Member Info for JohnLewis79

That's good news what's not so good is the palm price has plunged through the $700 range to current $580 as over stocking / bumper supply hit's prices. When they rebalance prices should revert upwards. Nevertheless it's another income stream for Zam with a large ready market in edible oils throughout Southern Africa.

Having sold our main asset and a lot of uncertainty ahead I'm not sure what the City would be anticipating. We are debt free and cash rich so that has its attractions for a predator, but ex the Pools? I doubt it. I'm not factoring in the compound interest situation as this is unsettled and contingent on the courts ruling in Littlewoods favour. So best left out of one's reckoning. I think we are overdue news on the Pools sale which is probably holding up our US strategy. Whatever we cannot hang about with x millions in the bank not earning their keep! That money has to be used to improve shareholder returns which has been dire these last 20 years. The old guard have had their run its time to move aside and let a new management team take the Co forward. Hendersons / Hemmings were abject in this respect preferring the status quo. With Hemmings reducing and a new large investor on board I hope they will agitate for change but mostly they (iis) are a conservative bunch not much taken to the 'risk' side of business. Of course Odier might herald a new broom at the top we shall have to see but carrying on as per usual....that will not do!

Lombard Odier Asset Managers picked up 25.41% balancing Hendersons sells.

Hendersons cash in most of their chips selling down to below 5% from 27%. Shares unmoved on the announcement.

Holders might be pleased they were scaled back as one can now sell at above tender price. Looks like the mrkt likes Spo holding chunks of cash.....that surprises me. We shall have to see how investors react when that cash pile disappears up a gum tree!

Cap'n you want to reward the board for what is coming!?......a bit premature doncha think? Anyways aside from a moan pis can do now't about it other than sell out. The compound interest case due to be heard in July, if they can find a judge would be very advantageous for Spo should Littlewoods prevail. Our sale of the pools is fully priced in though whether any cap gains is due/has to be recognised this year i doubt...yet. So far the jury is out on whether tendering was the right thing to do, time will on that one. Sooner or later we will have to use our cash to boost shareholder returns either by entering the dividend list or buying profits. There must be hundreds of good businesses in the US which would fit nicely into our Venues division whose profits are tiny atm. I look forward to hearing what plans the board has to grow the business without the regular free cash from the pools. If they can it would damm nearly be a first!

China rescind Brazil meat embargo excepting deliveries from the 21 meat depots under investigation.

No doubt there is an opportunity for Zamchik to step in and turn this into a long term arrangement to supply. However many a slip....Unfortunately.

Noses in trough again!! Nil cost options awarded to board members under spurious incentive/performance plans! What does the average pis receive. ...sfa! Heh guys...Three cheers for our wonderful board!!

The mrkt must like us holding a chunk of cash on the balance sheet as the shares trade over 100 so could hardly reflect profits post---pools. Just our luck if the sp takes off....Wonder how many pis tendered or part tendered their shares? I know of 4 who cashed out completely having had a 'good run' It's always a risk that the stock price won't behave the way you think it should, as in this case so having a 50:50 bet looked the way to go should your initial assumption, that the sp would fall not materialise.....at least you will have a stake in the upside. Still too early to be sure of the sp trend as a lot depends on future US news/action and how the board intends to use our cash. They cannot hang about. Penrose & Co have had many months considering options 'over there'.....now would be a good time to let us know! have a stake in the upside.

Two big sell trades of 2.8m went through the ticker at 18/18.05. Someone's got fed up waiting around for the sp to reflect fair value. Seems if it don't happen instantly these days...well sayonara baby! There's merit in that cos if it don't it probably won't. Wish I'd known that years ago.

Well its done now...onwards & upwards.....(when the pools is concluded) hope no last minute hitches! Be looking to buy back lower in the months ahead....if I'm right! ( Lol.)

A couple of people i know never re'cd the info re the tender offer.... one of the drawbacks of being in a nominee holding! Unless your broker is on the ball chances are you will hear nothing so will have to chase the info yourself. On this occasion you won't be much disadvantaged as you could have got 101.17 in the market. However if the offer price had been 115.....you would not be best pleased! HL were on the ball with the various options sent to you on your mob. We will hear today how many shares were tendered for cancellation.

Horse Racing gambling Web site 123gaming is launching a £1m equity crowd funding campaign, with £100k already secured from Sportech. It hopes to use funds to upgrade it's US website and launch in the UK.

A small premium (1-1.5) is on the cards if you tender your shares. Given that this is aimed at pis my guess is you will not be scaled back So say on a 10k holding you will be better off by around £162. Not great but at 101.5 it was designed to be 'scroogelike' though to be fair if they had gone down the dividend route can't see a 2-3p divi being offered...can you? No, a 1p max! Tuesday we will get the results of nos tendered and monies on the 28th. Will you be buying back if the shares slip into the 90's or below?

$100 fall off in the OP price since Jan'17...just as well were not selling yet.

In the interest of keeping track of Spo I have decided to tender 75% of my holding so as to have a stake in the future of the co and so I can legitimately waffle on this board! Should the shares fall back I will be in a position to buy if I wanted. Still don't trust the sp at this level bearing in mind the fall off in the co profits this year. No doubt the sp is supported by our cash & compound interest claim to some extent so we will have to wait & see how things pan out. Realistically 70 looks right but wtfdik?

Last I heard... " this claim is on hold pending the outcome of Littlewoods Retail & others v HMRC scheduled to be heard in July '17. Previously the Court of Appeal unanimously upheld the High Court decision that the tax payer was entitled to interest on a compound basis on the loss of interest on the over payment of vat"......I think I remember reading that this might be in the region of the vat awarded to Spo (£97m) but that's not substantiated. If Littlewoods win their case in the SC do Spo have to go through a separate trial or are our claims automatically agreed to? I think there will be a lot of argy-bargy as to the amounts in question and the time frame extremely uncertain going on our vat experiences. The odds look favourable that Littlewoods will be successful and if so Spo will benefit which might persuade holders to stay with Spo pending the outcome. I'm having second thoughts....

Atm the market are not going to give holders much if any premium to tender their shares outside of dealing costs which for most of us on Internet deals pay c £12. So saving £12 is better than nothing i guess if you add in perhaps a 1p premium. Whatever by holding your taking a fair bit on trust that Spo can reinvent itself to become a Co that produces increasing rev's & profits on a reasonably consistent basis in the US when past history tells a different story. No doubt Spo is well placed in a sector I like but the management is unproven. You would almost be investing in a new venture without the cash flow provided by the pools partly made up by our cash in the bank. Somehow the pools revenues will have to be replaced as soon as possible by using our cash to make aquisitions (we won't be able to grow the R& V businesses quick enough) that will plug this hole as soon as possible as the cash will soon run out. That is an added risk that buying a related business may not perform as expected. Any aquisition has risk attached so if we are looking to spend c $100m it better be a profit earner from day 1. Just a few thoughts on what I think needs to happen when everything is signed sealed & delivered. I'm sure you guys can think of others if your intending to stay for the second coming of Sportech!

When Hemmings bought Littlewoods pools (£160m) and reversed it into Rodime a new co (Sportech was created)..thats about all I can remember. As to the details im afraid they are long lost as I had a clear out of all cuttings and c/notes on the deal. But your right Spo has been a very poor investment for years and years, well excepting this year when you could have bought in the low 50's. Not much help I'm afraid. I thought I may have some stuff on the Littlewoods / Rodime deal but alas I found nothing.