Roundtable Discussion; The Future of Mineral Sands. Watch the video here.
Mayanya. Can we dispel this idea that the financing be delayed due to high rates at the moment. The facility is Libor linked so will reduce as rates decline. The delay is costing around £500,000 (my guesstimate) a month due to the rediculously high rate of the Riverstone debt. So lets be clear, the promised refinancing over a year ago is not only another failed promise but cost us shareholders dearly.
Second, we have been led to believe that cash flow is covering the huge increses in spending on as yet, purely speculative ventures and mass hiring of staff. However, i am concerned at the mention of legal charges over Appledore (freehold asset) which was bought out of shareholder funds. Has it actually been mortgaged to pay those bills?
As for a child or pet...wait til you have been waiting more than four years for the light at the end of the tunnel. Yes, the business is building nicely but way behind promised revenues. Disappointment after Disappointment wears a little thin after a while. Four years in on a five year plan you would expect some recognition of value to be reflected...sadly, we (share price) languish down 66% from the outset. HW still has not built a ship, trawler, tug over that time (barges are not ships) and the only one on the order book is courtesy of the government and a Spanish yard.
The cold hard truth is that the Bod have failed miserably. For years they have talked about the 50% of coastal fabrication capacity. Well how has that worked out?
2022 revenues were missed bug time...2023 missed big time as even £90m would be a miss as 2022 revenues are included.
At some point, the huge spend over the last four years has to be put into perspective. Over £200m has been spent but we still dont have new business x UK gov.
To elaborate. Saipem (failed contract) was a customer of the previous owner. Sea Rose is old custoner of the yard.
So much for five business sectors. Yes, a few cruise ships having a wash and brush up. No wind farm yet despite numerous contracts going to European and asian yards. Cory is the exception but again, they are not ships.
The order backlog is, ex FSS very worrying as it has no traction. By now, £200m revenues should be a walk in the park minimum with £300-400m forecast for 2025. The lack of clarity on all fronts is why the shares languish at close to all time low and I suspect, many long term shareholders have cut their losses already.
Unless a significant improvement in clarity, a significant broadening of the customer base, there is a case to question the very handsome remuneration achieved by management. Some thought has to be given to losses of real people who put up hard earned cash to help two people realise their dream. Perhaps they can show some empathy.
I think we should go on a buying strike until we get to 6p. This seller is content with lower and lower prices so why not get it down quickly. At some point, with the market capitalisation nearing £10m , it might spur the management to give a flying f**k about shareholders.
Firstly, Lloyds is a totally mature business so no comparison can be mafe on the outcome of the buy back. Second, if you really believe, as management, all tne amazing hype you have given shareholders then be bold and show the world you not only mean but you are willing to back yourself. If debt costs you say 8% but you believe your revenues can grow c100% pa over the coming years...then that 8% cost pals into insignificance with returns for investors many many times that. Hw at some point need to back themselves because at 10p no one else believes them.
The theme of share buy backs continues at pace with Barclays, Inter Continental Hotels and Plus 500 all announcing fresh buy backs today. This, in my opinion, continues to highlight to significant undervaluation of UK companies vs global markets.
In other news, Iron ore hits a fresh 3 month low as Chinas property market continues its woes. Steel is down around 20% since the start of the year.
UK electricy and gas continues its precipitous decline, now around 50% since November 2023. Friday will see OFGEM release the April quarter energy pricing which will spur fresh interest rate cut demands.
If HW believe their future is so bright as evidenced by mass hirings from apprenticeships to top management, then at £18m mkt cap, NOT doing a share buyback looks more and more poor judgement. If they have money to venture off piste into such high risk things as the I o S then they can spare a few £m to vasty improve ROI, EPS when the revenues/earnings finally hit the sun lit uplands. Maybe the fact that our CFO has not invested more than pocket money tells you all you need to know.
Yes Si, held not help...although HELP is what I scream each day when I a) see no update on the various businesses we are now involved with...many outside the original scope of my investment over 4 years ago and b) when i see my P and L each day getting bigger...sadly in the red!
So looking at the main shareholders on the HW web site, i guess just 25-30% of shares are tightly held. The rest are, in my opinion, free float. Not in the sense of them being avaliable to be rid of entirely but in a sense that they are likely to sell into a big rally with a view to buying back lower. Its a covered bear position.
I reckon i have bought 200,000 in 2024 so moped up some of them.
