bit twitchy by taking some money off the table now. Anyone intending to go to the AGM?