Si. A lot of those shares are help by brokers so they are free float too.
I believe that one seller has offloaded around 2,500,000 (possibly upto 3.5m) so far in 2024. The way the block seller (mainly 50ks) behaves it would appear it the same account. Why this is happening is anyones guess but until they are done, we aint going anywhere.
Bermondsey. Quite right to point out the changes on offsetting losses to reduce corporation tax. Sadly, the pre 2017 losses, which i guess we dont have, could be used in full in one year. Post 2017, as you say, only £5m but that is every profitable year until the losses are offset. So you are right, the offset will take time but for a sub £20mkt cap, £5m profit is a good performance. Of course, if we hit £500m revenues as predicted, £5m offset will not be a huge factor. Thanks for the clarity
Scaffman. With reference to your last comment, I would estimate £250m to breakeven. Of course, the various business sectors have a variety of gross profit margin. I am working on an annual cost base of around £70m. If the finance deal gets signed soon, it is possible that could be slighly lower. Just my opinion.
We must not lose sight of the significant historical losses which will be used to offset profits thus negating the corporation tax liability.
Hi Alanos. I use IG too and my trades are reported as per traded. I believe the 50s are the same seller. We have seen a decent imbalance of buys over sells today but we are lower. The seller is clearly still firm and MMs know it. Until we get clarity from the Bod, the detractors will continue to persuade some that the end is nigh.
Bae hits fresh all time high and Bab willy a fresh 4 year high. Both up 10% this year alone. Clearly that recent Daily Telegraph article was directed at HW despite it being negative on the entire UK defence industry.
The block seller (50,000) is still around and crushing every attempt to rally the price.
I recall exactly this type of ever present seller when the price plumbed the depths of 6p prior to the FSS win.
I willl keep buying but given this sellers shadow, will lower my appetite and price until we get some update. Currently feel like a mushroom...and we all know what they thrive on.
In a weeks time, OFGEN will set the April 1st pricing of energy for the upcoming quarter. Current gas and electricity levels suggest a reduction of upto 20% from the January pricing. If confirmed, analysts will likely predict a return to the BoEs inflation target by May. EU gas storage is forecst to be at 50% by the spring vs the 35% seasonal norm. French nuclear power generation is nearly back to normal vs last years significant difficulties. Interest rate sensitive investments will likely remain risk on in this scenario. The recent bid/merger for Redrow would confirm industry agrees with the timing. The undervalued UK markets would benifit from the chancellor firming up his proposal for investor incentives.
Exactly Si...yes. the outstanding issues of interest are potentially a massive game changer which would propel HW into being recognised as a significant player in UK manufacturing. You omitted the green tugs which were announced to great fanfare but has since sunk without a trace. Tooo many fingers in tooo many pies with no follow up. Its like a scatter gun approach to business without focus on returns. Maybe, just maybe i am being disingenuous but the share price is confirming a lack of confidence in this very idea.
Reading the tape, buys have out weighed sells by two to one recently with a roughly 100,000 share surplus of buys. Either the market makers have a lot of stock they are selling or they are working a large sell order. Time will tell but positive that a wider shareholder base.
Philip1976. Its interesting that back in August, the company issued an RNS for the Sunshine vessel which had a contract value of only £800,000 but now, we get radio silence when far greater issues are at stake. I understand that the Sunshine was a first of its class to be undertaken but as shareholders, recent vessel arrivals and projected arrivals appear on the surface to be significant revenue providers which have a material impact on annual forecasts. That coupled with the ongoing Scilly isles debacle, smacks of keeping us in the dark. Just my opinion.
No, not my fettish. I decided to test the water. Bought 25k at 10.94 (showing as sell) then saw them print at 10.92 so bought another 10100k at 10.92. Clearly there is a stock overhang. Why?
Maybe the boards clear disinterest in the well being of shareholders
?. So much is going on that has a meaningful impact on the companies future, yet we are kept in the dark.
One last chance for them. If no meaningful clarity on the main issues by end Feb, then I think we, as shareholders, need to ask some serious questions as to how they are using and spending our money...for that is what it is.
Once again they come out hating HW. Lewis Page writes in general about the UK defence production capability but gives HW a particularly good kicking. The company should consider suing the him. It smacks of a concerted attempt to bring the compamy down. The timing is curious given the large block selling during the last month. Maybe just me thinking conspiracy theories but stranger things have happened.